Haha...I couldn't resist getting involved, since I'm a big sports fan as well. In regards to the first bold item - absolute, unequivocally...NO. I consider myself to very much be a "real baseball fan" and I could not disagree more with this idea that you have to root for other teams just because they're making history. A "real fan", of any sport, is one that sticks with his/her team through thick and thin, could recite you the line-up, knows yesterday's score, and genuinely morose after his/her team loses.
Being a real fan has absolutely nothing to do with other teams.
In regards the last other highlighted statement from above, who? Unless you can provide some sort of evidence, I'm tempted to accuse you of making an outright false statement. No other team in the NFL has been caught/accused of doing what the Pats have apparently done for some time now.
Okay, so, firstly, I tend to separate the meaning of "baseball fan" from say, "Cardinals fan" or "Red Sox fan". I think a person can be one or the other, or both. I think a die-hard fan of team X will do what you describe. I think there are people out there that are simply fans of THE GAME, and aren't particularly invested in one team or another. I think there are some that are able to be both. I am a Red Sox fan, but not much of a baseball fan. I am a Patriots fan, and a football fan.
If you read the articles carefully, what the Patriots were doing was taping from the sideline. They were told to stop, and they didn't. Other teams have also taped from the sideline. They were told to stop, and they did. That is what happened, if you read the FACTS. This is not 'cheating' per se, but it is against the rules (I know someone will jump all over that one). What I mean is, it did not give them unfair advantage during the game they were taping, but is for later study and use. Every team does this. This has been discussed ad nauseum on stations like ESPN and NFL network by just about everyone.
Oh lord...I never approach an argument without first seeing it from the other side. I think you may need to take your own advice, however. You are making excuses for a team simply because you like them.
Finally, please never use the argument "other teams do it too!' ever again. Every time I hear that, I just want to go kick a puppy. If I get arrested for killing someone and tell the judge, "hey, other people did it too!!" I hope he/she gives me the chair. Wrong is...WRONG; I don't care if your grandmother does it. If the rest of the teams are caught doing it, PUNISH THEM TOO! Anyways, as this argument has absolutely nothing to do with the intention of this thread I will do everyone a favor and end it here. I have never convinced a Patriot fan their team cheated and I have never been swayed to believe they haven't. To this end, let me say, you have your opinions and I have mine.
Okay, but you are missing my point. You never heard me say what they did was OK or right. Did you? I never made an excuse. People are very quick to judge and jump on the "cheater" label without considering what happened. What I am saying is: Every team videotapes other teams. They all do it. The Patriots did it from the sidelines, and were told to stop. If you listen to the ESPN people, et al, they say flat out that other teams do this too, but the Patriots got caught at it. That is what THEY say - not what I say. I'm telling you what they've been reporting. I'm not excusing the Patriots. They SHOULD have stopped when they were told to stop. Other teams were either told to stop and did stop, or haven't been caught (yet). It does bug me that Belicheck didn't do what the league asked him to do, because he didn't need to keep doing it, and it was probably arrogant on his part, but I don't know - I'm not him & I don't know why he kept doing it. Goodell said it is because he has a disagreement about the interpretation of the rules, and Goodell knows this.
All I am saying is that is not WHY they win! They win because they are BETTER. People love to jump on this "they could only be winning because they cheat" bandwagon.
I didn't say it makes it right. I said simply,
it didn't give them an advantage during the games they played (it's used for later game planning), and it sure as heck didn't get them to win 18 games this season while they were under a microscope.
But I agree - this was not an argument I meant to start. People want to say the Patriots are cheaters because they can't believe they are that good and they don't like Bill Belicheck. I sure as heck will never convince them of my point.
