Passion. Pride. Tradition. Some reminders for White Sox fans

White Sox fans, it has been a tough summer. Our favorite team is out of the race for a fourth consecutive year. There isn't any hope for the present, and it's hard to summon much hope for the future.

If you've been out to the ballpark this year, you've probably noticed that U.S. Cellular Field has been overrun with fans of visiting teams. The number of people dressed in full Cubs regalia cheering for Sox opponents has taken a noticeable spike as well. Sometimes, I feel outnumbered cheering for my team in my own home ballpark.

Around town, I can't enter a restaurant or even a grocery store while wearing my Sox gear without some haughty jackass making some comment about how awesome the Cubs allegedly are, or some comment about how irrelevant the Sox supposedly are. I can tolerate the occasional quip from Cubs fans that I know. That's part of life in a city with divided loyalties. But unsolicited, snide remarks from people I don't even know have long since grown tiresome.

We face an October of being tsk-tsked for failing to join the Cubs bandwagon and refusing to "cheer for Chicago" in the playoffs. These aloof people have no understanding of why we stay loyal to the White Sox, or of why we decline to support the Cubs. And I'm certainly not going to waste my valuable time trying to explain it to them.

Yes, these are trying times, indeed. This is without question the most difficult time to be a Sox fan since the late 1980s.

So, in these trying times, I'd like to remind all Sox fans that we support one of the original franchises of the American League. There have been many great players, many great moments, and our team and our history are not "irrelevant," despite the efforts of people who would like to see us pushed toward the margins.

Just in case you've forgotten about the rich history of the White Sox, watch this video that used to play before the start of every home game. I don't know why the team ever stopped playing it, to be honest. It's awesome:

And if that doesn't make you feel better, there's always this:

You see, enduring the bad times makes the good times such as those posted above all the more sweeter. Right now, there's little to be happy about, but you have to remember, things in sports always go in cycles. There will come a time when the Sox are good again. They've fielded good teams in the past, they've won before, and they will win in the future. I guarantee it. If you abandon ship now, there will be a hole in your heart the next time the Sox produce a championship-caliber team. Don't be that person.

In a period like this, it's easy to become self-loathing. I fall into that trap myself sometimes, especially during the bad losses. Resist that urge. The Sox have been in Chicago for 116 years. Many of us are third- and fourth-generation Sox fans. The Sox are part of our family life. It's part of who we are. Don't ever let anyone make you ashamed of who you are.

Yes, the Sox are struggling right now, but stay true to yourself. Be the fan you've always been. Wear your gear around town. Keep watching the games. Cheer for your team. If fans of a different stripe can't deal with that, in true South Side fashion, you should tell them to kiss your ass.