Sports and Society

When I was just becoming aware and a real fan of sports, I was about 9 years old. I had always been a fan, but never really got truly interested in sports until my family moved to Virginia.
We moved to Pocahontas, Virginia, from Lemont, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. I was 7 when we moved. For the first 7 years of my life, I lacked a real interest in sports. Thus, I did not realize what I was losing in the move south of the Mason-Dixon line. Moving south, I did not miss the fact that I had never been to Chicago Stadium or Wrigley or Comiskey or Soldier Field.
In between the time I moved south and have returned to the north, so much has changed. Old Comiskey is gone, Comiskey is completely gone, replaced by the name of US Cellular Field, which perplexes the mind. Comiskey is a legendary name. How could it have been replaced? Old Chicago Stadium is long gone, replaced by the marketing mecca United Center, The House that Michael Built. Oh, and Soldier Field was changed from a legendary, mythical, beautiful piece of history and architecture into a UFO.
Tonight, popped in one of the discs from my DVD set from the NBA Dynasty Series, "Chicago Bulls: The 1990's." It educated me on a lot about sports, American society, and the world at large.
This June, when either the Orlando Magic or the Cleveland Cavaliers hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy and are crowned NBA Champions, it will be a full 11 years since the end of an era; the end of the Bulls' Dynasty; the end of truly great TEAMS.
Yes, in the past 11 years there has been some high points, some excitement, and some good teams, but there is nothing close to the magic of what the 1990's brought.
Sports, and the world, has changed so much in the last 11 years. I have been trying to put my finger on the actual reasons, as well as what exactly was in fact different. You watch NBA, NFL, or MLB games today, then you look back 11 years, and there is something different.
It is hard to put a label on what it is exactly, but you see it. You know you are watching terrific athletes and good teams. You get excited, but you still don't feel the same as you did in the 1990s, and earlier.
For me, the difference exists in the persona and passion of the athletes. If you watch the teams of the 90s, there was unbridled passion for the game at hand. Wins and losses determined emotional highs or lows for everyone in the stands, on the sidelines, and in uniform.
The 1994 MLB strike, the 1999 NBA lock-out, and all the outrageous contracts that have been signed in the last 11 years has diminished the games we love. We no longer connect with the athletes we once did. As a result, we don't have that unequivocal sanctuary to immerse ourselves and separate ourselves from the pressures, pains, and stresses of the real world.
Whether it is in coalition with sports, a result of sports, or merely a mirrored coincidence, our society has shifted the last decade plus. We all have become greedier, less passionate about what is important in life.
We are only passionate about our differences. We love to be right. We love to be better. We love for the other guy to fail, to lose, to fall flat on his face.
We had one, brief, day of unity in the aftermath of 9-11, but the vitriol and disdain we Americans have for each other sprouted right back out.
As I watched the DVD and recalled the memories of 1996-1998, when Michael Jordan and the Bulls made history, made the world exciting, I longed for the time when we had that escape. Back then athletes did well financially, but weren't taking home more a year than many European nations. I longed for a time when athletes dressed with class because they had class, and not because David Stern ordered them to have class.
I miss the passion players played with. I miss the passion that we fans could exude onto the players because we were in the battle with them. They wore their uniform with pride and their livelihood depended on our support. We weren't sheep blindly following and feeding their large wallets, but we were almost as important as the ball, nets, and their teammates to their successes.
Now, in sports, and society, we are, in large part, dedicated to only get what is ours. We jump ship at the first signs of trouble. We don't man up and fix issues. We run from them. We create havoc until we get what we want. We whine because we lost a few thousand dollars, but still have food and TV. We call a severe drop in the stock market a depression, not taking time to realize that despite the struggles, we are really okay. We are hurting, but its a deep tissue bruise, not a broken bone or a devastating illness. We are not on the verge of a fatality.
Yet, no one is willing to be a part of the solution. We, as a nation, think that rich people and the Government are the sole source of our security. We have, like so many athletes, gone from being part of the team trying for one goal, to being part of a glob of people with their hands out, waiting for the blank check from on high.
I am 27 years old, and I have lost so much faith in the world, in people, and in the people in charge in the last 11 years. I miss the times when all we had to worry about was the Russians. I miss the hard-working, play-through-the-pain-or-flu athletes and Americans. I miss American Pride.
Will we ever become proud of America and truly love America again? Sadly, that question will not be answered until sometime in late 2012...