I posted this note on the B-ball board a moment ago in response to a post bemoaning the cost of tickets to see losing teams. Perhaps the sentiments would be of interest here as well:
My wife and I do not see our purchase of football or basketball tickets as anything other than support for the school we love, which offers an additional benefit of seeing the school's team play in person. We also happily donate in addition to buying the tickets. Every one of our tailgate friends, the people who sit around us, and alums with whom we keep in touch feels the same way. We do not see NU as a department store, like Marshall Fields, at which we transact business and hope to receive value. It is more like a charity in which we fervently believe and want to do our part to support. Admittedly, $ is not now a concern for us in any context, especially this one. But, even when we were a young married couple struggling to make ends meet, we bought season tickets and donated. I guess, for us, it is like our church. Winning and losing really does not influence the amount of our generosity. Some people on this board and the football board just do not seem to "get" that.
My wife and I do not see our purchase of football or basketball tickets as anything other than support for the school we love, which offers an additional benefit of seeing the school's team play in person. We also happily donate in addition to buying the tickets. Every one of our tailgate friends, the people who sit around us, and alums with whom we keep in touch feels the same way. We do not see NU as a department store, like Marshall Fields, at which we transact business and hope to receive value. It is more like a charity in which we fervently believe and want to do our part to support. Admittedly, $ is not now a concern for us in any context, especially this one. But, even when we were a young married couple struggling to make ends meet, we bought season tickets and donated. I guess, for us, it is like our church. Winning and losing really does not influence the amount of our generosity. Some people on this board and the football board just do not seem to "get" that.