People talk about the dumbing down of America as if it's an ongoing thing. I don't think so. I think we're there - at least we've forgotten many of the basic things we should take for granted.

For instance, remember when stories we told our kids ended with, "The moral of the story is …"

Yeah, yeah, the morals always seemed boring and preachy, but more often than not, they held true in real life.

For instance, remember the story about the tortoise and the hare ¦ The moral of the story is the race does not always go to the swiftest and the fastest. Nobody buys that story any more, at least not in America.

Nope, if big is good, bigger is better. America has bought into style over substance.

Intangibles? They're insignificant - at least at the highest levels of sports in America.

Look at the NCAA tournament.

Digger Phelps, Jim Nantz and Billy Packer howled like someone kicked their dog when the Missouri Valley Conference received four bids. Their objection was, of course, that the bigger, stronger, faster players dotting the rosters of the Big East, ACC and SEC also rans were more capable than their counterparts in the MVC.

Phelps added a cheap shot, calling the SIU-Bradley MVC championship game ugly basketball.

What? Aesthetics count? Did someone add a third column in the standings? Wins, losses and pretty?

Oops - two Valley teams, Bradley and Wichita State, made it to the Sweet 16 and George Mason of the Colonial Athletic Conference is in the Final Four. Yeah, Kansas was bigger and faster than Bradley. On the other hand, Bradley players worked their tails off, defended and beat a more talented team.

It wasn't a stylish win, it was a substance kind of thing.

Not convinced?

Look at what has happened to the United States in international basketball competition. We stock our national team with the best players from the NBA, yet, we're not dominating, or even winning gold medals.

How about the recent World Baseball Classic?

A roster of top major league players didn't even make the finals. Cuba advanced to the finals without a single major league player. Japan won the event with just two major leaguers on its roster.

Hmmm, maybe hitting behind the runner, throwing to the right base, taking an extra base and hustling on every play isn't over-rated.

Didn't Americans once consider hard work and diligence virtues? Can we really expect our biggest and best athletes, the guys who drive Porsches to the park, to dive for a foul ball?

And, how soon we forget.

It was just 26 years ago when a rag-tag group of amateur hockey players upset the Russians to win the gold medal.

Do you believe in miracles?

Apparently so … as long as someone else does the dirty work.

LES WINKELER is the interim sports editor for The Southern Illinoisan. Contact him at les.winkeler@thesouthern.com, or call (618) 529-5454 ext. 15088.