According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of a lockout is the withholding of employment by an employer and the whole or partial closing of the business establishment in order to gain concessions from or resist demands of employee.

Confused already?

According to National Hockey League owners, the definition is intentionally locking out the players in order to rip off the players for as much money as they can.

According to fans, like myself, the definition is a ridiculously long process that involves grown men acting like cry babies over millions of dollars while depriving the average American of his or her sports.

In the past two years alone, fans have had to deal with that “L” word in three of America’s four major sporting organizations: the NBA, the NFL and now the NHL.

It gets even worse when you consider the NFL locked out its referees as well. We all know how that went.

What happened to touchdowns and dunks? Now all sports fans can talk about is collective bargaining and player pensions.

Let’s move down a level and hit on Division 1 collegiate sports. While you won’t have to deal with lockouts, you will have to deal with more scandals than a Britney Spears’ night on the town.

The latest hullabaloo involves former University of North Carolina basketball star Tyler Hansbrough and his mother. Tami Hansbrough allegedly used money that was raised by UNC to fund trips to see Tyler play at away games. Reports have also surfaced that she used some of the money to see her other son Ben play as well. Ben is currently playing for Notre dame.

Scandals and improper benefits are prevalent throughout Division 1 sports and I won’t even get into Penn State’s issues.

I’ll move yet another level down, to our own backyard. Community college sports are all around us. In fact, outside of the Olympics, they may be the last pure athletic competition left.

While the New York Yankees are busy trying to buy a World Series, our very own Cosumnes River College Hawks baseball team went out and won a state championship. By the way, none of those players are paid and none of them had a home field to call their own.

While San Francisco Giants outfielder Melky Cabrera was busy taking steroids, Hawks outfielder Colby Brenner was busy stealing 29 bases, making him second in the state in that category.

And while Los Angeles Lakers forward Dwight Howard was busy asking for a trade from the Orlando Magic, CRC was busy hosting the 2012 Basketball State Championships.

Our view of professional sports may be from The Cheap Seats, but make no mistake, the fans do not miss anything. We simply want our sports, we’ll buy the $10 beers and the $5 hot dogs if that’s what it takes to see our teams in action.

But why?

We get the same sports at our own school for less than $10 a game. We don’t have to deal with lockouts or scandals, we simply get to enjoy the competition.

So next time you turn on ESPN and hear about a lockout, don’t fret. CRC and community college athletics have you covered.