[Baez87]

In 1960, I was student teaching at a high school in Three Forks, Montana. I was being welcomed into the teaching profession by the veteran teachers at the school. Part of my initiation was to go down to the local bar after the Friday night football game and join the male faculty members, including the coach, for a few rounds of beer and a rousing discussion of the game that has just been played.
Usually a big discussion ensued about how the coach should have coached the game. People at the bar — faculty members and other members of the community — got into heated discussions about how the coach botched the game. It didn’t matter whether the games were won or lost. The coach always had to run the gauntlet of public opinion, which grew even more passionate as the evening progressed.
The following Friday, the tradition continued. The players played their hearts out on the field. The coached still coached his team using his best judgement and the strategies he had implemented for the season. The downtown quarterbacks still met at the local tavern. Beer still flowed after the game. The fans still spouted their contrary opinions. Each character on the stage of that small town bar aired his opinion through the night. And the world continued to turn.
Enjoy the season! We are privileged to live in such a special era!

[Baez87]

In 1960, I was student teaching at a high school in Three Forks, Montana. I was being welcomed into the teaching profession by the veteran teachers at the school. Part of my initiation was to go down to the local bar after the Friday night football game and join the male faculty members, including the coach, for a few rounds of beer and a rousing discussion of the game that has just been played.
Usually a big discussion ensued about how the coach should have coached the game. People at the bar — faculty members and other members of the community — got into heated discussions about how the coach botched the game. It didn’t matter whether the games were won or lost. The coach always had to run the gauntlet of public opinion, which grew even more passionate as the evening progressed.
The following Friday, the tradition continued. The players played their hearts out on the field. The coached still coached his team using his best judgement and the strategies he had implemented for the season. The downtown quarterbacks still met at the local tavern. Beer still flowed after the game. The fans still spouted their contrary opinions. Each character on the stage of that small town bar aired his opinion through the night. And the world continued to turn.
Enjoy the season! We are privileged to live in such a special era!