Why do I read every line of the Sports Section? Why do I need to know how Stony Brook (team nickname - The Babblers?) did against New Paltz (as opposed to Old Paltz)?
Perhaps I seek the answer to these deep philosophical questions:
If Evergreen State falls to Western Washington in the forests of the Great Northwest and no one attends, does it make a sound?
If a Cal State - Santa Cruz fan raises his hand in the Fighting Banana Slugs (their actual athletic team nickname) salute, will a tsunami eventually result in Sumatra?
No! To a true sports fan, every contest is a battle between perceived good and evil. For example, the Philadelphia Eagles are, to my mind, inherently good. If they win, I am happy. The Dallas Cowboys are evil to the core. When they win, I mourn. At the end of the day, I total the triumphs of the "good" versus the depredations of the "evil" and determine whether the Apocalypse is at hand.
Occasionally, the Sports World gives us a result that proves the ultimate victory of good over evil. Last Saturday, Cornell defeated Alabama in men's basketball. A team that passed Calculus beat a team that probably couldn't spell the word. A team that read Moby Dick topped a group that might wonder why Moby and Andy Dick formed a band. A team that ten years from now will be involved in hedge fund management beat a team that ten years from now may be trimming hedges.
Granted, these are exaggerations and I'm sure the Alabama hoopsters are fine young men. Still, it is reassuring that a group who took advantage of their athletic prowess to get an Ivy League education while suffering through winters in Ithaca can come out on top against a heralded foe. Perceived "Good" sometimes triumphs.
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