Reverend Conehead
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The first time I ever went to London was in the summer of '85. At the time, there was a big controversy there over some British soccer fans who became angry at the fans from some other country and beat the crap out of them. When I was walking into the London Gatwick airport, literally the very first Brit whom I met, who realized I was from another country, said, (pointing to the newspaper article) "I think it's just awful that some British fans behaved like that. That's not who we as Brits are supposed to be. We value sportsmanship." I felt for the guy. Some of his fellow countrymen, a small number, had acted like pricks, and it was giving them a bad name. I remember thinking at the time that I was glad that we Americans don't get into fist fights over our football games. Some Americans would disappoint me in later years, but that's what I thought at the time.
Today is one of the days in which some other Americans have disappointed me. In some NFL forums in Facebook, some fans have behaved with such obnoxious disregard for sportsmanship that I wish there were some way we could just kick them out of fandom. When a fan pointed out that the out-of-bounds body slam should have been a penalty, some dirtbags jumped all over him. Some of the comments were so despicable that I won't repeat them. One comment that was disgusting, but I can at least manage to repeat, was from some goon out west who said that every Cowboy should get body slammed like that, and that the NFL should legalize deliberately trying to hurt other players, if those players are Cowboys. I was super disappointed in this other American, and in this 49er fan. I lived in Northern California for 6 years. At first, being in 49er country was nauseating, but I made some good friends who were fans of that other team. Despite being fans of different teams, we were able to hang out and watch the sport that we loved, and talk passionately and intelligently about the game. We talked about which teams were really good and why, and which teams weren't living up to their potential. We talked about which rules we liked and which ones we didn't. The point is, we didn't have to like the same team to be friends and to treat each other with respect.
I was sickened to see fans of the sport I love behave with Buddy-Ryan mentality. IMO Buddy Ryan did more damage to the sport than any other coach. The mentality of deliberately trying to hurt another player started with him, or at least he's the one who popularized it. It makes me sick to see the fans of any team say something like, "Ha ha ha ha, awesome body slam; I hope it broke his neck." People like that, whether fan, player, or coach, are a disgrace to the sport. Back in '85, when I met that British dude, I naively believed that Americans weren't like that. Unfortunately, some NFL fans are exactly like that. I wish every single unsportsmanlike fan would just abandon the game and instead go play video games that don't require any interaction with any other human being.
And to be 100 percent clear: The Cowboys would have lost their game regardless of any penalties or lack thereof. Our team didn't play well enough, and therefore deserved to lose. I'm not blaming the loss on the refs. I'm not blaming it on anyone who isn't responsible. Our players and coaches are responsible for the loss, and no one else, but that's not my point. My point is that, I don't care if the score is tied or if there's a 50-point difference; no player should ever deliberately try to injure another one. And the fan of any team that delights in the injury of a player is trash. A person like that doesn't belong anywhere near the sport. Like I say, I wish I had some way to kick them out.
I think I was shocked because I'm used to a better atmosphere. Here at CZ, we're not perfect. There have been heated arguments. However, in the decades I've been here, it's been rare to see any member say anything to the effect of, "I'm sure glad that guy got hurt." I've gotten used to a higher level of sportsmanship here than on those trashy social media groups. That's why I wanted to take the time to thank you guys for being such a good group.
We're here after a painful loss. I would say it's the most sucky loss in a long time. We need to lick our wounds and come to terms with what this loss means. While we're doing that, I wanted to point out that there's something great about CZ. The sportsmanship level here is generally quite good. I'm not saying nothing ever gets heated. We're human. But I'm glad I can come in here without having to wade through the muck of comments like, "I sure hope we hurt this player." Many times it's just the opposite. One player I never could stand was the Giants' Victor Cruz. His stupid salsa dance just rubbed me the wrong way. Many other Cowboy fans felt the same way. However, when he sustained a season-ending injury, and had to be carted off the field, the comments I saw here were decent. They were comments like, "I felt bad for the guy," and there wasn't any rejoicing in his injury.
Therefore, many thanks to all the CZ members who make this the excellent sports forum that it is.
Today is one of the days in which some other Americans have disappointed me. In some NFL forums in Facebook, some fans have behaved with such obnoxious disregard for sportsmanship that I wish there were some way we could just kick them out of fandom. When a fan pointed out that the out-of-bounds body slam should have been a penalty, some dirtbags jumped all over him. Some of the comments were so despicable that I won't repeat them. One comment that was disgusting, but I can at least manage to repeat, was from some goon out west who said that every Cowboy should get body slammed like that, and that the NFL should legalize deliberately trying to hurt other players, if those players are Cowboys. I was super disappointed in this other American, and in this 49er fan. I lived in Northern California for 6 years. At first, being in 49er country was nauseating, but I made some good friends who were fans of that other team. Despite being fans of different teams, we were able to hang out and watch the sport that we loved, and talk passionately and intelligently about the game. We talked about which teams were really good and why, and which teams weren't living up to their potential. We talked about which rules we liked and which ones we didn't. The point is, we didn't have to like the same team to be friends and to treat each other with respect.
I was sickened to see fans of the sport I love behave with Buddy-Ryan mentality. IMO Buddy Ryan did more damage to the sport than any other coach. The mentality of deliberately trying to hurt another player started with him, or at least he's the one who popularized it. It makes me sick to see the fans of any team say something like, "Ha ha ha ha, awesome body slam; I hope it broke his neck." People like that, whether fan, player, or coach, are a disgrace to the sport. Back in '85, when I met that British dude, I naively believed that Americans weren't like that. Unfortunately, some NFL fans are exactly like that. I wish every single unsportsmanlike fan would just abandon the game and instead go play video games that don't require any interaction with any other human being.
And to be 100 percent clear: The Cowboys would have lost their game regardless of any penalties or lack thereof. Our team didn't play well enough, and therefore deserved to lose. I'm not blaming the loss on the refs. I'm not blaming it on anyone who isn't responsible. Our players and coaches are responsible for the loss, and no one else, but that's not my point. My point is that, I don't care if the score is tied or if there's a 50-point difference; no player should ever deliberately try to injure another one. And the fan of any team that delights in the injury of a player is trash. A person like that doesn't belong anywhere near the sport. Like I say, I wish I had some way to kick them out.
I think I was shocked because I'm used to a better atmosphere. Here at CZ, we're not perfect. There have been heated arguments. However, in the decades I've been here, it's been rare to see any member say anything to the effect of, "I'm sure glad that guy got hurt." I've gotten used to a higher level of sportsmanship here than on those trashy social media groups. That's why I wanted to take the time to thank you guys for being such a good group.
We're here after a painful loss. I would say it's the most sucky loss in a long time. We need to lick our wounds and come to terms with what this loss means. While we're doing that, I wanted to point out that there's something great about CZ. The sportsmanship level here is generally quite good. I'm not saying nothing ever gets heated. We're human. But I'm glad I can come in here without having to wade through the muck of comments like, "I sure hope we hurt this player." Many times it's just the opposite. One player I never could stand was the Giants' Victor Cruz. His stupid salsa dance just rubbed me the wrong way. Many other Cowboy fans felt the same way. However, when he sustained a season-ending injury, and had to be carted off the field, the comments I saw here were decent. They were comments like, "I felt bad for the guy," and there wasn't any rejoicing in his injury.
Therefore, many thanks to all the CZ members who make this the excellent sports forum that it is.
