Fans are idiots, Part 5,627

 I don't know what they put in the water out there in Indian Wells, Calif., but I know I don't want any. My brain cells are dying fast enough as it is.

I say this because the other day former No. 1 women's tennis star Naomi Osaka, who continues to battle her inner demons and should be cheered for doing so, was heckled instead. Some amoeba in the stands shouted "You suck, Naomi!" during the very first game of her match against Veronika Kudermetova in the BNP Paribas Open, and Osaka went on to lose 6-0, 6-4.

Afterward, fighting tears, she addressed the crowd. She thanked the bulk of them for their support, and said the only reason the heckler got to her was because it called up memories of a famous incident at Indian Wells years ago.

What happened was, the entire crowd booed Serena Williams viciously. This was 22 years ago, in 2001. Which suggests that whatever idiot juice is in the water has been there awhile.

Wonderful folks, those Indian Wells-ers. I bet they have a big ol' time at their annual Pulling Wings Off Flies Festival every year.

Seriously, now. Who boos Serena Williams, the greatest women's player in history? And what kind of freakazoid thinks it's cute to heckle Naomi Osaka, whose struggles with mental health issues have been all over the news? What sort of thought process leads to such a decision?

Hey, watch this. I bet I can make Naomi cry, the little weakling.

I'm guessing that's pretty close to the mark.

What kind of human being thinks like that? And does he (or she, in this case) actually qualify as a human being?

That might be a bit harsh, too, I realize. But sometimes the Blob veers into the unfairness lane when someone does something this massively awful. And it'll be awhile if you're waiting for me to apologize for it.

Thing is, I've been studying fan behavior for 40 years now -- it's unavoidable when you do the sportswriter thing -- and I'm continually amazed at the next-level stupidity of some of it. How warped do parents have to be to heap abuse on some poor 13-year-old umpire who's just called a third strike on their little Johnny? Or, worse, to physically attack that ump?

I realize that's an extreme example, and that most fans are not degenerate asshats. But it's the degenerate asshats who poison the well. No one's going to hear about the fans who behave like normal human beings, because behaving like a normal human being is the least we should expect in a civilized society. 

Unfortunately ...

Well. Unfortunately, there's always whoever that woman was at Indian Wells. And, while we're at it, the tournament officials who didn't immediately track her down and drag her off the premises.

But, like I said: Indian Wells.

Something in the water, clearly.