Editorial

Life is full of auditions, interviews and tryouts. And with those come

disappointments and successes.

You can’t always please those determining the final cut. And that’s

the way it goes. Though it sounds like common sense, it’s become obvious

in the past week that some people don’t get it.

At Newport Harbor High School, a judging panel -- not the school’s

13-year cheerleading coach -- decides who makes the cheerleading squad.

And it seems now, the panel’s decision wasn’t well-received by dejected

cheerleaders.

Meanwhile, over at Corona del Mar High School, a parent has sued the

baseball coach, claiming the coach made statements that hurt his son’s

chances for college recruitment.

Coach John Emme claims the student, who didn’t play his senior year,

has never pitched faster than 80 mph, which most recruiters look for.

In the cheerleading case, the result has been cries of

inconsistencies in the judging, hurt feelings for many young

impressionable girls and an early quick-fix solution by Principal Michael

Vossen to let all the girls become part of the junior and varsity teams.

That proved disastrous later as the district rescinded that and

decided the integrity of the judging process and the judging panel should

be upheld, but then left the final decision to an independent committee

comprised of parents and a school staff member.

The committee decided that those who didn’t make the team should try

out again. The cheerleaders now are gathering signatures to keep all the

girls on the two teams. But Vossen will make the final decision.

Clearly, this is a mess that could have been avoided. But the bigger

lesson that seems to be lost on these young students, both the

cheerleaders and the baseball player, is that there are real reasons why

some don’t and may never make the cut.

That is just how the world works.

We urge teachers and parents to use this opportunity to explain to

their students and children that disappointments happen. It’s just a fact

of life.

Instead of blaming others and even in extreme examples, filing a

lawsuit, we encourage our youth to work and try harder, and they will

learn that with a little luck, success will happen.

That, too, is a fact of life.