Yankee Doodle boils Southern blood
by Chris Taylor, managing editor

    Writing a sports column can be a difficult, mind-numbing, brain-freezing experience. It becomes much easier when there is something in the world that ticks me off.
    Lately, I have been in a good mood. That’s good news for the people around me, but bad news for people who want me to write.
    Things that would normally make me angry don’t right now. A week ago I watched Troy Aikman throw five interceptions against the Giants and didn’t really care.
    After the game, the news was filled with speculation about whether Aikman should be benched or not. Normally, I would be jumping all over the anti-Aikman crowd, but lately … total apathy.
    But one thing has me in an uproar. I hate New York. I hate the fact that both teams from New York are in the Series.
    Now, maybe it is because I was born in the South and my family is all from the South. I will not dispute the fact that I have extreme distaste for Northerners. It’s just the way I am.
    But, even with my bias against the North, I can still root for teams from the North. I like Babe Ruth, and I like Reggie Jackson and they both played for the Yankees.
    The sight of pinstripes now, however, sends me into an Incred-ible Hulk-like rage. A portion of this problem stems from the fact that the Yankees always knock the Rangers out of the playoffs.
    After watching those playoff series, I began to really hate the Yankees. I became very tired of hearing how great they were. I also began to despise Bob Costas. If I hear that man fawn all over the Yankees one more time, I won’t be responsible for what happens next.
    I’m easy-going, so it takes a lot to make me hate someone, but Bob is going to be on my list forever.
    While everyone else talks about how Bob Costas is a great broadcaster, I secretly dream of sending him to Iraq wrapped in an American flag.
    This reaction sounds cruel, but it always bothers me when sports announcers forget that there are other teams and that they should be given the same respect. Is being objective that hard?
    If it is, maybe they should hire someone else to call the games.
    The truth is I don’t really have anything against the players from either of the teams. My big problem is that I’m tired of New York being treated as the center of the universe.
    If New York is the center of the universe, then it is probably time to move.