Okay, I lied. My last posting was a bit hastily made and may have lead you, the reader, to the wrong conclusion. Truth of the matter is that I am not done – I just need to use a bit more common sense. Let’s see if I have any…
I’ve actually got a question for you today – why is the perceived manliness of a guy directly proportional to his arbitrary and completely unfounded admiration of sports? Or, to put it another way, what exactly about a guy’s ability to live completely vicariously through the success of a different group of guys – arbitrarily chosen based on various subjective criteria such as location, past results, perceived popularity to the general public, team name and I don’t know, pretty uniforms? – creates the perception that this guy is much more of a man than one who chooses not to give a shit? Doesn’t this seem a bit counter-intuitive?
Sure, in today’s society where people rely on marketing and media to tell them what they desire, it’s easy to understand how the actual players of these sports (or at least their perceived images) get misguidedly transformed to god-like creatures. Heck, often times the laws that us mangy, second-rate citizens are forced to live by don’t even apply to these lions of humanity (drug use, sexual assault, DUI, domestic violence, manslaughter … it’s okay – he’s a star…). Not that all of these guys are criminals, but those that are seem to somehow be able to retain their senselessly conceived superior standing in society. I can actually understand how, once a guy has achieved membership to this exclusive club, he is considered a manly man. What I don’t get is how idolizing these guys somehow increases the perceived masculinity of some other guy…
I’m always amazed at how a man’s knowledge of sports trivia makes that individual seem almost superior to others in pretty much any social environment. Once a guy has demonstrated that he is “in the know” about the sport of the day he becomes more respected by men and, for some reason that completely baffles me, more desirable to women. I mean, why is that? All it says to me is that this guy spends way too much time and energy watching sports. Shouldn’t that be a red flag to these women? Oh wait, silly me, watching sports is manly – ESPN, Fox Sports, Fuel TV and Spike make that perfectly clear…
Now don’t get me wrong here … I’ve fallen into the grasp of sports related fanaticism at least a few times myself: I’ve got a couple rather nice Avalanche jerseys hanging in my closet back home and wear a baseball cap of said team from time to time; I remember watching the Detroit Pistons win the NBA Finals back in 1990 on a scoreboard converted television set at The Palace of Auburn Hills; and I almost got hit by the upright post when the uprights were torn down after the Michigan Panthers defeated the Oakland Invaders (USFL – remember that…?) back in the 1983 playoffs. For me though, it’s never difficult to “get over it”. I guess that designates me as one of those “fair-weather fans” but I really don’t care… Whether or not the sports team representing the area that I live in wins or loses to the sports team from some other area means nothing to me. Does that make me less of a man?
It seems to me that fanatical devotion to sports should actually be considered a negative trait for most. I mean shouldn’t the time and energy wasted on keeping current with all the stats, standings, rosters and names in sports be used for something a bit more productive? Maybe something trivial like your career or family…? Isn’t it possible that those that are not “in the know” when it comes to sports might be that way because they’ve chosen to spend their resources on their own lives rather than wasting them on what can only be seen as a desperate attempt to be somebody else? I personally think that getting upset when the team you chose to put your inflated ego on loses is a rather blatant sign of mental instability … but that’s just me, I guess…
I did, however, notice that the Onion (America’s Finest News Source) seems to be with me on this subject. If you head over to their online store (T-shirts at the Onion Store) you can buy a T-shirt that says “The Sports Team From My Area Is Superior To The Sports Team From Your Area”. Now that’s funny! I’ll bet, however, that the humor of this shirt would be completely lost to many of the Neanderthal-like guys that depend on this statement being true to justify their importance in this world…
And I ask once again, what makes these guys more desirable…?
bis später,
Coriolis
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
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OK, I am one of the brethren here, in that my knowledge of sports is very lacking, and in a blue collar sports area, you do get looked upon like a pansy if you don't know who is who. So, your angst is well felt on this end.
ReplyDeleteAlthough, I don't know who really said that sports minded manly men are more appealing to women. This is a perception from one who doesn't have to really mingle with the fairer sex in the horrid date scene, so take my view for what it is, from a happily married guy. But sports is big MONEY, and commericialism is big in sports, look at those stuporbowl ads. And they do aim at their main market, men, using what most men like, boobs and booze. So I guess, to cut it short, its just a perception, fed to us by media. Look deep into the hearts of men, and women (yes they have 'em), and you'll get to know there true loves, no matter what false walls they build up around them. You just have to take time and listen.
Peace,
My hubby is a sports guy but not fanatical. He likes watching and enjoys it but isn't a die hard fan of anyone in particular.(he is a huge fan of soccer, sometime fanatically so but he plays soccer still so I can let that one pass).
ReplyDeleteSo I am not sure what makes those men more attractive b/c as a woman I don't find them so. Now maybe it is the women you are attracted to. Were they ex cheerleaders, popular girls, etc...?
Maybe you need to go for the nerdy band types..........
Just a suggestion ;)
Yeah, I suppose this perceived image is nothing more than an image that exists in my mind (the whole “more desirable to women” thing) however I will say that this perception has been created from a rather extensive set of data – the many many hours that I have wasted at sports bars throughout my life.
ReplyDeleteGranted that the venue pretty much correlates with the results – sports bars seem to have a way of attracting the sports lovers … funny how that is… But I have seen it spill over to other places as well. In fact lately I’ve even started noticing a rather marked increase in the number of women that seem to be getting caught up in sports-related fanaticism. I wonder if this has anything to do with the various networks decision to start using women in what used to be male-only roles for their broadcasts. It seems like every time they “send it down to the sidelines” nowadays a woman is there to report on the current happenings. Now how’s that for marketing to a wider audience? These guys are good…
And let me close by saying there’s nothing wrong with nerdy band type women. In fact I’d go as far as saying that I prefer nerdy band type women – “This one time, at band camp…”