Drunk Fans Aren't Fans

Been to a pro sporting event lately? Depending on where you sit it can be downright scary, can't it? I'm not talking about dangers posed by competitors or their impliments of combat flying into the seats. I'm not talking about the structure of the stadium collapsing.

I'm talking about drunk morons who can wreck the best game with their irresponsibly boorish behaviour.

Maybe you saw the replay of the Dodgers-Cubs game in Chicago during which some drunk decided to steal the hat right off the head of one of the Dodgers' players in the bullpen. OK, yeah, the players were wrong to pursue the idiots into the stands. But who are these people whose brains are full of nothing but pilsner and why don't the rest of us want to beat the drunk jerks with baseball bats until they regain their senses?

Where did the idea originate that guzzling Budweiser was a required element of attending sporting events? Do they not know that it's perfectly legal to go to a game and JUST WATCH THE GAME?

I know this diatribe is filled with a lot of questions and few answers but that's because I don't have any answers. This bemuses me but it does not amuse me.

In Gainesville, Florida city commissioners rejected a proposal that would have limited outdoor alcohol sales on football Saturdays at the University of Florida. They said the law would do nothing to stop people from bringing their booze from home. They said it would unfairly harm local businesses.

Never mind that the patrons of these "businesses" often spill out onto the streets trying to buy the stuff and that once inebriated they not only present a nuisance but pose a danger to themselves and other people around them.

And you know what? There's nothing any legislature or even any arena can do to stop the problem. Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby, has a strict security system for anyone entering the race track on Derby Day. The track has someone search every single person coming in the place looking for banned items including alcohol. You can hear the thud of the flasks landing in the trash dumpsters placed next to each entrance. And still people find ways to sneak their hooch through the gates and they get hammered and stupid.

Until we decide that fans can be loud, crazy yet sober at the same time, I'll be glad I can seek shelter in the press box, safely distant from the rest of the sots out there.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic