“Fear never but you shall be consistent in whatever variety of actions, so they be each honest and natural in their hour. For of one will, the actions will be harmonious, however unlike they seem… Your genuine action will explain itself and will explain your other genuine actions. Your conformity explains nothing” (Thoreau 217).
I don’t mean to sound like a wet blanket, but football is really stupid. As I walk down the streets of Oakland, literally every passing comment and conversation I hear has to do with the Steelers. The shops and restaurants along Forbes (the ones that want business, anyway) all have black and yellow decorations. It seems like for every Pittsburgher doesn’t hope for victory, they expect it.
Before I go to far with bashing the city’s unified religion, I do want to point out that the Steelers are a topic of conversation that unites people from all different socio-economic backgrounds. People seem to remark that everyone is friendly and approachable if the Steelers are having a good season. I can only imagine what this city is like when the Steelers don’t make the playoffs.
I can’t blame the fans or the city for what transpires after their football team plays a championship game. Win or lose, I guess there has to be some destruction of public property. I don’t know if Thoreau would call a riot “harmonious.” In fact, it may pertain to conformity, which Thoreau looks upon negatively. As I walked down Atwood St., I picked up a flyer that had been pinned to a nearby telephone pole that read: “A Message For All Students! Celebrate Responsibly. Sunday’s anticipated victory celebration will be limited to Bigelow Boulevard between the William Pitt Union and the Cathedral of Learning, with the postgame celebration lasting for one hour after the game… City and University police will be on hand to help ensure a safe celebration… Be smart and don’t jeopardize your future.” I found this announcement to be somewhat laughable, mostly because the police try to make it seem like they have complete control over any sizable population. The fear tactic they employ in the leaflets is also quite humorous, as they warn that one’s future employment could be affected by an arrest.
I think my apathy toward football is, to use Thoreau’s term, “genuine” because I do not hate it simply for the sake of hating it. I simply dislike the football hysteria that can consume people, and how it can distract them from real-life social issues that are much more important to their lives. I know my view has been expressed numerously by other Debbie-Downers, but isn’t the Super Bowl one big capitalist advertisement? Does it really warrant the overturning of cars and the destruction of bus stops? (Now when it comes to the NHL, I am a complete hypocrite –but then again, I don’t live in Canada).
EDIT: *this last section was written after the Steelers lost the Super Bowl.
For my final entry, I wanted to stroll the streets of Oakland and observe the rioters rejoicing. Now that the “unthinkable” has happened, I guess I feel a bit disappointed that I didn’t join in on the festivities two years ago. Instead of rioting, I had to do my economics homework. I guess I do, in the end, want to conform and be a part of something. Maybe I’ve always wanted that platform on which to join and relate to others. The TV room in my dorm was packed with students from all different countries –would I ever join those people and take part in such an even again? Maybe conformity that is modest can be meaningful… just as long as it doesn’t become a mental disorder.
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