`Spoiled' Dukies fail to accept criticism

An excellent high school teacher of mine once told me that she could always tell good students from bad ones by measuring how they took criticism, whether they saw it as a bad thing or whether they used it as a platform for greater achievement and improvement. It does not surprise me that the whining, bitching, moaning students of Duke University cannot take criticism from Coach K without some degree of anger.

Coach K and his talented players have brought to this school two out of the last three national basketball championships. He has further committed himself to a program that makes himself available to Duke students over lunch for discussion about student issues, something that no other coach at a Top 25 program does. He has further shown his commitment to students by voicing his opinions on issues that affect students, like the all-freshmen East Campus proposal. Yet in spite of all that he has done, Duke students seemingly cannot take it when he asks them to do one thing during basketball games--to act like students.

Only spoiled Duke students would claim that "being creative" means being offensive to the point of throwing tennis balls, condoms, etc. onto the basketball floor, as if it made one bit of difference in the outcome of the game. Be fans! Not cretins! The ludicrous nature of this "creativity" argument sort of reminds me of a similar one promulgated by Duke students amid discussion of changing the alcohol policy: "Well, if we can't drink on campus, then we are going to go over to Chapel Hill bars and get drunk, and then kill ourselves driving back!"

We should learn to recognize the difference between being a committed fan and being a detriment to the image of our team. Yes, there is a difference. If Cameron Crazies can't be any more creative than what I have seen given all the supposed intelligence walking around this school, then Duke is living an academic lie.

In short, our basketball program is known for its great athletic achievements and its high level of respectability at a time when much of college basketball has lost its respectable touch. It is time that Duke students, as fans, learn that Cameron Crazies do not have to be offensive to be effective, and that criticism is just a part of life. Grow up!

Jamie Smarr

Trinity '94