Friday, May 27, 2011

Cheering on your home team

The Canucks are on their way to the Stanley Cup finals. Hooray!

But I find it funny when I and my friends exclaim: "WE WON!"

.... sure, fans play a role in supporting a team, which psychologically helps the team players, not to mention the financial viability of the team (players pay for merchandise, game tickets, etc which allows the team to prosper in whatever city they're in), but really, WE didn't win, the players and coaching staff won. It comes off as quite egoic to take ownership of success when the achievement does not belong to us, doesn't it? I mean, it's win-win for players, team management, and fans when a team does well (not to mention a big win for pubs and other businesses that benefit from good team performance and an extended season), but let's not go overboard. Attaching oneself to a high-status team or individual is a way the ego strengthens itself. But to be a mature person, shouldn't one, if they label themselves as a 'fan' of a team, stay loyal to that team even when they lose or do poorly? Moreover, idolization (being a 'fan'), is, in my opinion, one of the greatest plagues of the last 15 years in popular culture. [see: twitter, american idol, etc]

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