Tuesday, November 02, 2010

Why riot after winning?

When it comes to sports, since sports are an atavistic pursuit, my preferences when I don't have a favorite based on experience (UCLA in my case) are essentially atavistic. I almost always root for the most westerly and/or southerly team, except when I have a personal interest that goes otherwise. I spent 8 years in Babylon-by-the-Potomac and participated in Redskins Madness, so I still have a soft spot for the Redskins. My wife is from Buffalo, so I always have a slight preference for the Bills winning, a preference that sadly hasn't been fulfilled this year. My nephew loves the Yankees, my boss loves the Phillies, so I go along with them unless we're talking about Angels, the truly atavistic choice for me.

All that is prelude to being fairly pleased that the SF Giants (pace Sports Illustrated) trounced the Rangers in the World Series. Even though I grew up in Southern California and absorbed a certain amount of anti-SF propaganda as a youth, once I visited and spent time in San Francisco it became one of my favorite cities. If I could afford it I might even like to live there.

But why oh why did the San Francisco fans decide to riot in the wake of the World Series clincher? It couldn't have been because Barack Obama didn't call, could it? I have never understood the "we've won, let's trash the town" impulse, although I think I understand why mobs sometimes get out of control when a few people start with the violence. But it's regrettable nonetheless.

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