Cheerleaders

Recently, Joan and I went to a High School Football Game and were struck by the contrast between today's game experience and those of our high school days. Yes, the players were big and strong; yes, the coach was fired up; yes, the stands were packed. That part was the same.

What was different were the cheerleaders. Joan pointed out to me that the Cheerleaders did not "lead" the crowd in cheers, but were rather putting on a show or a display with not many people, other than the parents of those involved, paying any attention to them. In a time out, the Cheerleaders would create a lift and then toss a young teenage girl around, but at the same time the announcer was loudly promoting the concession stand over the PA, the band was playing in the end zone and the people in the stands were talking and joking -- all while the Cheerleaders were tossing and catching.

What happened to the megaphones and the cheers that everyone in the stands joined in on and the Cheerleaders led?

Push'em back, Push'em back, waaaAAAAAYYYY BAAACK!

or 2-4-6-8. Who do we appreciate? The Tigers.The Tigers. The Tigers! YAAAAAAY

Or, when the game was firmly in your team's hands, the Cheerleaders would lead the crowd in
Warm up the buses, warm up the buses, cause weee win. Weee win. Weeeee WIN!

From Pittsburgh, my son-in-law reports this cheer from 20 years ago when the Cheerleaders would sassily put their hands on their hips and point their fingers at the opposing side and the partisan fans in the stands would follow them, standing up with their hands on their hips and pointing, cheering ...
U-G-L-Y.
You ain't got no alibi, cause you Ugly.
Whaaaat?
You Ugly.
Whaaat?
You Ugly. You Ugly. You UGLYYYYYYY!

Everybody on your side knew the cheers and all joined in; everybody on their side all knew their cheers and all joined in. It was fun and not mean-spirited. At some point, the opposing sides' Cheerleaders would come over to our side and lead a cheer.
Thank you for having us, thank you for having us. Yaaay. Yaaay. YAAAYYY!
And we would applaud and they would strike a pose, shake their pom poms and then run back to their side, while all the people on our side would talk about them ("our girls are better looking," or "their outfits stink"or "I think there was something living in that blonde's hair.")

I appreciate the athleticism of today's Cheerleaders and their skill at lifting and holding and climbing and falling, but they are really not leading the crowd in "Cheers." Rather, they are ... well, performers. Nothing wrong with that, really. I... just prefer Cheerleaders.

"I guess he's simply becoming an old fart with his memories and his Pall Malls."
Kurt Vonnegut, "The Slaughterhouse-Five," 1966