Letters to the Editor
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May the Bosox roast in nuclear cancerous molten steel hell
Couldn't happen to a nicer bunch of people.
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the nation seems uneasy too
I jut heard an interview on npr's national evening news program:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16435524
Melissa Block was suggesting that the Patriots have become the villain of the NFL, because they scored too many points last night against Buffalo.
Aside from the disconnect of listening to an npr news pro talk sports, this interview really bothered me.
Really? The Patriots are bullies for attempting a touch down on the fourth down instead of a field goal because another touchdown would be *unseemly*?! It's football, for Pete's sake!
As a lifelong New Englander (actually, my family tree laid down roots here in the 1630's), currently in Yankees country, I have always been amazed at the perception of Boston clubs by the nation at large.
If a New England team is winning in any sports contest (not counting the Larry Bird Celtics era, or the Bobby Orr Bruins), the non-local commentary is always, well, surprised. Or, put in the context of the rotten job (or rotten luck) of the opposing team.
I was once in a Chicago sports bar here the local sports coverage switched from the final minutes of a Pat's game (in the middle of a really exciting and possibly game-altering pass) to start da Bears 90-minute pre-game show. My Pats fan husband howled. The Bears fans laughed. And said "It's not like anything important was happening."
And how everyone howls when New England gets a really big win. Pittsburgh still isn't over their snowball fight loss. New York is too ashamed to admit that the Rocket ... wasn't worth $8k a pitch, and perhaps A-Rod wasn't such a coup stolen out from under Boston's nose. Folks, New England survived an 86-year world series drought. We took all the losses from the Impossible Dream, to Bill Buchner's Greek-tragic missed catch, and all the other heartbreaks my 92-year-old grandmother remembers. Suck. It. Up.
So I laugh at how the Patriots have gone from Cinderella to ugly stepsister virtually overnight. Maybe I'm naive. Please help me. Did anyone call the Bulls "villains" when the team or Jordan, Pippin and Rodman only had 4 fingers left for champion rings? Are they really "Damn Yankees" outside of northern New England? What about the Cowboys of the 1980's?
Maybe, ultimately, it's the drama that's so appealing about sports. Because, even though I have seen some beautiful plays, excellent games, and heartbreaking losses, I've also watched many a moth race to keep awake while the game just wouldn't end. Sports chatter is just as dishy as any red carpet event, and apparently just as catty too. I guess it's our turn to play Alexis. Let's enjoy it.
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Yeah, cause you've met all of us
It's only magnified by living as an exile in Boston, where the fans remain largely insufferable, having evolved from angry and unforgiving to smug and unforgiving.
Sorry to hear that you've met the miserable/smug Boston fans who weren't happy when their teams were losing and now aren't happy with their teams winning.
As a long time Boston fan can I please ask you to shut up?
We're not all like that, in fact, no one I know, and I know a lot of Boston fans, are like that.
Sounds like what you need to do is hang out with a better class of people in general, there are a lot of Boston sports fans who are as passionate about their teams as anyone and are just glad they're winning.
Having lived in NYC, I can tell you that those fans, a lot of them anyway, are as passionate and knowledgeable about their team as any fans anywhere.
Now living in the great midwest, what I find is that unless their team is doing well, there's no discussion of the team at all. People here don't mention the Reds or Bengals except to see if someone wants to buy their tickets. They expect failure and then seem gratified when it comes to be.
I'd rather be among a passionate group, living and dying with the success and failure of the team than fair-weather.
If that means that there's a few assholes in the group, we're ok with that...that's probably why they let you stay.
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"Beantown"
Really? Do you really live here? Cause no actual Boston resident would dare utter the word, "Beantown." It's the best way to tell who's a tourist and who's a local. That, and the idiots who say "Little Italy" instead of the North End.
Oh- and I'm a happy Sox fan. Happy in '04, happy in October, and even happier now- we just resigned Lowell. Don't worry- we'll find something to complain about soon enough- good times don't last forever. Just ask the Yanks.
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Complete Bullshit
Only someone wallowing in envy or projectiung their own frustration could make up such crap.
I am a lifelong Red Sox fan and winning in 2004 took exactly nothing away from me ... except frustration and anxiety. And the only people who don't understand it are those who are so baffled by the sight of the Red Sox winning that they have to create a new myth to make it seem like the ridiculous "curse" has been turned inward and become a form of self-loathing.
Let me tell you how it actually is. My appreciation for the team and the game of baseball has never been more intense. But now I have a sense of confidence in my team when things are tight. And if things don't work out, I'm fine with it. I have a better sense of balance and perspective about it, since it's just a freaking game.
I'm sorry that you have a hard time understanding this. But most of us are coping just fine.
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I really can't sympathize
Because, you see, I actually have something to still moan about. Be happy, you dolts. You aren't looking at 100 years.
Oh, well. Next October in Chicago?
- A Cubs Fan
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Please, just stop
The notion that Boston fans are happier when they're miserable is a ridiculous notion that only makes sense from an outsider's point of view. Boston fans were never happy being the cursed losers. That viewpoint was only promoted by a few prominent (I'm looking at you, Shaughnessy) local columnists who have a financial stake in creating this myth of the cursed franchise. The national media, especially Fox Sports, were more than happy to pick up on it because it made a good story line to tell to people outside of Boston. If you really think Boston fans are suffering a "profound identity crisis" because of their teams' current success, I can only say that you must not know any Boston sports fans at all. To a person, every one I know is ecstatic that they now get to root for excellent, well run and successful teams. Spare us all this lazy and false pop-sports psychology. It's an argument that's been made plenty of times before, always by an out-of-towner projecting the storyline onto a situation that doesn't warrant it. Boston sports fans are happy. Just let us be.