You might have missed it, but State has had an argument about whether or not
drinking should be allowed in skyboxes at the new arena. Well,
turns out it will be allowed - though no drinking 1/2 hour before the game
starts and 1/2 hour after it ends (fat chance: is there anything more pathetic than drinking in an empty stadium?).
The Chancellor, Marye Anne Fox, says that this will allow folks to have
private functions where drinking can be controlled, which is true enough. What
it also allows, though, is a stratification based entirely on money and
connections. We're not saying that we'd like to see several thousand drunk
State students - hey, we've been on Hillsborough Street before - but the only
reason why it's "private" is because money allows it to be so.Â
Realistically, the era when sports in America reflected democracy at it's finest
is long gone, which has ominous implications in many ways, but it still is appealing to think of millionaires and laborers sitting cheek by jowl and finding common cause. Then again, we just recently gave up believing in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, so might as well be realistic about it.
But that doesn't mean you have to like it. Fill 'er up? Yessir!