is Dogdeball harmful? the end of a great american sport?

?
Across the United States in several middle and elementary schools the sport of Dodge ball is banned!
I am talking school districts in Virgina, Maryland, Flordia, Texas, Colorado, Massachusetts, and California (ok no surprise there) have banned Dodge ball in middle school and elementary school.
Critics of Dodgeball (and musical chairs, and tag) argue that dodge ball is demeaning to students who suck at the sport. Also tht Dodgeball does not offer any redemming while and promotes bullying, exclusing, injury and my favorite-Humiliation.
HELLO!? I thought that High School promoted those things.

"Hey kids-the world is going to be a really tough place but we're going to make you as soft and vulnerable to it as possible so you grow up weak and unable to coup with the realities of life."

I found one bi-partisan page in the sea of Pros and Cons pages.
Here are some memorable quotes



Con
"The bottom line is kids are being used as targets. And it's not giving children the right message that we want with the violence in society today"
Chet Bunting, Physical Education Teacher

"We take the position that [dodgeball] is not an appropriate instructional activity because it eliminates children and it does not respect the needs of less skilled children"
Judith Young, Executive Director for the NASPE

"Any time you throw an object at somebody, it creates an environment of retaliation and resentment. There is nothing positive that can happen except a bully gets to beat up on little kids"

Thomas Murphy, Physical Education Teacher

"A person trying to record the positive attributes of dodgeball would end up with a very short list…In today's world, with so many things breeding violent behavior in children, there is no room for dodgeball anymore"

Dennis Docheff

Department of Health and Human Performance at Concordia University

"Dodgeball is a mild reestablishment of the Roman custom of throwing cap

tives into the area to fight for survival against gladiators"

Dean Sullivan, Liberation Journal

"[Dodgeball is] an activity that masquerades as a playful game when it is much m

ore akin to a carnival arcade shooting extravaganza"
Scott Crawford, Eastern Illinois University

Pro
"Dodgeball is one of the few times in life when you get to let out your aggression, no questions asked. We don't need less we need more!"
Rick Reilly, Columnist at Sports Illustrated

"I go to dodgeball for two hours, I walk out and I'm calm, completely centered"
Murray Fenstermaker, Member of Tulane Dodgeball League

"[Dodgeball] develops the transferable sport skills of teamwork, quick movements and change of direction, and the importance of keeping your eye on the ball"
Rick Hanetho, NADA Director

"Stopping students from throwing foam balls at each other will not come close to ending the nation's violence in schools"

Steve Gotch, Founder of GAGAVA
^{an organization whose goal is to co}

^{unteract the removal of "violent activities" from the Virginia school system}

"We are all both hunter and prey in the game, and we can master our fears in small quantities"
Ronald Kamm, Leading Sports Psychiatrist

"They Don't Make Americans Like They Use To"- STS