Section G

[Drew042]

As enjoyable as tonights game was, there was a bit of an uprising in section G.  About halfway through the first period, the cops (especially the one who must eat about a dozen donuts a day...for those of you who are at the game, I am sure you know who I am talking about) began ordering students in Section G to sit down.  Since this year, as in other years, the demand for hockey tickets was so great, Section G is almost entirely made up of students.  However, the cops continued to order people to sit down until they began to throw people out of the game (quite forecefully to several girls).  The coup de gras came when the aformentioned cop came into the middle of seciton ordering a student to leave.  When this student asked what he had done the cop reached for the pepper spray and was ready to go after the kid until the kid left.  
Now, according to the cops, the head of Cornell Hockey ticketing (Gene something...i can't remember) had sent the order for everyone to sit down.  But when we approached Gene he said he had given no such order.  Nevertheless people continued to be escorted out and chants began to develop at the cops that were doing the escorting.
This situation begs to ask the question...what is a Cornell hockey game where one can't go and stand and support the home team.  The entire section G began to stand in protest and things were getting ugly until they told us we could stand until tomorrow.  By then, they are apparently going to work out whether we are allowed to stand or not.  However, I and many other people in this section feel that sitting severely takes away the fun in the section.  Sicne we are all students and season ticket holders, there is no reason we cannot stand.  If I were a prestigous professor who decided to stand during the game I doubt they would care.  Anyway, I am hoping for any comments from people both who were there and who were not as to what their impressions of this fiasco are.

[gwm3]

That's nothing new in G.  I sat there freshman year ('98-'99) and the ushers always made us sit.

[Ben Doyle 03]

::help::  ::help::  ::help:: Pepper spray for standing up??? Are you kidding me. . .will it ever end???

They just keep coming up with new way to stick it to the Faithful ::help::  ::help::  ::help::

[Ben Doyle 03]

Graham, I sit in B and section G has to be at least 90% students. They put in their time in line they should have the same experience as the rest of the student sections and be allowed to stand.

but that's just my $.02
:-P

[Drew042]

Thanks Ben...all of the people that I know in the section waited out like the rest of the student sections.  I and several others have been going to games for the last six years (not because I am a perpetual student...but because I am doing my vet degree here as well) and feel that this is a huge slight to the Lynah faithful to which we are a part of.

[Copat Lynah]

I understand the feeling that one would have for wanting to stand and show your support for the team.  However you must balance that with the rights of others to be able to view the game unobstructed.  Complaints were registered by ticket holders in section "H" who felt that thier views were being obstucted by those that were standing.  Who's right?  I don't have that answer - but some type of compromise must be reached.

[gwm3]

I wasn't saying that it's right that Section G can't stand, I'm just saying it's been like that for a while.

[Adam \'01]

Simple solution.  Those who want to sit can swap seats with last minute student buyers in N and O who would gladly give an arm and a leg to be standing on the 'student side.'  Rather than bringing out the pepper spray, simply ask people to swap.

[Lowell '99]

[q] This situation begs to ask the question...what is a Cornell hockey game where one can't go and stand and support the home team.[/q]

What is a Cornell hockey game where fans are more interested at bitching and booing one incident that actually watching the game?  Both rousing boos came when our team was setting up nicely on offense in the second period.  I don't think I'd like to hear random booing if I were a player on the ice.  

I'm not saying I don't think you should stand.  I'm just saying that a good number of fans in sections F and G looked a little foolish for a while tonight.  I'm sure you're all great fans, but that was obscured a little tonight.

[DeltaOne81]

I'll chime in with a couple things on this one. First, according to a friend of mine who was in upper F, the only reason the cops layed off tonight was because some law students talked to the cop after the pepper spray incident - telling him he was really pushing his authority and rights. This information is second hand, but it's from a good friend.

As far as people in H complaining, well, I kinda see it and kinda not. Overall, I think that the spirit of the Faithful is just more important, whether you're in G or B. The fact is (as my father has commented) if people in the student section sat down, you could see the far corner (by A) much better from where I am (E). But I'd much rather be standing even if it means I miss a corner, big deal.

Finally, as for the fans in that area looking foolish. I don't know. I think it's pretty important. They've told us we can't throw fish, can't swear, or can't stand up (notice a pattern?) - if you don't let whichever cop/usher/administrator is on a power trip that day know that you're watching and won't let it happen without a fight, then who knows what they'll try to restrict next. It's a shame that these four years have taught me that the Faithful have to fight for their traditions, but we do, a couple bad minutes is well worth it, IMHO.

-Fred

[Mike Hedrick 01]

You'd think that would work, but it didn't go over at Placid last year.  One group of people messed it up for all of us.

We stood anyway.

[Will]

My opinion...if the people in section H can't see the game because the students in section G, who did their time in the line just like all (well, most) of the other students, are standing and showing their support for Cornell Men's Ice Hockey, tough.  They shound stand as well.  There's a reason we shout "Townies up, townies up!" near the end of the game.  We, the students, really do want them to be cheering the Big Red on as adamantly as we do.  Hockey is a wild and vicious sport; the least the fans can do is stand up.

[Section H]

I happen to sit in the upper half of Section H, and I really don't see how it's possible that anyone in Section G, standing or sitting, can block any view of the ice that the boards aren't already blocking.  The only thing that Section G is blocking from my seat is a view of Section F, and who wants to watch those guys?  :-)

As far as H standing, I'd love it, and there are a good number of students sitting in Section H.  But looking at the fans behind us, there are also a good number of older fans as well, and I doubt all of them would stand or like having their view blocked by us, so we sit out of respect for them.   We still have a good time.  But we definitely jump up for goals and other appropriate exciting moments.

[Greg Berge]

> We, the students, really do want them to be cheering the Big Red on as adamantly as we do. Hockey is a wild and vicious sport; the least the fans can do is stand up.

Sorry, but this is a load.  I stand for the games when I'm not obstructing people, but I sit when I am obstructing somebody.  This isn't a question of civil liberties.  It's politeness.

Also, most of these "adamant" students are facetimers, and most of those boring, passionless townies have been coming to games and supporting the team for 20+ years and care a helluva lot more about Cornell hockey than the students.

The Faithful are about more than chanting "sucks" every five seconds and getting wasted at Dunbar's.

[Beeeej]

Amen, Greg.

And it wasn't even all that long ago that the tradition was not to stand for the whole game, but to stand only until Cornell scored their first goal - at which point the Faithful were generally pretty glad to get to sit down.  So while it's pretty frustrating that the cops would enforce their will so selectively and abusively, the "fighting for tradition" argument doesn't hold a lot of water with me.  If you really want to start fighting for tradition, you'd better be willing to ask Section B to sit down after Cornell's first goal of the evening.

Beeeej