Dartblog

I don’t have much to add about the squash court heckling controversy, except to observe that the comments were disgraceful and the situation was both embarrassing and quite exceptional. My family and I regularly attend Dartmouth men’s and women’s soccer and hockey games, and football and baseball games, and we have yet to hear any heckling at these events that would not be acceptable in a G-rated movie.

Most often, Dartmouth crowds are inventive and funny with their shouted remarks, including “it’s all your fault” directed at the opposing hockey goalie after a goal is scored, or “repulse them, repulse them, make them relinquish the ball” at football games, or the endlessly clever wit of the baseball-supporting Loudmouth Brigade (nicely described in the D here and here).

The Valley News published an interesting article on the reaction that their reporter has had to his reporting on the situation. As writers at DartBlog have experienced, too, the messenger is often impugned for the transgressions of the miscreants (hey, there has to be a good crowd chant somewhere in that phrase!):

Hey, Squash Hecklers: Don’t Shoot the Messenger
BY DON MAHLER
Valley News Sports Editor

The ugly incidents at the Dec. 2 Harvard-Dartmouth squash match, including obscenities and sexist and homophobic remarks, have taken on a life of their own.

As always, the messenger is a handy target.