# Who cares if you hate sports? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 9, 2004, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841 "2004-12-09T00:04:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/21 "2004-12-09T01:19:58Z")
In all seriousness…(sorry) I hate sports. It leaves me out of a lot of conversations, yes…but the only time I get actively annoyed is when it directly interferes with something I want to do. Like sports playing over some movie I want to watch. Although this is moot since I never watch TV! I think, if you are respectful to most people about your dislike of sports, most of them are respectful to you right back, and don’t fill up your ear with what you think is Mundane and Pointless. I mean, I don’t bother to talk to people about my hobbies once we have established they hate them…that would just be stupid! What I do hate is the very rare person who insists on talking to you about sports anyway. But that’s not a sports thing, that’s just a rude thing. Anyway, back to your regularly scheduled Pitting. I thank my lucky stars I have a guy who cares even less about sports than I do! ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/22 "2004-12-09T01:31:55Z")
Oh, I’ve met plenty of people who are very _concerned_ about my apathy of sports. I won’t say that I actively “hate” sports (baseball is okay in theory, but I rarely sit through a game), I just don’t _care_. Don’t care don’t care don’t care. So I move to this town that has, shall we say, a higher percentage of sports-obsessed people than I previously knew existed. And they really, _really_ think that I should start caring about sports. Because it’s a big deal to _them_, and to everybody they know. But I don’t CARE and nothing they say will make me care. I don’t know why _they_ care that sports is not interesting to me. It used to be that I simply didn’t give a damn, but sometimes the local sports obsession (which does seem way out of whack to my sensibilities) just pisses me off. But I don’t _tell_ people that they are stupid (because I don’t think they are) or that I’m “better” than they are\* (I’m not), but I **don’t want to hear about it.** I don’t want to rain on their parade, I don’t want to squelch their enjoyment—heaven knows, we all deserve a little enjoyment—but when they start bugging _me_ about it that’s too much. \*I am, however, “better” than those folks who feel that it is their mission in life to convert everyone into a big football fan, or whatever. Leave me alone. ---
**Author:** ![tnetennba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tnetennba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tnetennba)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/23 "2004-12-09T01:37:38Z")
Come on, yosemite. Just a little NFL. You want us to think you’re cool, don’t you? So why not just watch a quarter? Come on. What are you, chicken? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/24 "2004-12-09T01:37:47Z")
> [@Rufus Xavier](#): > > You know, I really dislike people who hate people who don’t care about people who hate sports. > I think. Ooooh, you had a good degree of difficulty on that, but you stumbled on the dismount. I don’t hate sports, myself. I’m just tired of the amount of attention given to the professional leagues. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/25 "2004-12-09T01:52:59Z")
> [@cricetus](#): > > Sports are part of our culture, and professing your pride in your lack of knowledge and interest is similar to someone boasting that they’ve never read a book or hate all forms of music. That’s a false analogy. Lots of things are part of our “culture” as you term it. Britney Spears, Janet Jackson’s “wardrobe malfunction”, the innumerable and tiresome “Survivor” clones. Nothing says any of them are worth knowing anything about. Plus, there’s a world of difference between the hyper-mediafied organized sports populated with barely literate multi-millionaires which people pay outrageous sums of money to see, and legitimate amateur sports where there’s not so much of the media “SELL SELL SELL!” content. Or personal sports, such as competing in your office softball team, or Corporate Challenge events. I actively hate nearly all mediafied popular sports. And in my extremely male-dominated office, my co-workers yammer for hours each week about some college player this and some team that…and the problem is, they’re focused on that and that alone. They’re not balancing a love of organized sports with other things - it’s basically their life. They haven’t read a book or magazine in 10 years that didn’t have “…sports…” in the title, or wasn’t written by a player of organized sports. Nearly every client I meet is the same way - 110% sports crazed, their offices littered with massively overpriced paraphenalia and souveniers. I can’t talk to my co-workers. I can’t talk to them about art, music, science (pretty fucking bad in an office full of engineers and scientists!), news, politics, history…nothing matters but sports. If I open with “So, did you see that the Supreme Court is considering whether allowing interstate wine shipments…” or “Hey, did you all see that there’s going to be a new pre-raphaelite exhibit at the gallery” or even “Hey, Crystal Method is in town”, you can actually see their eyes glaze over at they much their doughnuts. Then they go back to discussing how some _high school basketball player_ is looking good to be recruited. Nothing matters except their precious baseball, basketball, and of course, football. I mean, it’s so bad _they were not even interested in the freaking Olympics!_ The Olympics were something I actually actively watched, and they were talking baseball! And they aren’t interested in personal sports that they themselves might participate in, oh no, nor amateur. At least those I respect. So getting around to my point at last, I do develop a bias against sport as an oppositional-defiant thing when the topic of sports comes up. And I do tell them that I’m glad I don’t know what they’re talking about. Because I am so fucking sick to shit of being surrounded by people IRL who are dead to the rest of the world, and I am proud each and every day that I have not been reduced to a one-trick cultural pony as they have. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/26 "2004-12-09T01:58:38Z")
> [@cricetus](#): > > Well, suppose a couple of fellows were talking about opera, mechanical engineering, the best places to eat in Toronto, or the care and feeding of pet wallabies. I could say, in candor, that I had no knowledge of the subject and no interest in it _Fag_. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/27 "2004-12-09T02:01:00Z")
I don’t hate sports. At least, I don’t think I do. I enjoy watching football, particularly live, and can deal with watching many other sports. But I don’t go out of my way to watch any (I don’t have tv, so I’d have to go to a friend’s house to watch the game). Given the choice, I’d rather watch a movie. But I don’t care about sports. I couldn’t tell you which teams are in the running for the Super Bowl, or who holds the home run record for a season, or about any of the trades that have happened, ever. In college, a bunch of my friends who were much more interested in sports started up a fantasy football league, and I joined in, thinking that by participating, I’d get more interested. That didn’t really work. I just ended up picking the guys with funny names. I do get frustrated, though, when I’m with a group of people who can’t seem to find anything else to talk about. I have _nothing_ to add, and they have no other interests. Several of my male relatives seem practically obsessed with sports, and while I would be more than happy to watch the game with them when it’s on, and cheer along with the rest of them, I can’t even begin to participate in the endless discussions of leagues and trades and races and history. When they read, they read coach biographies and Sports Illustrated; I can’t talk to them about books. So I feel left out and alienated by it. I don’t think they’re knuckle-draggers; I just wish they’d talk about something else. I’ve learned that the best way to deal with someone starting a sports conversation with me is to shrug and say that I don’t really follow sports. There’s always an uncomfortable pause afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/28 "2004-12-09T02:05:19Z")
How about the ultimate comeback that any true sports fanatic will tell you after you inform them that you don’t care about their sport of interest: “You just don’t understand game. If you knew about it, you would realize how complex it is and you would love it.” ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/29 "2004-12-09T02:09:58Z")
The truth is, they’re just Soap Operas for men. Folks get into THE PLAYERS and THE TEAMS, not so much the sport itself-- that’s just background drama. Ask a football nut to watch two teams he’s never seen before (with players he hasn’t seen either) and it’ll take a while before he really gets into it. In fact, it take until he gets a feel for the particular players he’s watching. ---
**Author:** ![davenportavenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f8ce5/32.png) [@davenportavenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davenportavenger)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/30 "2004-12-09T02:14:05Z")
I don’t care about sports. I also don’t care about reality television, popular music, 95% of current movies, lawyer novels, fashion, pop psychology books, pregnancy, childcare, expensive jewelry, or cars. You can just imagine how popular I am. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/31 "2004-12-09T02:18:05Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > How about the ultimate comeback that any true sports fanatic will tell you after you inform them that you don’t care about their sport of interest: “You just don’t understand game. If you knew about it, you would realize how complex it is and you would love it.” I would ask them what their favorite chess opening was. ---
**Author:** ![tnetennba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tnetennba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tnetennba)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/32 "2004-12-09T02:26:12Z")
> [@continuity eror](#): > > I don’t care about sports. > > I also don’t care about reality television, popular music, 95% of current movies, lawyer novels, fashion, pop psychology books, pregnancy, childcare, expensive jewelry, or cars. > > You can just imagine how popular I am. Yes, I can imagine. It must comfort you to know that you are unpopular because you’re so much more sophisticated, and not because you’re an insufferable snob or anything like that. ---
**Author:** ![tnetennba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tnetennba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tnetennba)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/33 "2004-12-09T02:29:15Z")
> [@iamthewalrus(:3=](#): > > I would ask them what their favorite chess opening was. I usually go with the English, especially when I’m white. ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/34 "2004-12-09T02:31:05Z")
> [@John Mace](#): > > The truth is, they’re just Soap Operas for men. Folks get into THE PLAYERS and THE TEAMS, not so much the sport itself-- that’s just background drama. Ask a football nut to watch two teams he’s never seen before (with players he hasn’t seen either) and it’ll take a while before he really gets into it. In fact, it take until he gets a feel for the particular players he’s watching. I think you just identified the core of the matter, **John**. The actual sport isn’t all important compared to the degree of personal identification. And that’s something you either get or don’t get. (To me it’s like becoming emotionally involved in one corporation versus another, because that’s who pro sports are. Same goes for most school athletics too, actually. Obviously I don’t get it. I don’t like opera either. I don’t hate sports. I just completely indifferent about most of 'em. Once in a while I might get about 5 minutes appreciation out of watching the physical grace and skill of a game of some sort, but as far as 1. knowing or 2. caring who wins? Nah. It’s a bit of a drag when sports are used a sort of default basis for bonding, especially in work and some social settings, but it’s no big deal to just listen quietly…or even wander away if it runs on too long. FWIW there’ve only been a few times where a rabid sports fan has ever pushed about my ignorance/indifference. It was easy to shrug off their bad manners, and so is shrugging off jerks who make an equally obnoxious point of not liking sports. This is a minor offense in the vast array of cloddishness, IMO. But I’m low maintenance. YMMV. Veb ---
**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/35 "2004-12-09T02:31:22Z")
> [@cricetus](#): > > I myself hate green x, especially with ham. \ ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/36 "2004-12-09T02:38:43Z")
> [@cricetus](#): > > I usually go with the English, especially when I’m white. What does race have to do with your opening chess move? ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/37 "2004-12-09T03:33:34Z")
> [@iamthewalrus(:3=](#): > > I would ask them what their favorite chess opening was. My favorite opening move is the pawn. Straight ahead. Usually one or two squares. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/38 "2004-12-09T03:55:52Z")
> [@Elenia28](#): > > Like sports playing over some movie I want to watch. Although this is moot since I never watch TV! Is this a joke, or are you really this insane? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/39 "2004-12-09T04:00:06Z")
Hey, guess what? Lots of people like sports. So it’s a common denominator. Not the _lowest_ common denominator, before the holier-than-thous jump all over that one, but, in a large group of people it’s a pretty safe common ground. And what’s even more fun about it, is that if I don’t like your sport or team or league or whatever, we can then talk about whose is better and why! What fun, what fun! Discourse! Now, if you’re new to the conversation, and you say you don’t like whatever we happen to be talking about, we will try to explain and draw you in. But, if you don’t wan’t to be drawn in, then find other people with whom you can converse, because we’re taling about sports. I wouldn’t sit down in the middle of your Ginsberg reading and demand that you all discuss the neutral-zone trap with me, so why should we have to interrupt our dissection of the cover-2 just because you want to talk about the levels of symbolism in the works of Margaret Atwood? People seem to talk about sports more than other things because more people have sports in common than anything else. I love hockey and my New Jersey Devils. That’s not my only interest, but if you put me in a room with ten other people, I can talk hockey with them or sports in general with them long before I’d ever even attempt to bring up William Carlos Williams, simply because it’d be pedantic and domineering if I did the latter, while I can be a part of but not the focus of the conversation about the former. Don’t like sports? Say so, smile and nod, or go somewhere else. We’re not Neanderthals, we just don’t like what you like. And the only people who have ever tried to deconstruct sports as conversational default are the people that don’t understand sport. If you don’t love it, you won’t ever be able to put your finger on what makes others love it. So just relax and enjoy. Or don’t. But it’s a little hypocritical to refuse to involve yourself in our discussion and then condemn our unwillingness to switch over to **your** pet topic of conversation. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2004, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841/40 "2004-12-09T04:02:14Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > What does race have to do with your opening chess move? Simple common sense, whether it’s chess or boxing: “Never bet on the white guy.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-cares-if-you-hate-sports/278841.md?page=3)