Please, No More "Nation"
Sunday, September 23, 2007
(posted by OMDQ)
I usually give the benefit of the doubt to anyone who comes up with a reasonably interesting play on words - you should get credit for trying, at least - but I'm afraid I can't support the following sentence from Pat Forde's ESPN.com column on the Georgia-Alabama game (a variation of the quote also currently appears on the front page of the site):
Here's what else came out in the wash on a wild night in T-Town: Richtenstein successfully invaded Sabanation.
Richtenstein? Sabanation? Dear God, help me. The latter is not Forde's creation (apparently Alabamians are selling t-shirts featuring the word), but I can't say as much for the former, which may have been made up for analogical purposes (speaking of made up words...analogical?).
Some will view this as nitpicking, and they are probably right. But here's something you may not know about me: I hate, hate, HATE the use of "Nation" to describe a team or organization's fan base. Red Sox Nation? Sucks. Raider Nation? No. Game Nation (as the local sports radio host likes to refer to his show's audience)? Please stop.
At least Forde tried to be a little clever with the play on Mark Richt's name. Most writers don't even attempt that much.
5 Comments:
No matter which name you give it, Georgia comes off sounding like something from the Third Reich.
And I get the use of "nation." AA, I think it is appropriate when your team has pokets of fan bases across the country. But seriously, what is Saban Nation? A couple million people who live between Montgomery and the Tennessee border? Also known as "the upper half of Alabama?" I don't know a lot of Alabama fans in Chicago, California and the East Coast.
YES. Right on. I'm so sick of Red Sox Nation, Cubs Nation, Gator Nation, and all of that. What's wrong with saying "Red Sox fans", "Cubs fans", "Gator fans"? Where did that go?
I agree with AA and Z on the nation thing. As a Sox fan I cringe at the RSN thing. PORN (president of red Sox nation) is even worse. and the fact that the all the NESN announcers use the damn phrase it's like dr Chuck or Double L sent them a memo telling them they had to use so many times a night.
Then there's the idiots who purchase the RSN card. But that's for another day.
Which sucks more: Red Sox Nation the phrase or Red Sox Nation the fans? (Answer: the fans.)
Would've went with Richtland myself, but what can you do?