Sport Fans

I am here today to rally New York City's sports fans around their teams. Not just to cheer for them in good times, but also during tough stretches and disappointing moments. I urge every New Yorker to take a stand. Our stadiums should be filled with positive cheers at all times. Boo the umpires, the referees. Boo the opposing team. You can even boo the ball, the wind, the sod, and Santa Claus when he makes an appearance, as Philadelphia sports fans once did! Just don't boo the home team. Our stadiums should tremble with loud booming positive cheers that help the Yankees, Mets, Giants, Jets, Knicks, Rangers, and Islanders win.

I know a ticket to a sporting event gives the bearer the right to boo, cheer, or even sleep in the stands. I can't deny that right. However, I am asking that all New York fans decide - with their own free will - to stand up and scream for the home team. Make it difficult for the other team to communicate. Get the home squad pumped up and help them to victory. Together we can be the best fans in the world. Together we can create a huge Home Field Advantage for all of our beloved teams. We can make it a place where other teams struggle and our teams prosper. Loud positive cheers at all home games can make this happen. The louder and more positive the better.

Booing the home team when they make an-all-too-frequent stupid play is easy and understandable in many cases. However, this action is not good for anyone. If you the fan let these mistakes slide, rather than getting worked up each time, you have a much lesser chance of having a heart attack or ulcer. Reacting positively can only help your personal health in the long run. In the short-run, booing the home team could also get you a beer in the face or a barrage of fists to the head! Nobody wants that. Also, the team will react much better to positive reinforcement when things are going well than negative reinforcement when they take risks and fail. Remember that these athletes - our heroes - are really just big kids, playing games as their profession. Would you mock or chide your children every time they make a mistake? Most of us would not - they'd never try again for fear of failing. This practice would also require years of expensive counseling for your child to get over this experience later in life. Similarly, booing the home team can neutralize the coveted home field advantage we can provide. These players know when they make a mistake. Fans do not have to keep reminding them. Treat your local pro athletes with the same kid gloves you would use with your impressionable children. If we look past their mistakes and cheer their successes, they will be more willing to work hard and take risks that will ultimately lead to victory. Victory for the team is victory for the city. We all win in this situation.

I have been a New York sports fan for my entire life, rooting them on in so many lean years. Even when there was hope, the Jets or the Mets or the Knicks found a way to lose. The important thing was (and is) to support our teams completely. Anybody can walk around with a Yankee cap all year - they've won more championships than all the other New York teams combined have ever competed in! To truly set the New York fan apart, we need to support our teams in good times and in bad. Let the other cities' sports fans be fair-weather. Besides, if the Chicago Cubs fans can be positive, we have no excuse. The last time they won anything the Mets didn't even exist. For that matter, neither did the Jets or Islanders! Even the Islanders have won a championship in the past 25 years. So, get out there and root, root, root for the home team. Even if it is the Mets and they've blown another 9th inning lead to the Braves. Blame the umpires or the field if you need to get it off your chests. Make a stand. If I can risk my life writing this article as a Massachusetts resident, deep in Red Sox country, you have no excuse. Show the world what New York fans are all about.