Angry Aggies: Retraction

This is my formal apology to any who participated in the silent protest in a recent Utah State game.

In my previous post I employed no restraint as I criticized Aggie basketball fans.  I went so far as to call them "classless" and their actions "ridiculous."  My words were premature and founded on a single article, cited in the scathing post.  Any who took offense at my article were victims of my failure to further investigate the incident.  I am sorry.

The Salt Lake Tribune article specifically stated that the three minutes of silence came because the students were "angered by a formal letter of apology from USU President Stan Albrecht."  It has been brought to my attention that the silence came about for a different reason.

I was misled by the Tribune.

The Herald Journal was cited on ESPN.com as saying that "Utah State students remained silent during the first three minutes of the game in protest of an usher [who] had told them before the game that cursing and pointing at opposing players was not allowed (emphasis added)."

That changes everything.

What would sports be without trash-talk, yelling, or taunting?  Sports can be an outlet for what can't be done elsewhere.  While tackling someone to the ground accompanied by a triumphant chest-slap is perfectly acceptable in a football game, doing so in a Dick's Market bread aisle would merit some jail time.  Imagine boxing someone out for a position at the drinking fountain.  Without this outlet for both players and fans, the world would be a much crueler and violent place.

As it turns out, it was an usher who prompted the silent protest.  And, admittedly, I probably would have participated.  Although I still think that Aggies went too far with Brandon Davies, I agree that sports would not be the same without passionate fans who do whatever they can to help their teams win.  That's why home-court advantage is so vital.  All courts are the same: 94 x 50 ft, 10 ft high rims, and 15 ft free throw lines.  The key difference is the atmosphere created by the fans.

Aggies, I beg your forgiveness.  Please understand that I was misled by the Salt Lake Tribune.  I should have researched first through ESPN, the source of everything sports.

Angry Aggies

Classless.

Such a belittling word.  The most famous usage of the adjective in recent Utah history was made in 2009 by BYU Quarterback Max Hall.  After squeezing out a 26-23 victory in the once hostile rivalry, Hall rattled, "I don't like Utah.  In fact, I hate them.  I hate everything about them...I think the whole university, their fans and their organization, is classless (emphasis added)."

Although Hall issued an apology note, those lines will never be forgotten by Cougs and Utes.  What a pity it is that Hall decided to end his (somewhat) successful college career on such a negative note.  As a Ute alumnus myself, I initially was angered by Hall's words.  Over time I have chosen to believe that Max was "in the heat of the moment" and extremely exaggerated his emotions.  He knew nothing about the University outside the realm of football.  That's what I choose to believe.

However, classless is the one word that came to mind when I heard this story on the news last night:

"Angered by a formal letter of apology from USU President Stan Albrecht to BYU for the students' treatment of Brandon Davies during a season-opening win over the Cougars, the Aggie students sat and watched in retaliation.  They started cheering as usual at the 17-minute mark of the first half, but even then the atmosphere was quiet, lackluster and not anywhere close to its usual noise level."

(You can read the rest of the article here.)

That is a classless act.

I understand freedom of speech and the right to express your opinion.  I understand (and am even guilty of) taunting opposing players.  However, there is definitely a point past which the taunts are too personal, too degrading, and downright too much.

My dad once told me about a college basketball game in which the students were holding up posters that read, "Are you making daddy proud?" and the like.  The posters were directed at an opposing player whose father had passed away the previous week.  That is going too far.

Yes, Brandon Davies broke the honor code.  True, he was suspended from BYU.  We don't know all the details, nor do we need to know the details.  What we do know is that Davies faced this ugly situation like a man and is back on the court.

Utah State Aggies apparently don't care.

Students made posters with humiliating phrases (that I dare not repeat to keep this blog family-friendly), chanted, and yelled things at Davies all night.  The Aggies came away with a win over the in-state rival, even if it was in poor fashion.

I'm not referring to the posters nor the chants.  Those are to be expected, even though I like to think that I wouldn't participate in something so petty.  I'm sure Davies goes into every Away game expecting the shallow signs and chants, but remember that it was Davies who overcame humiliation and fought to become eligible again.

What really bothered me was this retaliation effort in the game immediately following the university-issued apology to BYU.  The usually loud and riotous crowd sat silently for a whopping three minutes to prove...what exactly?  To prove how childish college students can be?  To prove that they really meant every demeaning word they directed toward Davies, as if he had personally offended them?  I struggle to find the purpose in this little protest they pursued.

Like with Max Hall, I'll choose to believe that the ridicule towards Davies was carried out "in the heat of the moment."  Utah State students are passionate about basketball, the only athletic program that puts several W's on their schedule each year.  But the in-game protest was too much for me to accept as "ok."

To put it kindly, I am disappointed with the Utah State students who organized and participated in the three minutes of silence.

If I were to be mean about it, I would tell the student body (at least those at the game) to get over themselves.  Your president did the right thing by issuing an apology.  Your temper tantrum was a little ridiculous.

Again, that's what I would say if I were a mean person.

Book Review: The Holy Temple

Two months ago I began a new job.  On the morning of my first day, I remember thinking, "I should take a book with me - you know, to read during lunch or something."  Quickly scanning the bookshelf, I grabbed an older looking book called The Holy Temple by Boyd K. Packer.  The lessons taught from that old book would soon surprise me.

The book has been republished several times.  My book was from the first printing in 1980, a hard-cover book with a grey cover and an image of a handle that can be found on the doors of the Salt Lake Temple. Inside the front cover is an inscription to my parents.  "Dear Brent and Ginger," it reads.  "On this important event, we wish you all the choicest blessings of the Lord as you begin another eternal family."  After a few more words, it was signed by my parents then-bishopric.

Reading that inscription made the book much more important to me.  I imagined my 31-years-younger and unmarried parents.  They had no idea what lay ahead.  How can a young couple prepare for seven children and all that accompanies them?  Very carefully indeed.  I'm not certain, but I feel confident in saying that my parents read this book together as they began their vicious and vivacious voyage known as 'marriage.'

A better part of the book addresses the doctrine behind temples: why we have them, what is done in them, what their role is in the eternities.  I can't tell you how many times "turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers" appeared on the pages.  Elder Packer outlines the origin of temple ordinances, the role of Elijah, and the restoration in the Latter days.  He also explains the importance of making and keeping the covenants made within the holy walls of the temple.  The chapters are truly a textual feast, requiring a vigilant eye for complete comprehension.

Admittedly, this portion of the book was somewhat difficult for me to enjoy.  Not that I found its teaching unimportant, because I do, but because I was not giving the information its due attention.  In retrospect I wish I would have a notepad and pen with my scriptures nearby.  So much information is fascinating during the moments of reading, but I find it hard to reproduce.  "I read the most amazing chapter today, but I can't tell you what it was about."  Internalizing the information was difficult for me.

The last section of the book fortified the link between temples and family history.  They are one and the same, actually.  Elder Packer expounded on the extreme importance for each member of the church to discover their family story.  It is not enough to go to the temple to perform ordinances for names that have been found.  Good, yes.  Best?  No.  As I finished the final page of the book I felt a new vigor for family history.  It is the most important work we can do on Earth and in heaven.

Why is it so important?  Read the book.  You'll understand why.  I always considered family history to be something we can do on the side if we have time when we're older.  Only now do I realize that this is to be a priority in my life.

But how to begin....

Calories from Technology: 4G

I saw a commercial tonight.  It was an advertisement for a bank - I can't remember which.  It showed a man, well-groomed, sitting in a chair.  He stands, puts on a jacket, a hat, a scarf.  Then he just stands there, ready to go.  He then takes the smart phone from his pocket, taps it several times, removes his scarf, his hat, his jacket, and sits back down.  The ad effectively showed the foolishness of actually going to your bank to do banking.  Why drive to the bank to make a deposit when you can do so from your home, car, or seat during a football game?  Get it done now, from anywhere, because you deserve it.

As the commercial ended, I couldn't help but feel angry.  "What a lazy dope," I thought.  Instead of marveling at the ease of online banking, my catalog of memories brought forth images of fat people in suits of red and blue sailing around in hoverchairs.

Yes.  I thought of WALL-E.

I remember watching this Disney delight for the first time and thinking, "Wow.  We read your message loud and clear, Disney."  The film's charming robots disguise to children what can be a fear for adults: we're losing ourselves.

Is technology making us more lazy?  Or is it freeing up more time so we can do other things?

Although I think technology is great, I have my reservations about it.  Yes, it's wonderful that we can text.  It's very appropriate in some cases.  Not so in others.  It definitely takes away human element and can be very misleading.  I remember when someone would actually care enough about me to make a personal invitation over the phone - with their voice - to a party rather than a thoughtless mass text.

There are two kinds of Bluetooth users: those who understand the purpose of Bluetooth, and those who don't.  I giggle inside when I see someone holding their phone in front of their face while wearing a Bluetooth receiver.  The whole point of Bluetooth is to be "hands free."  Is it really easier to have the phone a few inches away from your face?  Why not go a few inches more, remove the Bluetooth, and use it like a normal phone?  Apparently some people don't understand that you can leave your phone in your pocket and talk.

Another technology I find amusing: electric staplers.  Electric pencil sharpeners is something I can get behind.  They're fast and can get your pencil as pointed as a needle.  (I hated those sharpeners fastened to the wall.  You change the angle of your pencil by a few degrees and you had to start all over again.)  But staplers are hard to use incorrectly.  You hit the top part hard enough to put the staple through the paper.  I witnessed a man who would was using an electric stapler to attach two sheets of paper to each other and remember thinking how pathetic it was.

The point is that technology goes too far in some cases.  Here I am criticizing technology when I saw a commercial over the internet on my laptop, which I am now using to type this outrageously long blog post about nothing.

Why me?

All active Facebookers will remember a time not too long ago that I like to call the "doppelgänger era."  Officially, a doppelgänger is "an apparition or double of a living person."  So someone in the facebook realm decided to popularize that word by encouraging people to search out their celebrity double.

It was my favorite facebook period ever.  I usually don't spend too much time perusing through profile pics, but some were just too precious to pass up.  Very average to below-average looking friends of mine would choose the most gorgeous/handsome celebrity to be their look-alike.  All the sudden girls realized (more like hoped) that they looked like Carrie Underwood.  Dudes would put up shirtless pictures of Matthew McConaughey or some other hunky male.  And the best thing was that we, the Facebook public, were supposed to buy it.  It pleased me to know that some people think so highly of themselves.

As for me, I never posted a doppelgänger.  Why?  Because up to that point I was just Brady Barrett, an individual without a look-alike.  I wasn't about to post a Bradley Cooper or Brad Pitt mostly because I look nothing like them.  But within the last year, I have been getting "You look like..." comments.  I'm not flattered by them, either.

Seth Green.  I've gotten this one several times.  For some reason being compared to Dr. Evil's outcast son doesn't tickle my fancy.

Seth Rogen.  Can't say I'm hot on this one either.  And why "Seth?"  Two Seth's?  

I'm extremely upSeth about this.

Perspectives

It's amazing how we all have different perspectives.

I roll my eyes when I see hipsters with their weird clothes and music because I feel like it's all an act.

I question heavy metal "musicians" with their screaming and guitar shredding because I find them to be completely nuts.

I finally look up Pinterest to see what the big deal was and found it to be boring and rather worldly.

Don't even get me started with women and their obsession with "Twilight."  I have even more to say about BYU fans with their fight song, Davis High with their mascot, and why people think gift cards are better than cash.

My curse

A curse is "a solemn utterance to invoke a supernatural power to inflict harm or punishment on someone or something."  Sounds about right.

I am 100% serious in saying that a curse besets me.  I believe in supernatural powers.  How else would you explain this?

You would not believe how many times in a week I see this time.  11:34.  Before lunch.  Before bed.  It doesn't matter.  It's the most mind-numbing thing I've ever witnessed.  Often I see this time twice in a single day.  Absurd.

Normally I wouldn't care much about something so trivial as this.  In fact, I would almost welcome it in most cases.  But not this.  Everything was groovy in life until I realized what I was seeing.  You see 11:34.  I see this:

hEll.  I see hEll, and I see it a lot.  It's been disturbing me since I laughed at some kid's solo tryout in choir.