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Stanford Halftime

I was in attendance. It was in very poor taste. I didn't really care, personally but it really was mean-spirited and distasteful. It's not the kind of thing you do at an event like that.
I was there and didn't really take it personally either, but then again I couldn't really understand what they were saying over the PA system. Just knew they were making fun of Iowa. Also, they just sounded terrible, like the kid trying to play the trombone in American Pie or me trying to play my trumpet after not playing it in 25 years. If that is their schtick, whatever. Do it at your home games or against Cal when you travel there. Just seemed really out of place and weird at an event like the Rose Bowl. Thank God they didn't let their "band" do the national anthem. If I were a Stanford fan, I'd be cringing seeing my school being represented that way on a national stage (much as I was cringinging with our football team's performance on a national stage).
 
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FYI, ESPN cut away from the view of the Stanford "band" as soon as they noticed they were mocking farmers. ESPN didn't show them long, for good reason.

I find it perplexing that an event that otherwise promotes the positive things you describe would give these idiots a platform to do their schtick at all -- especially considering that Stanford has been there the last three years in a row. This wasn't a surprise to the Rose Bowl. They should have known what kind of crap they'd pull, and they should have prevented it by keeping them off the field, IMO.
Glad to know ESPN did that.

I completely agree, the Rose Bowl leadership should have known, and acted.
 
Glad to know ESPN did that.

I completely agree, the Rose Bowl leadership should have known, and acted.
Question--if ESPN was caught off guard, and had to cut away unexpectedly, would that suggest that Rose Bowl leadership was also unaware of the content of the "band's" performance ahead of time? Like wouldn't they have communicated to ESPN beforehand, "hey, just a heads up, but the Stanford 'band' is gonna do a pretty distasteful show lampooning farmers, so broadcast accordingly?"
 
Another article about how they have done this at every Rose Bowl they've been in. This also has some video of what they did in case anyone wants to see what it looks like when hippies prance around and play sinks and skateboards as if they were drums. I like that at least they are equal-opportunity offenders (sort of like South Park). As long as they can take it themselves in return and wouldn't get upset if our band dressed up in flowers and rainbows to make fun of San Francisco culture.

http://www.sbnation.com/2016/1/1/10699822/stanford-band-rose-bowl-iowa
 
I think it's clear that the folks in charge were pretty much asleep at the wheel at the Rose Bowl on this whole Stanford "band" thing.

I thought it was odd that only the Hawkeye Marching Band played for the national anthem. Now, it's clear why that was the case. It should probably be a rule of thumb at the Rose Bowl than any band unworthy of playing the national anthem shouldn't be doing anything on the field before or after the game. If the Stanford administration is OK with having these clowns do their schtick in their own stadium at their home games, in the interest of allowing them the "freedom to maintain their unique identity" (as I read in one cheesy statement from the Stanford administration) or some such nonsense, fine. Whatever beeps Stanford's buzzer. But for the Rose Bowl to let those bozos anywhere near the field -- especially knowing their history and being very familiar with them since Stanford has played in three consecutive Rose Bowls -- was a mistake from the get-go. It was obvious that they'd pull something like this. The folks with the Rose Bowl were apparently clueless.

And why other Pac-12 schools even allow them in their stadiums is beyond me. They've apparently been banned from road games for a year. Big deal. I'm surprised they're ever allowed in visiting stadiums with that kind of crap.
 
I probably have a bit of a unique perspective on this as I went to grad school at Rice, who has a very similar "scatter band" which used to perform similar shows against Texas/A&M/et al back in the old SWC.

I've never liked Rice's band, nor do I like Stanford's. It wreaks of "we're just trying to show you how smart we are", and quite frankly feels unbecoming of a college football program as successful as Stanford's has become.

In addition - and it takes a lot to insult my sense of humor (we have a dog named Beavis) - there is a fine line between good natured fun and insulting a fan base. I personally took no offense to it (I'm not from Iowa), but that doesn't mean that it's in good taste.

I'm guessing that they will take getting booed off the field at halftime of the Rose Bowl as a badge of honor ... which tells you all that you need to know.
 
Pretty much spot-on, Laguna. As for taking offense, I'm sure some will say, and have said, it's no big deal, have a sense of humor, they do it all the time, they're equal-opportunity offenders, and all that baloney. But when some school starts mocking the very foundation of a state and a people, it's not going to end well. I've never farmed a day in my life, but my wife and I have family who are farmers and many native Iowans do. From the very beginning, it's just a horrendous idea to mock a people's way of life. The fact that these idiots make fun of everyone couldn't be more irrelevant to whether it was the least bit appropriate to make fun of farmers in a Rose Bowl involving Iowa.

Ironically, for a group that ostensibly takes pride in its intellect and creativity, they went for the lowest possible hanging fruit with Iowa and actually revealed just how small-minded, ignorant, and uncreative they actually are.
 
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Pretty much spot-on, Laguna. As for taking offense, I'm sure some will say, and have said, it's no big deal, have a sense of humor, they do it all the time, they're equal-opportunity offenders, and all that baloney. But when some school starts mocking the very foundation of a state and a people, it's not going to end well. I've never farmed a day in my life, but my wife and I have family who are farmers and many native Iowans do. From the very beginning, it's just a horrendous idea to mock a people's way of life. The fact that these idiots make fun of everyone couldn't be more irrelevant to whether it was the least bit appropriate to make fun of farmers in a Rose Bowl involving Iowa.

Ironically, for a group that ostensibly takes pride in its intellect and creativity, they went for the lowest possible hanging fruit with Iowa and actually revealed just how small-minded, ignorant, and uncreative they actually are.
What's worse, some Stanford tool was in the game thread claiming they were really making fun of themselves, with all the cows on Stanford's campus, "The Farm," etc. Basically trying to deflect accountability of really poor judgment, typical of a bunch of immature, spoiled children.
 
I saw that -- a weak effort at rationalization, to be sure. I remember a claim that California is actually a more agricultural state than Iowa, or some such nonsense. Shoot -- it's one of the biggest states in the nation and it has areas with mild climates conducive to certain kinds of agriculture. It's my understanding that the Fresno area is quite productive agriculturally. That's great -- more power to them. But of the many things for which California is known, agriculture is obviously a very small part. Iowa was built on agriculture, which appropriately dominates many aspects of our culture. There's really no comparison between the two states in terms of the importance of agriculture to the state.

The Stanford "band" (and I refuse to describe it without quotations, as I refuse to acknowledge it as an actual band, which is clearly isn't) was making fun of California about as much as the Iowa defense was stopping Christian McCaffrey.
 
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The Stanford band is no different than Colin Cowherd and Paul Finebaum. They're just looking for reactions and attention, playing on people's emotions for their own benefit. The more we give attention to them, but better they feel. Moving on. They don't deserve it.
 
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I'm not going go waste my time reading the script. But if this debacle was approved by Stanford, Iowa, and the Rose Bowl, I have to wonder about the judgment of the people in these three entities who provided the approval. That would be a level of cluelessness of gigantic proportions.
 
I'm not going go waste my time reading the script. But if this debacle was approved by Stanford, Iowa, and the Rose Bowl, I have to wonder about the judgment of the people in these three entities who provided the approval. That would be a level of cluelessness of gigantic proportions.

I would read the script before getting offended (it's not long). It seems pretty innocuous to me. It suggests that Iowans are farmers, which I guess is stereotypical, but doesn't really seem too offensive to me.
 
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Ma
I chuckled a few times at the cow. That's their thing, they do it to everyone. Does it make it right? Probably not, but it's harmless
maybe if there is any adult that is overseeing those morons that person needs to be fired if they have no control. The leaders signed off on this garbage. Maybe it is time to shut this worthless outfit down for good. They are not good and their shtick is not funny. Embarrassing comes to mind
 
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Ma

maybe if there is any adult that is overseeing those morons that person needs to be fired if they have no control. The leaders signed off on this garbage. Maybe it is time to shut this worthless outfit down for good. They are not good and their shtick is not funny. Embarrassing comes to mind
And we should know something about embarrassing. :)
 
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I would read the script before getting offended (it's not long). It seems pretty innocuous to me. It suggests that Iowans are farmers, which I guess is stereotypical, but doesn't really seem too offensive to me.

Nah -- I've wasted too much time and thought on those buffoons already.
 
I would read the script before getting offended (it's not long). It seems pretty innocuous to me. It suggests that Iowans are farmers, which I guess is stereotypical, but doesn't really seem too offensive to me.

I was sitting right under the jumbotron and heard it. Reading it doesn't give you any clue as to the performance and how it was read.

It was classless and there is a reason thousands of Iowa fans were booing.

The NCAA stresses sportsmanship on the field as a paramount priority. I don't understand why the bands and everyone else wouldn't be held to the same standard.
 
It's funny that this is the longest post game thread that we have.....a bunch of uptight Iowans feeding the stereotype by getting upset with a harmless joke, while the most offensive thing on the field - by far - was the performance by the Hawkeyes
No one disagrees that Iowa's FB play was the worst thing on the field, but the band issue is an issue of a different sort. Either the Rose Bowl and Stanford want to put on a class show that respects the other team and their fanbase, or they do not. It seems that the majority of Iowans, and a lot of Stanford grads, were upset with the band's show at the game (I was there) so I would guess that there are many more "uptight" people who had a problem with what they did, compared to the "super cool and relaxed" people like yourself who apparently did not.

For those who really are motivated to do something about it, the Stanford president is John Hennessy, and his e-mail is: hennessy@stanford.edu.
 
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It's funny that this is the longest post game thread that we have.....a bunch of uptight Iowans feeding the stereotype by getting upset with a harmless joke, while the most offensive thing on the field - by far - was the performance by the Hawkeyes

These kinds of replies are predicable and inevitable, but I'd guess they represent a very, very small minority of clearly-thinking Iowans on this subject. But hey -- we can't all be as super cool and relaxed as bhawk24bob.

By the way, bob, maybe you could answer this question in your uniquely super cool and relaxed way. . . . Just exactly how does objecting to the Stanford "band" mocking Iowans perpetuate a stereotype? Having a hard time understanding how objecting to the perpetuation of a stereotype by the Stanford "band" would perpetuate said stereotype, but then, again, I'm an uptight Iowan, so i lack your keen insights. I'm looking forward to your super cool and relaxed answer. Thanks in advance, and stay super cool and relaxed.
 
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The guy I work with that went to Stanford basically reiterated what was already said in here. The Stanford band is bad, the school knows it, the band knows it so instead of trying to get good they just mock the other school.
 
The Stanford band is no different than Colin Cowherd and Paul Finebaum. They're just looking for reactions and attention, playing on people's emotions for their own benefit. The more we give attention to them, but better they feel. Moving on. They don't deserve it.

Spot on. This is how these nerds get there attention in life. This is there 15 minutes. After this they will spend there life in a cube with a boring azz career. Probably none of them have even been with a female (probably why they choose to be gay).
 
These kinds of replies are predicable and inevitable, but I'd guess they represent a very, very small minority of clearly-thinking Iowans on this subject. But hey -- we can't all be as super cool and relaxed as bhawk24bob.

By the way, bob, maybe you could answer this question in your uniquely super cool and relaxed way. . . . Just exactly how does objecting to the Stanford "band" mocking Iowans perpetuate a stereotype? Having a hard time understanding how objecting to the perpetuation of a stereotype by the Stanford "band" would perpetuate said stereotype, but then, again, I'm an uptight Iowan, so i lack your keen insights. I'm looking forward to your super cool and relaxed answer. Thanks in advance, and stay super cool and relaxed.

They're poking fun of the insular, backwards-thinking Midwestern farmer......which is on display in this thread. I can think of a LOT of things that your average Iowa football fan does that does not personify whatever 'class' you're looking for out of Stanford's band.

The difference between you and I is that I'm not insecure. I don't care what Stanford's band does, and I don't let it affect me.
 
Pretty tame compared to some of their other "shows". When they played USC back during the OJ trial they had a Ford Bronco going around the field with bloody handprints on it. One time vs BYU they had a skit with all the girls in wedding veils and said marriage is between a man and a women...and a women...and a women... Etc as he proposed to all the women there. Every time I see the FarmersOnly.com add on TV I roll my eyes.
 
Iowa band played the national anthem since they were deemed home team for the game based upon higher ranking coming in to the game.
 
I found it humorous mainly due to the fact I feel those Farmers Only dot com commercials to be among the dumbest on television.

Two, if you found it offensive I hope you also find every off color, racist joke or comment about any group offensive. If not that rings of hypocrisy.

Also you should forfeit your right to complain about any group that claims they are offended about anything.
 
Spot on. This is how these nerds get there attention in life. This is there 15 minutes. After this they will spend there life in a cube with a boring azz career. Probably none of them have even been with a female (probably why they choose to be gay).
Fans that think like you are more embarrassing to our state than anything the Stanford band did, with your awful grammar and your pointless, mildly offensive gay jokes. I'm guessing you couldn't even get into the University of Iowa, let alone Stanford.

And this whole thing cracks me up. It's a harmless joke. I laughed when I saw it and laughed even more by reading this thread with posters that are saying that it offends them to the core of who they are as an Iowan. Get over it and relax.
 
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Fans that think like you are more embarrassing to our state than anything the Stanford band did, with your awful grammar and your pointless, mildly offensive gay jokes. I'm guessing you couldn't even get into the University of Iowa, let alone Stanford.

And this whole thing cracks me up. It's a harmless joke. I laughed when I saw it and laughed even more by reading this thread with posters that are saying that it offends them to the core of who they are as an Iowan. Get over it and relax.

I laugh even more at someone that has over 10K posts on a message board.
 
They're poking fun of the insular, backwards-thinking Midwestern farmer......which is on display in this thread. I can think of a LOT of things that your average Iowa football fan does that does not personify whatever 'class' you're looking for out of Stanford's band.

The difference between you and I is that I'm not insecure. I don't care what Stanford's band does, and I don't let it affect me.
Good post, well said. WWDM isn't upset. He's just posting mini-novels multiple times in this thread!
 
No one disagrees that Iowa's FB play was the worst thing on the field, but the band issue is an issue of a different sort. Either the Rose Bowl and Stanford want to put on a class show that respects the other team and their fanbase, or they do not. It seems that the majority of Iowans, and a lot of Stanford grads, were upset with the band's show at the game (I was there) so I would guess that there are many more "uptight" people who had a problem with what they did, compared to the "super cool and relaxed" people like yourself who apparently did not.

For those who really are motivated to do something about it, the Stanford president is John Hennessy, and his e-mail is: hennessy@stanford.edu.


Do something about it? Jeez......

gay_dance.gif
 
And in two posts (at least the ones that go unedited) you have more grammatical errors than I have had in 10,000. Just curious-did you get a degree from the University of Iowa?

Internet douche bag and grammar police all in one. You are a winner.. Trust me I am more successful than you by far. douche … did i say douche?
 
Internet douche bag and grammar police all in one. You are a winner.. Trust me I am more successful than you by far. douche … did i say douche?
Did you talk like that in front of your kids when you came across Stanford fans (or even more offensive to you, gays) when you were in Pasadena? Or anywhere else?

And I'm glad you think taking 5 years to get an AA from Hawkeye Community College qualifies as success.
 
Did you talk like that in front of your kids when you came across Stanford fans (or even more offensive to you, gays) when you were in Pasadena? Or anywhere else?

And I'm glad you think taking 5 years to get an AA from Hawkeye Community College qualifies as success.


Sorry didn't mean to offend your sexual preference. Honestly could care less. Now get back to McDonalds and take my order.
 
I grew up in Clinton and graduated from Stanford ages ago, and just thought I'd jump in here. Honest question: What specifically was it that was insulting to Iowans?

As I read the script the story is that the Stanford band wants to break up with the Cal Berkeley band (Stanford's rival school). Being from the Stanford campus - known as "the farm" - they decide to visit farmersonly.com in search of someone new. One entry they find says "band looking for a band", so they take a selfie to see ifthis other band is interested - Formation: Smiley Face wearing a ten gallon hat (that's the Stanford band's selfie of themselves).
 
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