The Umpiring Obsession

American society is obsessed with our umpires.  The analysis of the Republican Presidential Debate that aired on CNBC October 28, 2015 seems more focused on the style and foibles of the moderators than the substance and articulation of the candidates.  The questions and control of the forum were, in fact, quite poor, but candidates for one of the most important and powerful offices in the world should be able to deftly handle a few reporters if they are going to lead the United States in domestic and global affairs.

Obviously, our obsession reaches a fever pitch when referee rulings influence the outcomes of our sporting events.  Frame by frame autopsies on split second decisions become fodder for hours of in game and post-game discussion.  Referees do make significant mistakes, but champion teams should provide superior enough performance to negate these occasional errors.

The fundamental reason for our compulsion to criticize these arbiters is our desire for fairness.  In our inherently unequal society we want to observe and support a level playing field in the competition for votes, points, or whatever objective these individuals and groups seek.  When the result does not meet our desires, we are apt to blame the officials.  I am certainly guilty of this rebuke on behalf of teams I support.  With rare exceptions, however, these mistakes are innocent.  The umpires may be wrong, but they put in a good faith effort to support fairness.

This preoccupation, however, is not only a concern in professional sports or national politics.  As a recreational sports referee and college professor who assigns grades, I occasionally find myself on the front lines of this cultural milieu.  To be fair to the kickball teams I umpired this fall, I made mistakes.  I missed things, the sun was in my eyes, and I made a couple of vigorous but wrong safe or out calls.  I understand that it was frustrating, but I can assure everyone that I had no interest in any team winning and my snafus were simply a result of inexperience and human error.  I accept that players might have expressed dissatisfaction, but the best teams still won and I didn’t interfere with anyone’s fun, which is that primary purpose of adult kickball.

Unlike kickball referees, professors stand behind all of their feedback and grading.  We are on the same team as our students.  We much prefer to enjoy an assignment that exceeds expectations and earns high marks than one that requires a bold critique. In a society so focused on referees, however, it is understandable that students or any other party may see any critical arbiter as a biased conspiracist.  It is time to relieve ourselves of the umpiring obsession.