I hope this confession doesn't revoke my man-card, but I didn't get into sports spectating until college. A big reason for this is because I was never that in to sports performing either. A combination of laziness and anti-social behavior kept me in my shell until the needed quantity of Jack Daniels and fellowship was applied. At the University of Georgia, it was near impossible to not identify as a "dawg." I rooted for Georgia because everyone rooted for Georgia. It was the culture and I fucking liked it.
The college football culture is so strong in the south that whenever someone says "I'm a Georgia fan" or "I love Alabama" or "Let's go Florida" it is understood that they aren't talking about the state--they are talking about the universities, more specifically the athletic programs. This may not be a ringing endorsement for the region at large, but the conversational fact is that one's sports team is often indistinguishable from one's location. Hell, this time of year, it's one's identity.
It occurs to me that people's obsession on this or that team relies on one of two factors the vast majority of the time. You root for team "X" because you either are geographically located near team "X" or your parents root for team "X." What do you think the percentages are that the same two factors play a heavy role for religious preference? Do most people you know practice the same faith as their parents? That may be anecdotal evidence, but statistics show this as well. It's impossible to argue that Hinduism isn't primarily practiced in Indian. Muslims and Christians have spread out some, but stick together just the same. "Jewish" as a term is so intrenched in cultural heritage that it identifies ethnicity every bit as much as faith. And I thought sports franchises and locations were interchangeable, Judaism has taken it to a whole new level.
You probably think it's silly for me to say that the Georgia Bulldogs are the objectively right team, but that is what the religious are saying. It's important to consider that belief in Jehova, Yahweh, Allah, or Vishnu is more dependent on convenience than correctness. If you have to believe in something, make it the dawgs!
Great point. What religion that one is raised in has a great deal to do with their geographic location and beliefs of their parents. The analogy to sports is a good one. I grew up in Boston, live in MN and still love the Boston sports teams. Why? Because I was born there. Period. If I was born here, I would be sporting a Vikings hat. That is almost a certainty.
ReplyDeleteI think that may be why I find people who come to a religion later in life to be more devout. I would argue that they can at least give you reasons why they believe what they do. They have applied some thought to it, it is not an accident of birth. (This has been my experience and may be wrong when applied to the whole of society).
I too loved the analogy because it really is true. Plus no one is born being a fan, they follow what teams their parents do. My dad grew up in Chicago and is a bears fan, but I grew up in California. I don't really watch sports and don't put much stock into it, but if I'm somewhere with people watching especially when visiting my dad, I'll cheer for he bears.
DeleteI think you bring up a good point about justifying their beliefs, but that could be for anything I think. Someone who was raised in one political persuasion for example will tend to, not always but in my personal experience including myself, only take into account facts that support their stance. I grew up conservative. Like very conservative. It's embarrassing to admit now, but my dad was a fan of Ann Coulter and Michael Savage so that's what I read and listened to when I was younger. It was only later when I started allowing myself access to other kinds of thought that I started to change. I'm sure there are people who have done the opposite.
I agree with you. Both of my parents are very conservative and that is how I was raised. In high school, my views started to change. By the time I finished undergrad, I was liberal. It is interesting to note that I started out conservative because of my parents' views...no other reason.
DeleteI think its because we view our parents as infallible. I know my parents are really good people at heart, even if they are a bit in denial about the way things really work in the world. I blame the religious goggles.
DeleteWe are super gullible when we are young because we don't have enough life experience to know when things don't really add up. Unfortunately, not many people value re- examining the information we trusted in our childhood.
DeleteGlad you liked the analogy.
That's interesting. It really is a cultural thing. I never understood the appeal of soccer until I studied abroad in Germany. I was in a full Irish pub in Germany shortly after the world cup. I am assuming that it was some sort of exhibition match between Germany and Ireland but boy was it intense! Half of the pub seemed to be rooting for each team but when Germany scored people went wild and were raising their glasses after a loud roar and started to sing their team's song. You couldn't help but get caught up in the excitement. I'm still not really a spots guy, but when the world cup is on every four years, I love to tune in to the matches.
ReplyDeleteWe are super gullible when we are young because we don't have enough life experience to know when things don't really add up. Unfortunately, not many people value re- examining the information we trusted in our childhood.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked the analogy.