September 1, 2011

Pro Football and Other Spots I can't manage care about

8 comments:

  1. Why do I give a shit about sports? Great question, and one I am trying to wrap my head around because I've never been asked before. I just grew up loving sports (and everyone else around me loved sports) and I never really thought about it (kind of like religion for a lot of people in that regard). I will try my best to answer it.

    Part of it is a connection a fan can develop and feel with a team, teams, or individual players. Does that connection matter in the grander scheme of things? No, but it's fun and feels good to have that connection (although for some, that connection can get unhealthy).

    Part of it is that sports is a form of entertainment, similar to a movie, TV, book, etc. It has amazing moments of excellence, devastating moments of defeat and failure, suspense, twists and turns, and all of that other good shit.

    And sports is something that, at the end of the day, usually doesn't really matter. It is something that a person can take interest in outside of the hardships of everyday life. It's insignificant fun and 99% of the time, someone's life in doesn't change when they watch sports (that can be reassuring).

    As someone who cares about activism and real-world issues, I can understand how that could be frustrating to understand. But there is something refreshing about being able to get together with a friend or relative who you have almost nothing in common (politics, religion, etc.) and be able to root for the same team together. All the other major issues of life don't matter for a little bit. Does that come off as corny? I'm sure it does, but it is the best answer I've got.

    Also, while sports is greatly dominated by corporate interests (which I do hate) there are athletes and sports writers who care greatly about progressive politics. I recommend you read some of David Zirin's stuff. He writes about Sports for The Nation.

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  2. Thank you for your response! I was honestly trying to reach out here, because I cannot understand at all why people care. I guess that part about having something in common with somebody you have nothing in common with makes a lot of sense. It explains people checking their smart phones for the scores and then wandering around and telling other people what the scores are.

    Matt Taibbi was a football journalist before he started doing investigative reporting about Wall Street crimes.

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  4. Glad you liked what I wrote. And I find Matt Taibbi probably the best writer out there on politics these days.

    By the way, I decided to write a post about this whole conversation on my blog (shameless blog promotion right here). Click on my name to go to the post.

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  5. YEah it sux for me. I hate my state's politics but I love my team (AZ Cardinals) which gives me something in common with a LOT of people I normally wouldn't have ANYTHING in common with

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  6. I grew up playing sports, both as an individual competitor (fencing) and as part of a team (baseball). I enjoy the physical challenge for me personally and enjoy watching professional sports for that reason.

    I do manage to keep it in perspective - it is, after all, just a game. If the Red Sox win - they win - good for them. If they lose - oh well - they lost. I'm not an über fan. I don't live for my hometown teams; nor do I memorize stats; nor do I coach from the bleachers. LOL

    From my observation, some people's lives suck so much, sports is all they have.

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  7. Football betting is a blast and there's nothing better than hitting the sportsbook with a big winning ticket. I hit straight football bets and parlays all season long. I look forward to the NFL and NCAA football seasons. https://astagaming.hatenablog.com/

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