Second Nature

Last May, Laurie Ruettimann and I presented at the HRevolution conference in Atlanta on the topic of "Pop Culture and HR," which focused in part on the watercooler conversations that employees frequently have (sports, movies, music, politics) that may cause conflict. Here's another example.

Its been a rough sports week.   My beloved Michigan State Spartans are in the midst of a two game losing streak, falling to Northwestern and arch-rival Michigan.  Even worse, the 15-1 Green Bay Packers fell unexpectedly eliminating them from the playoff and repeat as Super Bowl champions.  While the 3 losses in a 4 day stretch were painful enough, the true salt in the wound came from checking the Facebook stream, particularly after the Packers loss.

Were there Giants fans gloating? No, even though they had a right to be.

Were there Packers fans drowning their sorrows?  Plenty of it...including myself.

Were there tons of Bears, Vikings, and Lions fans celebrating the loss?  Absolutely!  The schadenfreude was thick, my friends. Check out a sampling ofthe quotes below

"Thank you to the NY Giants for making my day." (Vikings fan)

"Bwahahahahahahh" (Lions fan)

"The Giants may want to paint that locker room in Lambeau blue because it seems as though they own it." (Bears fan)

"I bet those State Farm commercials are rally going to sting during the Super Bowl, right Packers fans?"

Bill Simmons, editor of Grantland.com and ESPN's Sports Guy, in discussing the "Rules for Being a True Fan" in 2002 argues for a Five Year Rule:

"After your team wins a championship, they immediately get a five-year grace period: You can't complain about anything that happens with your team (trades, draft picks, salary-cap cuts, coaching moves) for five years. There are no exceptions. For instance, the Pats could finish 0-80 over the next five years and I wouldn't say a peep. That's just the way it is. You win the Super Bowl, you go on cruise control for five years. Everything else is gravy."

He goes on with regard to friendships and relationships in regards to sports:

• If your team defeats a good friend's team in a crucial game or series, don't rub it in with them unless they've been especially annoying/gloating/condescending/confrontational in the days leading up to the big battle. You're probably better off cutting off all communications in the days preceding/following the game, just to be safe. 
• Along those same lines, if your team squanders a crucial game/series to your buddy's team, don't make them feel guilty about it -- don't call them to bitch about the game, don't blame some conspiracy or bad referee's call, don't rant and rave like a lunatic. In the words of Vito Corleone, you can act like a man. You have plenty of time to bitch in private. 
• If your buddy's team loses an especially tough game, don't call him -- wait for him to call you. And when you do speak to him, discuss the game in a tone normally reserved for sudden, unexpected deaths. 
• If one of your best friends loves a certain team that has a chance to win a championship, and your team is out of the picture, it's OK to jump on the bandwagon and root for his team to win it all. That's acceptable. Like Temporary Fan status.

However, this article was written pre-Twitter and Facebook.  And, Simmons is strangely silent regarding rivalries.  

Certainly, my thirst was quenched with a Super Bowl victory less than a year ago.  However, should I take any guff from fans of teams who haven't won a Super Bowl in over 25 years (Bears) or have never won a Super Bowl championship at all (Lions/Vikings)?

So, taking joy in the suffering of others..... 

• Acceptable or unacceptable when it comes to sports?
• Does it depend on the status of the relationship?
• Does it depend on whether or not you have a horse in the race?
• With Facebook or Twitter, is a general status update o.k., but a direct message or a post on someone's wall crossing the line?
• What are the new rules of schadenfreude in a social media age?