It is up to parents to
decide for their family whether to allow their child to start, or continue, playing football, not some present or former player, journalist or scientist who takes the position that football is either too dangerous to be played
by anyone or safe enough to be played
by all (October 25, 2015 update: this is exactly the position adopted
by the American Academy of Pediatrics in its 2015 Policy Statement on Tackling in Youth Football in which it leaves parents - presumably in consultation with their child's
pediatrician - to «
decide whether the potential health risks of sustaining... injuries [in tackle football] are outweighed
by the recreational benefits associated with proper tackling»); and