PAGE 14, THE BEHREND BEACON, DECEMBER 3,1999 NATIONAL SPORTS Sports rage: I)) Thomas Boswell The Washington Post Why are so many of us so angry . ' In these boom times, why is our affluent culture turning v iolent and venomously antisocial at the very sports events \‘ e are presumably attending to have tun? Once, we went to games to let off steam. Now, we get steamed. In you're playing right field for the I louston Astros in sedate middle-America Milwaukee. you better he careful. A fan may run out of the stands and punch you in the face. If you're at a Colorado-Colorado State football game. bring your gas mask; in September, tear gas was used to quell a fan disturbance. A D.C. United patron came to RFK Stadium to watch soccer; he ended up in the hospital with stab wounds. Is it possible we've gotten so intoxicated NA it h winning in the '9os that all other reasons for playing games, or attending them, have shrunk to insignificance? How could "fun" be sufficient? No way. Not unless there's a chance to make a quick killing in a "ftm.com" IPO. In a culture that, every year, seems to define itself more in terms of raw competition, we are tempted, unconsciously, to reduce issues to, "I'm a winner. You're a loser." In this week's installment of our sad saga, two Oakland Raiders players got in a snowball and ice-chunk throwing battle with Broncos fans in Denver. Three fans spent the night in jail. One Raider allegedly hit a female fan in the face with a snowball while another was accused of punching a fan. Oakland defensive hack Charles Woodson faces a misdemeanor assault charge. Mavhe he just doesn't know the rules: you can't chuck a fan more than five rows into the stands. The Raiders' Tim Brown called the melee "the ugliest scene I have ever seen. - These days, that's quite a distinction. A little less than three weeks ago, l 0 fans were arrested and 20 ejected at a Vikings game on a Monday night in Minneapolis. On any given Sunday, you never know what you'll see in the NFL Sometimes fans apparently ask the New Orleans Saints' coach. "Mike. Majority of umps vote to dump Richie Phillips for new union by Sam Donnenon December t) I. I 999 Knight-Ridder NCV, spapers It should have ended with more flair NEW YORK more fire, more fight Richie Phillips's 2 I -year tenure as the umpires union boss should have ended like that final scene in "A Few Good Men,'' with Richie screaming, "You're messing with the wrong litigator!'' as he tried to break all restraints and rip the throats out of the umpires that led the revolt against him. Instead, it ended quietly and dully in a conference room on the 36th floor of the Jacob Jay its Federal Building in lower Manhattan. without Phillips even present. Phillips was in New York. but was tied up in other business, his associate, Pat Campbell, said w ryly. "Richie's focus is all about getting 22 umpires their jobs back," Campbell said. So it ended, w ith Campbell and Major League Umpires Association president Jerry Crawford on one side of a table and John Hirschbeck and his attorney, Joel Smith, representing the new union on the other. It ended with Craw ford's hand-propped head dropping. inch by inch, as Steve Appell. an attorney with the National Labor Relations Hoard, and an assistant te diously and torturously opened each envelope, deposited them in a cardboard box, then tediously and torturously counted each one. When he was done, 57 of 93 umpires casting votes chose a new union, with this working title: the Major League Umpires Independent Organizing Committee. That was the same number of votes cast in favor of resignation last July, a Phillips-advised strategy that triggered the series of events that culminated with Tuesday's vote. Thirty-five umpires voted to retain the existing union, the Major League Umpires Association, headed by Phillips and his law firm. "I'm shocked," Campbell said. "I figured it would be close. But I figured in the end, people would realize the gains they made through the Major League Umpires As sociation and that they would be very reluctant, in a fair election, to give that up." When Phillips took over in 1978, rookie umpires earned $17,500 and the most senior veterans made $40,000. This year, salaries ranged from $95,000 to $282,500, includ ing postseason bonuses they all receive. But along the way, dissidents charged, Phillips became a dictator, forcing his strategy upon them. There was also distrust about the union treasury "The major thing we wanted was an organization that was really run like a democracy," said Hirschheck, who spear headed the effort to force this vote. "An organization where we had a true accountability of funds, where every mem ber had the same voice in the union, where every member was as important as the next. Truly a union that was run by umpires, with lawyers as advisers and consultants." Asked if accountability of funds was a problem within the old union, Hirschheck responded, "It was very dificult to obtain that information." One ballot was voided because it was signed, which Campbell later objected to. Campbell also indicated an appeal of the process was likely. The MLUA has seven days to do so, according to NLRB Director Dan Silverman. If the appeal has merit, Silverman will schedule a hearing. Otherwise, it will be dismissed. WEEK IN SPORTS what's your IQ?" Obligingly, Mike Ditka answers with one finger. Football's not alone. At Fenway Park last month, fans in the bleachers in front of me began throwing anything they could get their hands on at the New York Yankees and the umpires. They weren't just mad about bad calls. Worse, they were furious about being perceived around the country as "losers" those comic Red Sox fans, stuck for generations with their dopey Curse. As play in the AL Championship Series game was suspended, the rain of garbage and curses increased. Many joined the mini-riot, as though it were just part of the show and came with the pricey ticket. What, you mean Yanks vs. Red Sox isn't the WWF? For the most part, the hundreds of people who acted berserk were middle-class white males ranging in age from their late teens to their 30s. In other words, typical American fans. Throughout the postseason, you could hear that same ultimate insult: "You're a loser." Usually with an extra adjective added. In one shoulder-to-shoulder line at Turner Field in Atlanta, barbs started flying between Braves and Yankees fans. It started as bravado but quickly got crazy. Nobody would back down. The space was cramped. One huge guy, half-drunk, stood inches from me, trying to start the Civil War all over again. He didn't just want to start a fight. He wanted to be the fight. The Yankees fans retreated. Whatever level of raw rage you think is circulating in our sports arenas, I promise you, it's higher. By contrast, the fuss at the Ryder Cup, where I walked in the galleries, doesn't even register on the fury meter. To some, it's a paradox that in the best of economic times we exhibit the worst behavior. Maybe it's actually the opposite. Hard times, catastrophes and illness have usually brought out the most unselfish impulses in people. When we are flush with security or success, we often isolate ourselves from the needs of others. We're too big to fail or need anyone else. Greek tragedy said: "Those whom the gods would destroy, they first make great " In spy orts and out, we've seldom been more obsessed Campbell declined to specify the basis of the appeal. "1 just don't think the whole process was fair," Crawford said. The process began July 14 when 57 of the 68 union members at a meeting in Philadelphia's Airport Marriott agreed to tender resignations as a ploy to get major league owners to negotiate a new contract. Instead, owners took steps to replace them, and many umpires rescinded their resignations. Phillips was critical of those umpires and many umpires were critical of Phillips's disastrous strat egy. Ultimately the leagues hired 25 new umpires, and allowed only some resignations to be rescinded. Twenty-two umpires who had resigned were let go. A summer's worth of accusations and acrimony ensued, which ripped apart a union once renowned for its solidar ity. Those let go also tiled a grievance that essentially ar gued that their resignations should not have been taken seriously. Late last week, arbitrator Alan Symonette ruled such a grievance merited a hearing, which he scheduled for Dec. 13 in Philadelphia. Phillips's firm will still handle that grievance, Ron Shapiro, an adviser to the new union, said Tuesday. Shapiro also said he would not head the new union, and would serve as its adviser for only a little while longer. "Ron has from the beginning has never accepted pay, and he will be with us as long as we need to get on our feet," Hirschbeck said. "I think that time is close." Shapiro said: "The union is going to have tremendous law yers . . . They are going to have a crackerjack legal staff. It's just that the legal staff is not going to tell them what to do. They are going to carry out their wishes." One wish will be to forge a better working relationship with Major League Baseball, Hirschbeck said. "We'd like to try to operate through negotiation not litigation," he said. "Umpires are portrayed as being confrontational and antagonistic. Sometimes on the field, it's part of the job, you have to take charge of things. But as far as our rela tionship with baseball, we want to try and negotiate. We want to try and build bridges with baseball. "Baseball has changed a lot in the last 10 years and we as major league umpires want to be part of that change." At least 57 do. But as much as this was a referendum on Phillips, it was a clear barometer the umpires have never been more disharmonious. Also, Crawford and five other umpires are suing Hirschbeck and three other umpires for defamation of character. "We hope that now this process is over," said veteran umpire Joe Brinkman, who will serve on the new union's 14-member board. "We were all brothers before as um pires and like family. And we hope we can all come back together and like family work together as one." One avenue toward that, said Brinkman, is to work in unison with the outgoing union to get the 22 umpires their jobs back. "As time goes by and the other umpires see our con cern for the 22 umpires, I think it's very realistic to think we can mend this," he said. "We have said to people all along. We genuinely care about those 22 people and we are going to do everything in our power to help them." Hirschbeck, standing nearby, was then asked what he would say to Phillips had he been there. "I would just say it's time for us to move on," he said. "Thank you for what you have done for us we're all the loser with winning than we are right now. I catch myself all the time. "Does Anybody Want To Be A Millionaire'?" You bet. Even utility infielders are filthy rich. Why not me'? If you're not a winner, you're a loser, right? A champ or a chump. So, why not run up the score, win by 70, to gain a spot in the college football rankings. American sport always has been Sgt. Scott O'Dell of the Tompkins County Sheriff's Depa.... _ fan after Cortland's victory in the Cortaca Jug game on November 19. Numerous fights erupted among students from both schools. of two minds about what it values. On one hand, pro sports is pure capitalist competition. Survival of the fittest. To the victor go the spoils. On the other, there's usually an awkward recognition, even by famous athletes, that much of life is a mystery to them. They've deliberately narrowed themselves to become great. It's their choice. We now seem to have people who choose a comparable narrowness for the sake of being more fanatical fans. Of all our words to live by, few have proved shallower, or less sustaining in hard times, than, "Just win, baby." Every religious leader or philosopher for 2.000 years has managed to get past "I win, therefore I am." Yet that's where some of us are stuck now. If you climb the With that BCS winning margin makes all the difference by Andrew Bagnato Chicago Tribune November 29, 1999 CHICAGO Sorry, Vince Lombardi. It turns out that winning isn't everything. Winning big is everything. At least that's what Virginia Tech and Nebraska are thinking as they chase a Sugar Bowl date with Florida State. Because seven of the eight computer rankings em ployed by the Bowl Championship Series take victory margin into consideration, the Hokies and Huskers have to make sure they win by the right score. Forget about sportsmanship. Forget about ethics Gentlemen, start your modems. "When it's gotten to how much you can beat a team, we're getting away from what college football should be about," Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer said. "We talk about taunting and respecting an opponent, then every body is talking about how bad can you beat somebody?" Beamer made that comment after whacking Temple 62-7 a week ago. Temple coach Bobby Wallace had no complaint with the rough treatment. "They've got to worry about these com puter formulas," he said. "I do know that beating somebody bad is better than just barely getting by." Who says so? The comput ers say so. In'the final eollege football season of the 1900 s, printouts have become more important than pitchouts. Oh, the irony. Five years ago when Nebraska and Penn State dueled for No. I , many observers decried the human bias of the coaches and media polls after both named Nebraska No. 1. Computers were supposed to , be the answer But now that they've been added to the mix, they've only become a question. While it's true that the coaches and media who voted in the old system were influenced by scoring margins, many were wise enough to discount routs over weak ling& The trouble with computers is that no one knows how much the scores count. Is it better to beat a good team by a point or to sock Temple 62.7? In Nebraska's cave, it was better not to play at all. The idle Cornhuskers edged closer to the victorious Hokies in the BCS standings. BCS boss Roy Kramer insisted that "scoring differen tial becomes so minimal that when you pass 17 to 19 it poi nts,becomes i nfinites imal. There was so much fuss made over . Virginia Tech boating Syracuse 62-0. But it would have been the same if they won 21-o. l ' Kramer conceded that there is ai`slight bounce" for a large victory. "But that's also true in the subjective polls," he' said. "I think all of you (voters) are influenced b scoring differentials. I think it's difficult not to be. But i the final numbers, when the computer is finished grind ing nut the numbers, searing differential is less of a fac tor than most people think it is." Himalayas to reach the guru at the top, he's not going to say, "Mets rule, dude. - Or "give my regards to Regis." How do we live a life that satisfies us, not in the eyes of others, hut in the privacy of our own hearts'? That question hasn't gotten any easier over the centuries. Rooting for the pennant winner, or even finding a way to get that million. isn't going to help. Why are so many in our stadiums so angry? Perhaps we feel entertained, yet undernourished. We've gotten in the habit of asking the simplest, most childish question - who won? - and then asking nothing more. When you lose, and you haven't thought beyond winning, you can get mighty mad. computer, Only one problem: The people who think it matters are the coaches. And that's why they're rushing to pile on the points. '4lO Kramer asks that we take his word on this one. But it comes down to accountability. The computer program mers have none. For personal or business reasons, many won't divulge the secret sauce, not even to Kramer and the BCS honchos. Without accountability there can be no credibiliZ 4 This is why the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll is widelycon sidered a joke. Votes are secret, sometimes even to.the voters themselves. I've voted in the AP media poll for the last six seasons. The AP releases lists of voters at the beginning and end of the season, and it will release each pollster's ballot in the event of a close race for No. I. Many of the voters, including me, regularly publish their ballots. In 1994, when I voted Nebraska No. 1 ahead of fellow unbeaten Penn State, I explained in print. Nittany Lions fans respond, some of them in En glish. Three years later, when I voted Nebraska No. 2 behind fellow un beaten Michigan, the crayon-scrawled letters came from Lincoln This isn't to say that the AP poll should be the sole determining factor, as it was for so many years. The more input, the better. No one wants site national'title to be by a sikrtswriter in a truMb7o4 plaid sixutcoat. (Myself,{pre ee fee-stained sweaters.) But is it poi erable to have it decided by a geelc who has spent his life hitting the "Rage down" key? I'm not saying Kenneth Massey is a geek. But before this fall, when the I,CS picked up his rating system, Massey was an obseure. graduate student in math at Virginia Tech. The memiut he referred to the Hokies as "we" in an interviewihalost any shred of credibility. I'm guessing Massey'a SOO saver is a Gobbler just like his rating sysurat.: The idea that computers are somehow mire 04,4140 than people is ludicrous. Ever try logging on to Agorroa Online? Grant Teaff, executive director of the American Foot. ball Coaches Association, has backed the BCS from**. start. Teaff favored computer input, but he's uncoaatt able with the notion that computers are encouraging coaches to run up the score. Teaff isn't alone. Last Whiter the AFCA ethics committee met with BCS officials to express their concerns on the same issue, "People don't trust the computers," Teaff said the other day from Waco, Texas. "Last year you had people talk . -; ing about biased computers. Shouldn't computers lay pretty much the same thing?" When BCS officials added five computers to the three employed a year ago, they admitted that any single= rat. ing system could have "undue influence." Unfortunately, the computers still have "undue Infin ence," Just take a look at the scoreboard.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers