I agree; the game is about the players, not the coaches, fans or referees. I was a varsity basketball official for 4 years, and since I didn't hang out with the guys, I just worked hard, did my job, and went home to my wife, I was looked down upon. The only reason I got into refereeing was to stay close to the game. I love seeing the excitement when a kid scores for the first time, or the calm composure of a kid who just scored his or her 1000th point. I got sick of hearing the other officials say things at halftime like "that kid isn't getting any more calls from me" or "swallow your whistle so we can get this game over." Believe or not, officials do make calls in basetball games to keep the score difference an odd number so it won't go into overtime.
For those of you officiating out there that do it for the right reasons, it shows, and thank you. For the rest of you, grow up, and have fun out there. Then the money becomes the bonus, and you do it because you enjoy it. If you can't enjoy it, then stop, because you are robbing the kids enjoyment of it.
Ya'll can have your soap box back now.