It's fine to put the rabbit up there that we're chasing, but when we fall short of catching them, most on here are objective in reasoning why we fell short in that pursuit. You, on the other hand, choose to castigate the entire organization as failures. Maybe that's your coping mechanism in play, but many would refer to that as a fair-weather fan.
But you do bring up a good point about longevity of being a fan of a certain team and how it correlates to the integrity of that fandom. My belief is that there is no bylaw to being a fan. From an organization's aspect, the more money you give them, the happier they are. They won't tell you this, but the person who's been a season ticket holder for 3 years has more value to them than the fanboy who has watched them strictly on the tube for 40 years. It's a business.
Socially it likely gets you some merit being a lifelong fan among the pack of friends or family you hang out with to watch the games, but as in all aspects of life, changes crop up along the way. You are correct in referring to me having roots as a Vikings fan. Yes, I did grow up watching them and have fond memories as a youth of the Chuck Foremans, Ahmad Rashads, Carl Ellers and Matt Blairs. But I've never liked the Wilfs since they bought the team and I realized how tenuous my position is as a fan when they talked of relocation of the team if they didn't get their stadium financing deal a dozen years ago. Here I was, a lifelong fan of the Vikes and here was this billionaire owner threatening to take that all away. Who holds the pivot of power there? Exactly. It had already happened to me once with the North Stars, albeit I was very young. Many here likely experienced that with the Sonics.
In any event, that experience put something in motion in me that had me looking elsewhere and it was a natural transition for me when Farwell, Tarvaris, Sidney and Bevell came over to the Hawks in 2011. Armed with my knowledge and appreciation of the game, I instantly gravitated to the style of building the organization as orchestrated by Pete and John. It was what I longed for and was mesmerizingly hooked. I'd stay on my computer after work getting the inside locker room look from the Real Rob Report. I got to know these up-and-coming players before most of the country and world. I could sense that something special was brewing. I didn't live in your midst in Seattle, but I got a little taste of that euphoria of anticipation that all of you Seahawk fans can relate to circa. 2011.
And then 2013 happened.
For me, it will go down as the happiest NFL year of my life. Sure I was an interloper and called a bandwaggoner by many of my inner circle ... some in jest, some not ... but I was a devotee to the Hawks and felt it a privilege to see it all come together right before my very eyes. Sure I had invested just one .500 year in 2011 to the Hawks before things really started taking off in 2012 with the dawning of Russ, but I had gone a lifetime without experiencing a Super Bowl title ... and I was thirsty!
So I don't know, maybe my years of devotion to the team doesn't rank me as high on the totem pole as others, but from a personal satisfaction avenue, I have never regretted my decision to become a Hawks fan. I generally watch their games every Sunday at the same bar where the bartenders make sure I get at least one satellite feed, even for those early games. I represent the Hawks with the attire that I wear and I immerse myself in the game. In the world I live in, am I not considered a devoted fan or do I really need 40 years to make it thus?