Demonboy wrote:What I'm starting to see here is that most of us seem to actually agree. I think what's being argued amounts to little more than semantics.
Lets start over. How about this?:
It is good etiquette for invited teams to try to support the host team's snack bar. Teams knowingly and wantonly ignoring said snack bar are probably guilty of bad manners while violating unwritten "friendly rules" (or mores if you prefer) and risk not being invited back.
I agree. I agreed the first time you posted this assertion, but didn't say so because I was curious just how far out on a limb these yahoos would go (and how personally offensive they would get) in support of their lame-brained postion.
Supporting a host team's snack bar is a nice thing to do, just like giving up a bus seat for an elderly person is a nice thing to do. It's not an obligation, it's just a generally decent act. And one shouldn't be surprised if one is viewed as an a$$ if they consistently refuse to do decent things (i.e., conform to etiquette norms). I'm down with that.
But I reserve the right to decide for myself what etiquette requires. If I've got a broken leg, I might not give up my seat. If I walk by the snack bar and see the server sampling menudo directly from a crock-pot with a used spoon (true story--one of many), I might elect not to roll the dice on their other offerings. If all they have is candy and chips, and I don't have my boys in tow, then I may elect to take a pass (and the host shouldn't be surprised if lots of other people pass as well). If I brought my own lunch--which there is
nothing wrong with--and nothing else at the snack bar strikes my fancy during the day, then I might not end up buying anything.
You want my business? Then run a good snack bar and there is a high probability that you will get it.
