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Melancholy Demons

Duke basketball fans are not a mentally healthy group. I know this because I come into contact with a lot of these people. Some of them I even like. Most of them function pretty well in other life domains. But within the universe of Duke Basketball they suffer.

Their condition always seems to deteriorate in the days leading up to the Carolina/Duke games. This year is no exception. Some of them are delusional and are claiming that Carolina has a recruiting advantage that inevitably produces superior athletes. Others are paranoid. They think UNC’s larger fan base has biased the media against Duke. Some are bi-polar. These poor souls barely have time to enjoy the euphoria of a victory before anticipating Duke’s next big failure. They then crash into a preemptive depression.

I am curious about the epidemiology of Duke Disease. Is it a genetic disorder? The condition does seem to run in families. Or could it be environmental - the result of some toxin within the water supply in New Jersey? This is clearly an area that needs more research.

In the meantime, we should be gentle with Dook fans this week and avoid the temptation to ridicule the Melancholy Demons.

Comments

MichaelO said…
As the 2010 version of Duke Disease takes root I am noticing some wierd mutations. Something seems to be causing a disturbingly high incidence of Narcissistic Personality Disorder. This could be trouble.
February 2, 2010 at 11:40 AM
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