A Ban On Moshing?

If you go to a concert for any kind of rock band, it's almost a guarantee that you'll see some form of moshing going on. In a mosh pit, people jump around, push and shove others, and crowdsurf. It's easy for a mosh pit to get hectic, and even easier for it to turn into chaos and get dangerous. Because of this, many concert venues are prohibiting moshing. Some people are trying to get moshing banned everywhere, for example, talking about trying to pass laws banning moshing in every venue in one state.

In my opinion, particular venues have the right to prohibit moshing. It's up to their discretion whether or not they want moshing to take place, and I can understand that they would not want to be held liable for any injuries that might take place in a mosh pit. However, I believe that completely banning moshing in an entire state would be a horrible move. Moshing is what many people attend concerts for. They want to feel the rush of participating in a potentially dangerous activity, just like one would get a rush from skydiving or bungee jumping. Moshing has become a part of alternative culture, and to take that away would upset a huge number of concertgoers everywhere.

Many concertgoers against moshing will say that besides the obvious danger, a mosh pit obstructs the view of others at the show who aren't moshing, making it hard for them to enjoy the show. If someone who doesn't enjoy moshing or is inexperienced tries to go into the pit to get a better view, they risk getting hurt. For the sake of fairness, these people want to do away with moshing. To this, my response is that it's impossible for every single concertgoer to have a perfect experience. If a person finds themselves unable to see, they will have to be creative to find a way to get a better view, say, by moving to another area, or getting up on a taller friend's shoulders. It's not ideal, but it needs to be considered that concerts aren't always going to be fair.

Many people who are against moshing also want to protect concertgoers from getting hurt, if not by the practice of moshing itself, but by the other moshers. It's easy for a mosh pit to get out of hand. Many moshers get serious injuries, such as bruises, concussions, lacerations, and broken bones. Other people have been burned by cigarettes or hit with glass bottles, or have even had piercings ripped out. Even though the point of moshing is not to hurt anyone, some people disregard this and deliberately try to inflict pain on other people. In my opinion, this shouldn't be a cause for banning mosh pits. In most cases, the people who cause problems are often escorted out by security, and many will get arrested if things get serious. There will always be a few jerks in a mosh pit looking to start trouble, but it's not right to end something because of a few people who are immature.

I've had my own experiences in mosh pits. I've been hit in the back of the head, shoved, and I've fallen to the floor underneath other people. I've witnessed people lose consciousness in mosh pits (as well as come close to losing my own), get hit in the head with beer bottles, and start fights, having to get lifted out by security. I've seen a friend of mine crowdsurf at a show as a way to get out of the mosh pit. Right after getting lifted, she promptly was dropped, hitting her head off of the floor, which could have easily given her a concussion. However, even with the head pain she had for days after the incident, she never had any regrets. She was aware of the dangers of moshing, and knew that there would be potential consequences for her actions. I think if people are ready to accept the danger that could come in a mosh pit, they should be able to do what they want. I've heard it be compared to the surgeon general's warning on a package of cigarettes: you can choose for yourself whether you want to ignore the danger or not.