Monday, November 4, 2013

In Defense of Spectator Sports

Sports go way back yo.



Spectator sports. For better or for worse, have existed for a long time. Civilizations for many centuries have rocked their jollies off of the'US vs. Them' frenzy as a form of entertainment and escapism. One can say it's human nature's throwback to our .




Take me for example. Although I dabbled in a few sports clubs during my formative years, I was never a big time athlete growing up. Not to give too much about myself away, but I'm a New England Sports fan. Especially a Patriots fan. I luckily grew up and came of age when their teams we're really making a name for themselves and winning many titles.



To me, sports is a fun and entertaining form of escape. I get to watch a bunch of men or women on the field, ice, or court pull of amazing, strategic feats with their body and hope that they pull off a hard fought win. It's especially enjoyable when I get to to do this with people near and dear to me such as my family and close friends. It's often a great bridge and bonding experience with people I've just met or people I'm usually more formal and guarded with such as co-workers, and acquaintances.



Teams like the Patriots, Red Sox, and Celtics pulled championships during my middle school and high school years. And the Bruins made many great playoff runs, and won the Stanley Cup during the summer of my senior year of college. I remember those wins being very gratifying and enjoyable during my school years, and having the whole school rejoicing for the whole day after. The Red Sox recently pulled a miraculous franchise turn around from worse to first within just one year. They were able to come together and prevail with renewed vigor just a few months after the heinous marathon bombings and sealed a championship win at home. All of which was an amazing spectacle to watch. With that said, even if New England Sports teams takes a nose dive next decade, and don't get anywhere near a championship till I died, I will still PROUDLY FOLLOW MY TEAMS TO THE BITTER END.



The 2013 Boston Red Sox are World Series Champions. DEAL WITH IT!



Many people who don't follow or care for spectator sports would have contention with the last sentence below. Who is exactly is"We?" "I mean, YOU DIDN'T HELP THEM WIN SHIT, and they (the team one is cheering for) could care less about you." "Are you a sheep? I refuse to be a sheep or follow into mob mentality." These are sentiments that I often hear echoed by many non-sports fans. There are many folks that refuse to watch spectator sports. I'm not counting the cohort that only watches the Super Bowl (mostly only for the commercials) , or if their home city team makes a championship or Super Bowl. I'm talking about the ones that refuse to watch sports for contrarian reasons, and look down on others that do. Not watching spectator sports is going to be the new ' of this generation, or the new 'I don't own a smartphone or use any form of social media.'



They may also wonder why people get so attached to many players and buy their jerseys when they come and go so often. And when they inevitably do, oftentimes fans that once revered these athletes start hating their guts, or booing them in during games in stadiums, rinks and courts. Simply put, some can argue that sports fans are often cheering for the men in the laundry of our city, or the team that we choose to cheer for, as Jerry Seinfeld once noted.



But at the end of the day, I and many others are ultimately sports fans because, It breaks down barriers. It allows for people to see their commonalities, such as having a certain allegiance to a team, and often times, a particular city, state, and community. It makes great small talk with a person you've just met, or to shoot the shit in public spaces, and with co-workers at work. It both a safe conversational topic, and a topic that can get quite heated depending on the parties interest level. It makes the mundane less mundane, and helps you solidify relationships with people you meet.



If being a sports fan makes me 'unoriginal and primitive,' then so be it. But it puts me in the company of great people, unlike ""
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