Real Kato Blog: Society: The Curse of Fandom

It's not always easy being a sports fan. But it's better than the alternatives.

Let's face it: when it comes to sports, most of our teams lose eventually. We don't have much control over the outcome, even if we wear our lucky team shirts. We talk about it, we make bets, and we make emotional investmests, but ultimately, we are just spectators.

Why are we fans?

I went to the University of Michigan, and I'm a big fan of their football and basketball teams. But I don't know any of the players personally. If they win, it doesn't make me a better person. And even if they win one game and we're all happy, they still have to go on and play the next game, where they may lose and leave us all disappointed. It never ends; there is never any ultimate victory. It's all fleeting.

I think it comes down to the fact that everyone wants to belong somewhere, even if it's only for a while. We humans make such a big deal about dividing ourselves into groups, and validating that our group is the best group. It's tribalism. It's an anthropological, biological, and sociological drive. It's also the root of racism and nationalism, and to some degree, politics and organized religion.

The nice thing about sports is that it less us divide ourselves in a nice and non-confrontational way (um, unless you're Ron Artest). You can be an Ohio State fan and I can still like you. It's okay for us to be divided, because sports don't really mean anything.

What I think is horrible is how some people let tribalism dictate other parts of their lives. "I'm white and our race is the BEST race. I'm Christian and our religion is the BEST religion. I'm an American and our country is the BEST country. I'm a Republican and our party is the BEST party." That's it: no discussion, no compromise, no grey area. This is the kind of thing that stifles dialogue and rational thinking in our country.

It's okay if you're a Green Bay Packers fan for no good reason, because none of us really have a good reason for liking one team over another. But if you haven't examined your faith critically, if you haven't thought through your political philosophies with an open mind, and if you are still stuck with the notion that the French are inferior to us, then I can't really respect you. All you are is a spectator.

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