I just can’t sit silent after reading some of the under-informed charges in the young man from Ohio’s perspective about a “hateful” Red Sox Nation (“A ‘hateful’ Nation does not know how to appreciate victory,” Oct. 31, p. 5). First off, son, let me explain something to you. You weren’t even alive to see the Orr-era Bruins of the ’70s or the Bird-era Celtics of the ’80s, so you have no way of knowing whether fans here “ignorantly turned a blind eye” to their greatness or not. Skippy from the Midwest, listen to me: I lived through both of those great periods, and I can assure you that the Orr Bruins and Bird Celtics owned Boston, absolutely owned it. You couldn’t get tickets for games at the old Garden. Televised games were appointment viewing. (You probably wouldn’t know this, but back in the days before cable TV, not every game was televised. Those few that were became a treat to be savored.) In fact, were you even unaware that when Roger Clemens struck out 20 batters in early 1986, there weren’t 20,000 people at Fenway Park and The Boston Globe’s photographer left the game early to go cover that night’s Celtics early-round playoff tilt at the Garden? That’s how low the Sox’s profile was at the time.
As for ignoring the current Patriots, if your idea of “turning a blind eye” is 14 straight seasons of sellouts, a season-ticket waiting list of 50,000 to pay some of the highest ticket and parking charges in the NFL, dizzyingly high TV ratings and crowds of hundreds of thousands for Super Bowl rallies, then be my guest. But please don’t be offended if I think you’re a little off base.
The post-Series riots are disturbing, but have you noticed a little trend? The rioters seem to be your peers — college students. I can assure you there were no riots or threats on Yankees fans’ lawns in my little burg in southern New Hampshire. Life here goes on as always — with a little bigger smile on our faces. Perhaps the problem lies with people who aren’t old enough to have lived through Bucky Dent and Bill Buckner and who haven’t grown up enough to celebrate winning responsibly. That, too, goes for writers from far away who haven’t grown up enough to make a lot of sense.
Matt McSorley
COM ’91, CLA ’91