Americans cheering for one college talking about those people who cheer for another college. Especially weird when they didn't even go to that college (Indiana basketball and Notre Dame football).
It seems appropriate to ask everyone what country they support in the Olympics. Is your first choice to root for your home country, or do you instead root for an individual athlete/successful team? If you can't choose your home country, how do you choose an alternate country to support? Is it based on geographical proximity, or some other factor? Ultimately, what is YOUR definition of the boundary between "us" and "them."
It’s an interesting question- but option 3 might be- if I didn’t care about cross country skiing or shot-put for the rest of the year… why should I care suddenly because someone is representing my country?
Why do I care if one person from one country can beat another person from a different country at riding a bicycle?
Why do I care about a local sports team or any local sports team- a bunch of grown adults making up to or more than 30x the average working wage to be very good at a game played by children? I don’t know any of them, I’m not playing, and XYZ team can beat our team every time and that has nothing to do with how good the schools are or the roads or the weather where I live.
If Tucson beats my local team, they don’t get to take our beaches or forests home with them.
I guess one way to choose what athlete to support might be to look at their character, the path they took to get there and how they behave off the field. I’m not only disinclined to support someone with multiple DUI or domestic violence charges who uses PED against the rules and makes millions of dollars and isn’t a positive presence in the community they supposedly represent; and I don’t think they really need my support. So if I were to support an athlete, it might be an athlete who maybe wasn’t perfect (who is?) but wasn’t morally repugnant, who used their athletic abilities and position to “give back” more than a trophy or some token donations etc. to the people they supposedly represent. Or just- skip the athlete part and have kids and adults support and gush over teachers with amazing careers and community pillars and such who are representing things that matter to the community. If the best representation of a community values is a desire to win no more how pointless- I’m moving
In a citizen of the world
Than the pride that divides
When a colorful rag is unfurled
Why do I care if one person from one country can beat another person from a different country at riding a bicycle?
Why do I care about a local sports team or any local sports team- a bunch of grown adults making up to or more than 30x the average working wage to be very good at a game played by children? I don’t know any of them, I’m not playing, and XYZ team can beat our team every time and that has nothing to do with how good the schools are or the roads or the weather where I live.
If Tucson beats my local team, they don’t get to take our beaches or forests home with them.