The big fandom event

[dlgood]

So. I've been checking around the "friends" list, and seeing what's up on TV, and I thought I should comment on what's going on in my fandom.

Right now, I'm so very glad Carolina hired Huckleberry Hound Roy Williams to coach. Because Roy Williams is a great coach who raises the bar for the ACC. Because Roy Williams plays an uptempo style of ball at UNC that I love to watch.

And because Roy Williams can't beat Maryland.

Terps 90. Tarheels 84.

It was one of the best games the Terps have played all year. Terps not named Jamar Smith went 19-21 from the free throw line, which is rather impressive given their shooting. There were big runs, back-and-forth lead changes, great defense with bodies flying all over the place for loose balls, tough inside baskets, and some nice tense moments in the last minutes before the Terps pulled it out.

Also, I'm to understand there was some sort of BB fandom thing. I've posted my share of vehement and/or incendiary comments on one board or another. But I can never get particularly worked up over fandom politics, particularly given my experience working in actual US politics. Fandom_Wank can bite my crank. Go Terps!

Comments

[masqthephlsphr.livejournal.com]

Fandom politics always reminds me of large-scale governmental politics, except in microcosm and over matters that are much more trivial. Both sides think their opinion/approach is the right one, both sides feel threatened by the "irrational" folks on the other side, both sides feel persecuted by the other side, but don't think they are persecuting the other side, so feel self-righteous in their continuing to fight against the otherside, which is perceived of as persecution.

It's fascinating and it is so, so tiresome. I look at how silly and avoidable it all is and realize that it's human nature and that we aren't going to stop acting this way probably ever.

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

It's certainly human nature. Being able to separate myself personally from my policy positions has always made it far easier for me to deal with this.

I got into fandom because it's interesting and fun for me. Seeing fandom types get frothy is, at turns, amusing or annoying. At the end of the day, it's still to silly for me to get really worked up over. (At least when people get worked up over Taxes or Missile Defense, there's a public stake.)

Heh...

[randomways.livejournal.com]

I'm a member of Fandom_Wank and actually noticed you on the friends-list of a couple people involved in a recent scuffle. And, no, I don't post on such stuff as the Board (mostly out of enormous respect for Masq, no matter how much d'H says he would love to appear on F_W) or my LJ friends...though the wankage on LJ has been spectacular in the last month or two. I got principles and loyalty, after all. But I'm truly amazed at the excesses of fandoms, and when I get the momentary (trust me, it's only momentary) apprehension that something I post will deeply offend someone because I'm offering a less-than-OMG-he/she-is-so-hawt-and-so-great analysis, I head over to post on F_W cause they're actually fun. I even had a person who was being wanked recently come over to F_W and express appreciation for the effort and wit I put into mocking them. It was a good yummy thing.

But, yeah, F_W is widely hated and widely loved in equal measure. Though the former seems to spring mostly (but not always) from the very types of people who start flamewars and get wanky the most. Odd, that. I post there under another name (wankprophet) because I really don't feel like overlap into my presence in LJ and on the Board, but have no problem with telling people who I am.

Still love me? Tolerate me?

Oh, and as an old-school Carolina fan (grew up in North Carolina during the Dean Smith era)...congrats! And, of course, you suck, heh. Just rub it in, whydontcha?

Re: Heh...

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

Mostly, F_W is too silly and too meta- for me. I suppose it's also the difference between folks randomly poking at other boards, as opposed to a member of a board pulling a scuffle onto F_W. Which is lame in the "taking family business outside the family" way. But otherwise, I generally don't care all that much and almost never look at it, so my perspective may be a bit skewed.

As to UNC. I grew up in the DC area during the Lefty Driesell and John Thompson eras. I've got much respect for Dean Smith. I love college ball, and I'm glad to see UNC doing well. UNC doing good is good for BBall and good for the ACC. It makes it that much more enjoyable when we beat them.

And really. Roy Williams and Huckleberry Hound were totally seperated at birth.