To BrownieBornNRaised and Riffer X:
Thanks for your posts. I needed to hear that. I want to say again that it was a huge error in judgement on my part to start this thread. I'm truly sorry. To assume that just because you're on a message board, they're aren't other people elsewhere reading this that have real emotions and feelings that wouldn't get stirred up. I regret all of this.
OK... I have some explaining to do. I did see the movie with 2 friends who glanced over at me with a "we-know-that-you-can-take-that-as-a-joke-right?" kind of look. It didn't bother me at all, and honestly I thought it was cool that Cleveland was being mentioned and given "the time of day" by the movie. If someone tried to use Indianapolis or Charlotte or Cincinnati instead, would the rest of the country get it? It's part of Cleveland's personality to be in that role. The show 30 Rock had an episode back in 2007 where a co-worker takes the Tina Fey character to Cleveland to show her around his hometown, and it was a tongue in cheek segment that poked fun at Cleveland, rather gently, and she actually ends up wanting to move to Cleveland with him because everyone seems so nice to her.
I started to think about what if someone really did take offense to the vids after seeing the movie to the point of ditching Cleveland. I was using this board as a litmus test, to see how people would react with everyone being anonymous. Cleveland fans don't take any shyte. Just like I figured. I wanted to see if anyone on here was truly upset about the vids, and if anyone has ever thought about changing their support to a local team because they are not in Ohio anymore.
It's crossed my mind to switch to a local team, being in Florida. With the Bucs winning the Super Bowl (which was a huge event down here) it seemed like a possible option. But are you kidding? I have way too many memories and too much invested with Cleveland sports to switch. I'd feel like I was betraying my family.
It's like the mafia... "just when you think you're out, they pull you back in".
I'm sorry to the ones who hate that I used the board for this. I needed to hear honest, brutal reactions.
LOL, man I have been busy as hell but this thread was a treat. Dude, you are a pansy man, and I mean that sincerely. First off, you can't be that freaking old as you stated to not understand the scenario you have put forth better.Big cities are not an entity to them self, it's the whole metro area and in our case NE Ohio as a whole. Yes, Ctown proper is rough, yes it is poverty stricken, full of piss poor and underfunded public schooling, run by a corrupt gov't going on 50 years and generally kinda dirty and crime ridden. We get all that, but you can say the same for just about every old school industrial town around. I won't get into all the positives the area has going for it, the ethnicity of the area, beautiful old architecture or any of that other fluff stuff, that probably doesn't meet the vocabulary of you and your bohemian/yuppie folks you hang out with.
The irony of you taking one person who made some self deprecating videos to prove your point is mind boggling to say the least. You're judging the entire populace on one guy's viewpoint, which BTW is meant to be a joke in that sometimes we don't need to take things too seriously. Then you're correlating it to the entire populace in general and pigeon holing the entire area based on some joke videos. On top of that, you decide that Ctown is not worthy of your fandom anymore because a couple of your friends aren't grown up enough to understand the gritty inner city underbelly. Your taking that and stereotyping everybody as a whole. along with the unwillingness to root for the local sports teams over fear of embarrassment?
Bro, honestly, please go root for Tampa, maybe the Lakers, Yankees and Gators. The whole experience will be wonderful for you. That way when you're out your friends can tell you how cool you are cuz not only do you back winners, but you back successful cities too. You can really impress some folks. I say go for it man and good luck to ya.
"you and your bohemian/yuppie folks" LOL... I like creativity, that was good. Glad you could come up with something different than another "homo" or "douche" reference.
To set the record straight, it would be Tampa teams and only Tampa with the exception of the Florida State Seminoles, since I am an alum. fukc the Gators. Lakers? Yankees? not in a million years. Front-runner? Bandwagoner? I think not.
Terrific post, Geech.Personally, I find the homo rants and the "you wouldn't make it in Cleveland!" stuff to be silly stupid and naive, but I understand where it's coming from. The original poster, on the other hand, came in from an island owned by his freaking Dad and tried to lay claim to it as his own personal homeland in need of defense.
Beanpot
Beanpot, I have to hand it to you. You're absolutely right. Seriously. I was a military brat. Lived in several different places growing up. Spent 9 years in the DC area (very rare for a military family to stay put that long), until moving to Florida in 1991. Been down here ever since. In DC, they would show Cleveland and other AFC Central teams all the time, since the Ravens didn't exist and Pittsburgh was the closest AFC town. I did adopt the Browns because of my dad being from Cleveland. Maybe that was my mistake. But I didn't have a "hometown" of my own.
Damn, Beanpot. I guess sometimes you need to hear someone else spell it out for you. It seems ridiculous... liking a team because your father likes them? He grew up there, I didn't.
Wait a minute ... you live near Miami beach, full of hot babes, and you went to the movie .. a Michael Moore movie ... with two dudes?You wouldn't make it in Cleveland.
The last movie I saw with two dudes, was Blues Brothers with my flesh and blood brothers. You don't see movies with dudes, dude.
You are a homo.
I wasn't going to post again. But, after what this twat posted, I had to. You are a complete FUKCTARD, you got that? Did I say I was in Miami? No. I said TAMPA. Can you fukcing read english? And by the way, I saw the movie with a good female friend of mine who is an avid sports fan and knows I am (or was) a Cleveland fan, and the other was mutual friend of ours (who I met through her), and is a guy.
Man, this decision I've made to ditch Cleveland is getting better by the minute, and posts like this one from tweedle-dumbass helps too.
Who goes to movies with a crowd of friends anymore? What are you like 13?
I went with 2 friends... but everyone else who was there evidently agreed that Cleveland is a big joke.
I hate Michael Moore... wanted to see the film to find out what he had to say this time. At first, I thought he or one of his people videoed the Cleveland segment. But to find out it was a Clevelander who filmed it? Well, that's worse. Worse enough for me to move on.
I don't regret starting this thread whatsoever (seriously). Based on the feedback so far, I've made the right decision to drop Cleveland. All of you are missing the point, but that's your problem.
Laughter throughout the theatre here in Tampa as that segment played. Honestly, I was pissed and insulted at the time. My 2 friends looking over at me with a "f**k!-that-must-have-been-embarrasing-for-you-since-youre-a-cleveland-fan" look. Yep, that's the last straw for me. No more. Why the f**k should I care anymore. One of your own added to Cleveland's bad image with those videos. Yeah, maybe the videos by themselves aren't a big deal. But it did open my eyes to the mentality Clevelanders have toward themselves and their so-called "beloved city." Seems like you people don't mind looking like douchebags, since you're adding fuel to your own fire. You can have Cleveland, the teams, the whole deal. Clevelanders DESERVE the negative image they have. Doesn't seem like anyone is trying to change it.. would rather make it worse, like Mike Polk did. Blame him.
Let me start by saying that I don't live in Ohio (never have) and the reason for being a Cleveland sports fan is because of my father who was born and raised in Fairview Park. I started following the Browns and Indians when I was 10 (1984) and grew up mostly in Virginia, near Washington, DC. I now live in Florida, and have been here for the last 18 years. Rarely have I ever get poked fun at for being a Cleveland fan, and the THREE times it happened in 25 years, it was just half-way serious but not really. I never spent much time in the Cleveland area except for a week or two during the summer (when I was in school), and last visited in April 2008.
Anyways, I guess because of being naive, and not living in NE Ohio, I never got a good idea of the reputation the Cleveland area has nation wide. Sure, I heard some of the jokes on late-night TV, etc. However, those came from people in other places, NY, LA, wherever.
That is until Michael Moore's new movie "Capitalism: A Love Story" included what I would call a self-degrading, dispicable, insulting Cleveland tourism video spoof. The worst part was that these videos (there's two of them) were made by a native Clevelander as a "joke".
Well, I have to say, that is real shame. I never realized the lack of civic pride Clevelanders have for their hometown. Do all of you agree with what these videos are poking fun at? Do you consider these hilarious? If so, no wonder the rest of the country considers Cleveland a punch-line and worthy of abuse.
If you don't have respect for the community you live in, how do you expect others to respect it?
As a result, I am no longer a fan of Cleveland or their sports teams. It's over for me. The bottom line is, that I am completely embarrassed now to be associated with Cleveland or their teams knowing that everyone who sees this movie will witness an "amusing" video that insults Cleveland which, worst of all, was created by a native Clevelander.
I'm sure that some of you are already aware of them. All I can say is I used to be proud to be a Cleveland fan, but no more. Remember the city you are an "ambassador" for when you wear your Browns, Indians, or Cavaliers gear in other parts of the country. I won't ever wear that stuff again. I don't want people to think I'm from Cleveland, and for them to assume that I would sh** on my hometown by making a video like this.
I'd like to hear some feedback on what some others on here think about these videos, and request that this post not be moved, even though I realize it's not really about the Browns.
Probably not a big deal. However, Cavalier players don't seem to be supporters of the hometown football team.
What we need is a winless season... that will get Mangina out of our lives.
The question would then be what to do about Kokinis. These two are assholes buddies, you know. They're a "package" deal.
You can talk about talent, or lack thereof, all you want. If the team goes winless, everyone will question Mangina's ability as a motivator and leader (if they haven't already started to!)
This whole team needs to be erased traded for picks yes even rogers ,thomas and cribbs thats what mangini failed to do he failed to make the hard transition and gave us the same thing we have had for 4 years...i will no longer support this team or the nfl by buying products/services/gear until some tings change...why buy a jersey that will be a relic of bad memories in 3 games?To bad the sunday ticket is non refundable i wont be watching this disaster unless some serious changes are made totally disheartning ownership and regime...
NFL Sunday Ticket is so cool though. You can actually watch other teams play and say to yourself "So that's what football is supposed to look like! Both teams are scoring touchdowns and keeping the score close! Wow!"
There were several of those games today. And no, I didn't watch every minute of the Clowns, I mean, Browns game today. There were better ones to watch.
20 years from now, the only thing Brady Quinn will be remembered for is this commercial, and the ever-more-famous 3-word quote he says at the end of it. Sort of like George H. W. Bush when he said "Read my lips, no new taxes." 
The main thing for me personally, is how embarrassing it's been being a Browns fan these last few years. No bragging rights or things to be proud of. At all. The Browns just lost their 9th straight game to the Broncos. Steelers have won the last 11 meetings vs the Browns? ANY OTHER STREAKS I'VE FORGOTTEN ABOUT?? Oh... that's right, Rich Gannon said today again and again and again and again of how long it's been since a Browns scored an offensive TD, and how long since the last rushing TD... didn't he also figure how many quarters it's been, and maybe how many months, days, hours, seconds??? Our upcoming schedule is brutal. Scary. Daunting. This team will be lucky to win 2 games. The Lions are on the schedule. Well, the Lions will win. Their defense sucks, but they can score TDs. Scoring is what playing football is about. Difficult to win games if you're scoring FGs and the other team scores TDs.
I hope Mangini pans out, because if not... what... keep him around for a few more years, fire him, and start from scratch AGAIN?? This is madness.
It's taken me a long while to come to the point where I'm questioning whether an expansion Browns team should have been created in the first place. Yes, I know it sounds like a sacrelig, and down right insulting. However, the lineage of the great Browns teams of the past currently resides in Baltimore, Maryland. It's an injustice, it was a serious betrayal of Browns fans and the city, but it's reality. It was an end of an era. This new "Browns" team is an expansion team. Therefore, I wonder if selecting a completely different new nickname and colors would have been a better decision. These aren't the Browns. Maybe there has been too much pressure and expectation put on this expansion team (by the fans, and media) to live up to the name "Browns" and the legacy that comes with it. We should have let go of the past and acknowledged that in 1999 was a start of a new beginning and therefore a new nickname should have been chosen. It's just a theory of mine that living up to the great players and years of the past was not fair to this new franchise.
I'm old enough to remember the Browns of the 80's and even though they didn't make it to the Super Bowl, they were competitive at least! They were talented enough to qualify for 3 AFC Championship games in 4 years. I believe that's what hurts everyone the most. The memories of when the Browns were competitive, talented, and entertaining. We had two great leaders on offense (Sipe and Kosar)... receivers like Newsome and Slaughter, and backs like Mack, Byner and Hoard. Above all else, a competent head coach, Marty Schottenheimer.
We have none of that now. No leadership, no play-makers.... no talent. No hope. This team has accomplished nothing since 1999, except coming back into existence. Is that really a positive thing? This team couldn't stop the run in 1999, and 11 seasons later... well... run defense is still a big problem. Besides special teams (Josh Cribbs is the best player on the roster)... what else does this team do better now than they did 10 years ago? A question I thought about alot during today's game. This team is no better than the 1999 team! Holy sh**!! 10 years of "spinning our wheels" getting no-where and showing no improvement anywhere. This isn't just sad, it's unacceptable.
The lousy draft picks (Couch, Courtney Brown, Gerard Warren, William Green???). To think we could have drafted Adrian Peterson, or Jamal Lewis (2000 Draft), and Mark Sanchez (looks good so far).
I'm really at the end of the line with this organization. How much grief are we supposed to put up with? Is asking for a competitive football too much to ask for? So this goes back to my first statement that questions whether this team should have been brought back through expansion. It seems it would have saved all of us alot of heartache, frustration and false hope. I could never become a Steelers fan... ever... But I don't live in Ohio, and it's crossed my mind to start following some other team. Yes, I've arrived at a point I never thought I'd ever get to.
As i'm sure you noticed, all the pressure and sacks on Quinn came from the right side of the o-line. Womack and St. Clair sucked today. Joe Thomas was matched up against Jared Allen. Allen had 1 tackle today.... that's it (it wasn't even a solo). Left side is fine.
If anyone is interested, the item # is: 120385042857 
I'll start off by saying I hate both these teams with a passion (like 99% of Browns fans do), and it's basically a case of a "lesser of two evils". Tennessee should have won their game, and this matchup shouldn't even be happening to begin with.
Reasons to pull for Baltimore:
1. Who wants the Steelers to win ANOTHER championship.
2. They are our true archrivals dating back to 1950.
3. Since this game will be played in Pittsburgh, a loss at home would be more devastating for the Steelers, since they are division champs, have beaten the Ravens twice already this year, and are favored to win.
4. I HATE Hines Ward.
Reasons to pull for Pittsburgh:
1. No one questions the existence of the Steeler football team. They are legit, have been around since 1933? and whether you like it or not, their owner is one of the best and worthy of respect.
2. The Ravens team should not even be in existence. We all know the reasons why (Modell, that sack of sh**).
3. John Harbaugh dedicating Baltimore's win over the Browns on November 2nd to Art Modell.
4. I HATE Ray Lewis.
There you have it.... I am leaning toward the Steelers mainly because Pittsburgh didn't steal our team, and their owner voted against the move.
However, this decision is like asking someone "Would you rather lose an arm or a leg?"
I think he will stay at Florida.Tim is a college qb...I know it, he knows it.
He is going to stay, win another Championship and possibly cement his status as the greatest college player ever....and that isn't just me saying that, nor is that point I bring up to cause debate. My only point is I doubt he goes to the NFL now. When he does, he will make a team....play h-back or TE...maybe some stuff at qb in scheme packages....but Tim knows the score.
Shoot, he may not even want to play pro ball. He is going to make more than enough money hanging around the state of Florida, working for the NCAA as an ambassador of some sort...his future can be almost anything he wants it to be.
Even though I live here in Tallahasee, I will say that Tim Tebow is as much of a stand-up guy as you can possibly find anywhere. What an awesome person with a great attitude toward life in general. It is sad to know that he wouldn't really fit anywhere in the NFL. I agree that H-back or TE are the closest to being a fit for him. No doubt he will return for his senior year because he loves playing college football for the Gators. Why would he leave? He doesn't seem to be the type to turn pro early and chase money. After his senior year, he will be drafted by some NFL team and play for a few years. Ultimately thought, I believe he will move on to getting back into missionary work, or as Ballpeen said, an "ambassador" of some kind.
LB's are much more of a priority than CB's. Everyone seems to forget that Daven Holly will be back next year.
