I’m not a big sports fan, but I read up enough on it so I can carry on a conversation intelligently if someone strikes up a conversation about it. If you’re going to live in this world, knowing about a part of our culture that is important to so many people is just common sense.
I do find some aspects of sports fandom interesting, like when the home town team wins a game and fans says, “We won.” The athletes put out the effort, not the fans. The way that some fans identify themselves with their team amazes me. I’m a fan of certain actors, but when they win Oscars or Emmys, I don’t say “We won.” But it’s no weirder than SF fans dressing up like Captain Sheridan at a B5 convention or any other form of hard core devotion to an art form (and sports, IMO, qualifies as an art).
Agreed. However, I nurse deep loathing for people who interpret that my lack of tv ownership is a sign of cultural snobbery. I do not proclaim to be too good for tv whenever people compare notes about favorite shows. Hell, if I suspect that there is going to be water cooler talk about some show, I’ll google a plot summary in advance just so I don’t feel like a total asshole. I used to read the salon.com summaries of that boot camp reality show religiously. Too bad the show was such a disappointment when I was finally able to watch it once.
But if someone looks at me like I have two heads when I say that I did not catch this week’s exciting installment of Whatever and asks me why, I tell them the truth.
I. Don’t. Have. A. TV.
I didn’t have one in college, and I fell out of the habit of watching. I also live in a city where you pretty much need to buy cable, and I just never wanted to spend the money.
So when I say that I don’t have a tv, I am not attacking your sacred fucking cow. I am not telling you that I am too good for you. Yeah, watching sports with some buddies and drinking some beers can be fun every now and again, but my brainpower is far too limited to follow teams and players, and I suppose I just lack the emotional resources to care who wins what. So sue me, I just enjoy watching the games and playing armchair quarterback. I get my drama kick elsewhere.
Little gems like this really make me feel fantastic:
I find it hard to believe that there are people so numb that they can’t appreciate the drama of real life unless they tap into an escapist, media-saturated fantasyland.
Sports fans, I am glad most of you are out there. I like to see people passionate about anything. It breaks up the frequently crippling monotony of life. But if you think there is something wrong with me for not sharing your gusto, then you are not even worth my time to flame.
[QUOTE=Dung Beetle]
INot to mention that the team colors are orange and blue! Could they come up with an uglier color combination if they tried?
[\QUOTE]
Woah woah WOAH. Let’s not get carried away here. Some of us bleed orange and blue.
I thought it was rather obvious what she was saying. RickJay has some ‘splainin’ to do.
What I can’t stand is this conversation:
Some Bozo: “So, you follow football?”
Me: “No, I’m afraid I’m not much of a sports fan.”
Some Bozo: (looks extremely confused for about 5 seconds, decides he misheard me) “So, you think Parcells will trade Nomar to the Bruins for a downcourt center?”*
It’s like he couldn’t possibly fathom the possibility that I’m not a sports fan, and so disregards anything I say that doesn’t confirm his wishful thinking.
*That’s the best I could do for made-up sports banter. Sorry.
[Mr. Show on] I don’t watch television. Notice I said television, because T.V. is a nickname and nicknames are for friends, and television is no friend of mine! [Mr. Show off /]
That’s a false comparison. All of those things are singular instances or fads. Sports have been around for centuries and I think it’s very fair to say they are a critical part of culture around the world and in America.
Yes, sports gets its own section of the newspaper. So does business. Now, I don’t like reading stock charts, I really don’t care much about what SuperDuper Corp. is up to unless it’s big enough to merit placement on the front page of the paper. But I have no objection to the business section being in the paper. Why? Because I am not an island. I know that I live in a large culture where there are things that may be of concern to many but not to me, and I realize that, since I am in a minority, I’m going to have to put up with hearing about those things. That’s just part of being in a civil society. Sports-haters need to accept that.
I would continue on, but Diogenes excellent post on annoying cultural superiority complexes pretty much hit my thoughts on the nose. The only thing I would add is that I’m sick of people thinking they’re awesome because they’ve traveled to some foreign land. I see it in online personal ads all the time: People think bragging about where they’ve traveled to somehow makes them more desirable. It doesn’t, OK? And the problem is only getting worse… now it seems that going to Europe isn’t enough. Now you have to have traveled to South America.
OK, I’ll shut up because I’m getting into hijack territory. But, yeah, superiority complexes suck.
Modern American sports were created by the media. They could have picked something else to populate your mind and you would have fallen for it. Britney Spears and other pop acts are a very apt analogy. Television starts off with idea that they think might work and they run with it. The shear exposure seduces those who are especially vulnerable.
Admitting to skipping of the business pages is a very sad admission on your part. Those business decisions have a direct influence on government policy and your investment portfolio (although it doesn’t sound like you have one or even care).
Yes, sports have been around for centuries. However, pro sports have not.
I have nothing against the idea of sports in general. I think sports are great for keeping people fit and encouraging teamwork. It’s pro sports I have a problem with, because it’s pro sports that’s shoved down our throats (mine anyway–cultural differences here), it’s pro sports that hijacks my favorite shows, it’s pro sports that takes up ten minutes of news a night. Not the institution of sport itself. And anyway, most of the people who are hardcore into pro sports probably couldn’t even play the sports they’re so obsessed with, rendering the “but sports is good for you!” argument moot. (No, I’m not talking to anyone here, just extrapolating from some guys and relatives I know.)
Also I really want to link to the Onion article about the guy who can’t stop talking about how he doesn’t own a television, but the Onion archives went pay. :mad:
