Was anyone else put off by the US women's soccer team singing,

[Guaranteed]

all of them, the National Anthem in its entirety when they won the gold?

I know I'm a bit of a curmudgeon, but when people deliberately do things together as a group, in particular things like singing (or dancing- like, think LINE dancing), it's as if they're trying to prove something. Hey, we're all friends!! Look! We're singing together. And the worst part is that it seems like they're trying to prove it to each other more than anything else.

Why couldn't they just enjoy the anthem in silence, maybe mouth a couple of the words? They're all obviously sharing a very special moment. They don't have to prove anything to anybody. The bonding, friendship, and collective pride shouldn't have to be put on display.

I see a lot of this particular KIND of pack behavior in young women, for some reason.

Does anyone understand what I'm trying to get at, here?

Edited for clarification

[moof]

1. So they weren't wearing the new uniforms ....

The ones that the US soccer association is hoping will get
more people to buy tickets and help Soccer flourish in America ?

[Placebo]

2. You say they shouldn't have to "prove anything to anybody"...

and I think their action prove pretty substantially that they don't care about proving anything to anybody.

They were moved by the moment, for many of them this was their last Olympic games. They didn't plan it out ahead of time, and they definitely didn't care about what other people think because they got teased about it by the announcers right after they finished singing and AGAIN while being interviewed.

And if you want to talk about "pack behavior" look at men.

What do you mean this "pack behavior in women?" Care to elaborate? :wtf:

[Guaranteed]

3. Sure.

I, in my personal experience, have noticed that some women, especially young women, for some reason, like to perform dances and songs and chants etc. as a group in an effort to give the impression that they're all the best of friends, even if they've only known each other for a couple of hours.

Of course the US women's soccer team has been together for a long, long, time, but to think that every single one of those women had it in their mind that they were going to sing the national anthem word-for-word, before the fact, would clearly be wrong. They fell in line when they saw one, two, then five of the others doing it.

It's just your typical social pressure to behave in the same way as everyone else in the group, which is typically dictated by the group's leader (my guess that in this case it would be Mia Hamm). And all I meant was that I see this particular form of social pressure (I think I'll coin it "performance friendship") quite often in young women. That's all.

And, yes, as you noted, men engage in pack behavior all the time. Just not in the same way.

Anything else?

[Placebo]

4. Well you seem to answer all your questions just there...

so what's the point of this thread?

To vent about how you think women who don't know each other for very long often pretend to be the best of friends, which doesn't apply to the women's soccer team. or to say that young women tend to engage in pack behavior which isn't at all exclusive to women and is in fact found more in men. And to attach all of the above to a minute and a half long scene of our women's soccer team proudly joining together to sing our national anthem (albeit, not exceptionally well)

Not trying to be an ass, I just don't get it.

:shrug:

[Guaranteed]

7. LOL I'm not trying to put down

the behavior of some young women, here...although that's what I'm doing...

It's just a phenomenon I've seen around a bit and I was wondering if anyone else has noticed it. Things can be overanalyzed, especially when it comes to psychology.

I mean, it IS entirely possible that they were just having a good time. :P

An ex-girlfriend of mine was in a sorority. That's when I first started noticing it.

Yeah, the fraternity guys respond to the same social pressure by conforming, but the behavior is totally different. They don't do dances together or sing together (unless they're REALLY drunk). They get violent and pick on people instead.

Don't you think that the differences are at least a little bit interesting?

[Placebo]

9. I dunno I've witnessed a chain reaction of male idiocy a few times...

one guy does something at a party then they allllllllll have to do it.

Blech, I don't even care anymore lol

[Guaranteed]

10. No, you're right, I see that all the time.

Hell, I've done it.

[xcmt]

5. It's not an American thing.

How many medal ceremonies have you watched? I'd say about 90% of the gold-medal winners sing their national anthem at least in part, usually in entirety, along with the crowd supporters from that country.

It's just not as apparent because it's one person, not singing at maximum volume, and usually with the microphones turned down. The women's soccer team had 25+? people singing simultaneously with cameras and microphones in their faces. It's going to sound louder.

The point being it's pretty universal, patriotic, and not offensive in the slightest.

[enigmatic]

6. I thought it was a sweet moment..

And genuine. Being offended by it was never in my mind.

[Guaranteed]

8. Oh, no, I wasn't offended...

I just get irritated by certain kinds of things sometimes...

It's just like, oh, come on...

But, I mean, I could be wrong. That's why I started the thread.

[BlueCollar]

11. They won the Gold and sang out of tune

I don't see the issue...

Now...if you want to discuss those singers/artists who "interpret" the National Anthem....that's a different issue

[enigmatic]

12. On my "Insane Music Program"...

on my station I've played cuts by Carl Lewis and Robert Goulet murdering "The Star Spangled Banner"; hilarious stuff..

[enigmatic]

13. I think if it was blatently calculated..

I would be uncomfortable, but this didn't seem to be..

[Racenut20]

14. That particular group of ladies can do anything they want. They

have more than earned the right. Have you ever heard of any of them on drug charges, or being arrested for something.

[BlueCollar]

16. Agreed...

Everything I've seen and heard about the women's soccer team over the last ten years has re-inforced (sp?) my belief in Title IX...

They did a great job

[ClintonTyree]

15. I turned it off.................

simply because they sounded like shit. They couldn't carry a tune in a washtub.

[DeposeTheBoyKing]

17. I wasn't offended by their act of singing

I WAS offended by the quality of their singing! But it's hard to know how you sound to others. I didn't expect them to stop because they were enjoying the exuberance of the moment.

[Jeff in Cincinnati]

19. Let's hope they don't quit their day jobs!

I liked seeing them sing the national anthem with such gusto, but Lord have mercy, they really can't sing a note.

In further response to the point of this thread, can you imagine the reaction on Fox News if they hadn't sung at all? "Why does the womens' soccer team hate America?"

[soothsayer]

18. not offended, but they sounded like munchkins!

it was a bizarre moment

[MaineDem]

20. I thought they were fantastic!

I, for one, have no idea what you were tring to get at with your "pack mentality" comments. Those women kick ass and if they all decided to sing their anthem, what's the problem?

But, carry on...

:shrug:

[Guaranteed]

23. Eh. Don't worry about it.

Only one person so far understood what I was trying to say, as far as I can tell.

[GOPisEvil]

21. Oh, good Lord!

If there's nothing to bitch about, for God's sake, let's invent something.

[underpants]

22. Exactly-I thought it was pretty cool

They didn't care if they couldn't sing (not really all that bad and it was from the heart) they just did it.

What, will there be a call for them to give back their medals now?

[dolo amber]

24. I understand your point, but for me

it was more the fact that they sounded like a pack of rabid Roseanne's while singing it...It was fookin' painful. x(

[dr.strangelove]

25. Chill out

It seems to me you have frustration towards groups of women doing almost anything together. Every birthday party I've been to in my life involves a group of people singing out of tune. I don;t think anyone goes to parties planning to do something, its just natural to sing happy birthday in that setting. I alway sing the national anthem when I hear it. That song inspires in me the pride I feel for being an american. I love to hear it and I love to sing it. I assumed these women were just like me. I joined them from my livign room.