What is it about being a fan?

Being a fan of the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy lead me to this site. I was browsing amongst the BBC cult Hitchhikers page when I stumbled across this bizarre web-site (it took me months of anguish to discover very little hitchhiker stuff went on, but I was hooked by then - so what are you to do?).

But what makes us fans of various things?

I generally go through periods (ooh er missus - I wonder if it’s more painful because I'm a man) of enjoying different television programmes. As a child I loved the Transformers and Inspector Gadget cartoon series, and later on Doctor Who (Sylvester McCoy's incarnation).

I didn't get in to football until I was about 13, but then I became obsessed with Everton Football Club and went to a few games - and so when Everton beat Man Utd to win the FA cup I was delighted (particularly as I'd heard Prince William and Harry were Man Utd fans, and that they had to hand over the trophy). Sadly I'm still waiting for my second Everton experience of us winning trophies.

But why I became an Evertonian (my father is a red (Liverpool) - and keep it a secret but there is a picture of me somewhere around of me in a Liverpool top as a toddler) I can only guess at. It probably had something to do with having friends who were Evertonians, or maybe I was rebelling.

Perhaps religion (and anti-religion) is similar to being a fan. Everyone has a set of beliefs (whether you have a religion or not) about how you think the universe works, and people "follow" the model which best fits their understanding of the universe.
But something I have discovered is that whatever you are a fan of, there are those who get very angry about details of things. I recently had an interesting debate with Awix (sorry Awix) about Doctor Who, and we had a difference in opinion about a member of cast. We both were concerned that we weren't going to come to an amicable decision of the matter, and so stopped.

But, it occurs to me that the bigger fan you are of something the less likely you are to concede in your beliefs.

War is a little like this. If you are in charge of a country you want to look after your own interest. But you also want to have pride in your country. If someone else's interests conflict with your plans, and they are very important to your country, arguments may get out of hand and turn in to fights. When people support (are a fan of) a country, they want to back that side - even if they don't know all the facts.

Occasionally you see evidence of this in at football (soccer) matches (and many other sports) where peoples refusal to let another fan get one over them causes a light hearted argument escalate to full blown crowd violence.

When someone has a different view point to me, I always intend to explain my position reasonably. If that person responds in a pleasant and calm way, this usually works, however I must admit that I do occasionally see red (though less often these days than perhaps in the past) if the person on the other side of the debate is being less than pleasant about my position, and is unable to be open to the possibility of them being wrong.

None of us are perfect. But what is it about being a fan of things that allows us to get wound up about the most ridiculous of things?

I will always be a fan of things, and if I believe I am right I believe I have the right to state that position - though I will keep open the possibility that I am wrong. Can I successfully keep this balance of keeping steadfast in my beliefs, yet allow that I may be wrong? - only time will tell. But more importantly how few people are there out there who are actually trying to keep an open mind?

I sadly suspect very few. Though I may be wrong.