NY MMA Finds a Friend in Senator Harry Reid

I have a theory about aging: enter your sixth or seventh decade and your brain begins to find contemporary culture vile and offensive. It’s a hardwired reaction to change and the idea that the things you enjoyed are perceived as outdated. Because that’s a good indication you’re flirting with death, you reject it.

So I got my psychology degree from a cereal box. So what? Think of the real adversarial attitudes of the anti-MMA contingent: John McCain (59 at the time of his witch hunt), New York Assemblyman Bob Reilly (no age available: I’m guessing late 90s), and a host of other Chicken Littles who believe entertainment is responsible for all the ills in the world. When boxer Benny Paret was beaten to death on live television in 1962, it was the same conversation.

I was happy to learn that there is at least one exception to the rule: Nevada Senator Harry Reid, who is a spry 71 and believes MMA has a place in New York State: in an Associated Press article, Reid said, "I'm going to see what I can do to help in New York… I know a few people in New York. I'm going to see if I can talk a little sense to them. ... I think what they should do is approve the concept and have some great fight cards. It would be great for the state of New York."

Reid later referred to MMA as a “fair street fight,” which isn’t exactly a bold endorsement, but at least he’s open to the potential for audiences to enjoy what they please.

Is this stuntwork by the UFC, which has a hefty presence in the state and invited Reid as a guest to UFC 116? Maybe. Or maybe Reid has the ability to acknowledge that culture goes through this shift in standards every decade without a rise in violent crime to accompany it. If New York hasn’t caught fire with MMA on TV there for years, it’s not likely to start now.