Obsolete Technologies

The Washington Post examined 209 items of technology, such as cassette tapes and physical currency, and social conventions, such as blind dates and body hair, that are on their way out.  Here’s what the article has to say about short basketball shorts:

The practice of playing games in retro uniforms is common in basketball now; it gives teams another jersey to sell at the concession stands. But last December, in a game against the Boston Celtics, the Los Angeles Lakers took it one step further — they wore throwback shorts. As in short shorts. For anyone who has mourned the days when a player’s full legs were as conspicuous as his tats, it was a moment of glory.

A brief one. The Lakers immediately fell behind. Despite a halftime change to the usual baggy, floor-scraping uniforms, the players were so shellshocked from the sight of their upper thighs that they lost.

“I don’t know what it feels like to wear a thong,” said Kobe Bryant after the game. “But I imagine it feels something like what we had on in the first half. I felt violated. I felt naked.”

Link via Evangelical Outpost