There is a segment of Ole Miss faithful who feel the need to flaunt some sort of imagined air of superiority over others in this state based on their affiliation with the University of Mississippi. I will say that while this segment is larger than many would expect, it does not represent the majority of Ole Miss fans. I have numerous family members and friends who have attended Ole Miss, so I am not some fanatic who hates everything about Ole Miss. This week you have seen many of the comments posted on this board and have some understanding of what I am referring to. The group of Ole Miss antagonists I speak of actually believe they are better than "the rest of us", they are even critical of their own fans that don't meet their perceived standards of excellence. They portray this arrogance with the rude comments and behavior most people here only see one week each year. It is with this group of Ole Miss supporters that I take issue with. The facts are: you come from the same hick towns as the rest of us, you attend the same high schools and churches, and attend a state funded university - just like students at USM, MSU, JSU, Alcorn State, MVSU, and Delta State. State funded universities, I might add, that are funded by one of the poorest states in the Union, no different than Louisiana, Alabama, and Arkansas. When you graduate, many of you return to the same hick towns you left, having received no better education than the "rest of us", to work jobs that pay no more than the ones the "rest of us" have, and attend the same churches you left with the "rest of us", and send your children to the same small schools you attended. Finally I hate to burst your bubble, but Oxford is not the cultural center of Mississippi, I dare say there are no cultural centers in the state of Mississippi, and I have lived here for thirty years. I am a proud Southerner, a proud Mississippian, and a proud LSU fan. I consider myself to be fairly well educated at a state funded university (I have a BS and an MBA), but I consider myself no better than a person who dropped out of high school who works a manual labor job making $8.00/hr. We are all human beings, deserving of respect from our fellow man. I hope this helps with your understanding of why this is such a heated rivalry for some. It really has nothing to do with a football game, it is about much more.
marc, great post!!! I know exactly what you mean. I grew up in BR, LA, but have lived in MS for nearly 20 years. I know the Ole Miss contingent that you speak of. Some are not like that, but like you said, the majority are arrogant and self righteous. I mean come on people...you went to ole miss!!!! So what!??:dis:
