As long as we can also ignore your continual attempts to pan Winnipeg as a potential future NHL franchise site. What is the motivation behind your obvious hatred of the city?
Yup. Since I disagree with your point of view, I obviously have a "hatred of the city". I have never been in Winnipeg. I actually have no hatred of any city. Grow up; just because someone disagrees with your point of view does not mean that they must have some ulterior motive. They may just be coming objectively to a different conclusion than you.
It seems as if you spend an inordinate amount of your time here on the topic of Winnipeg's future.
I find the topic interesting, but more importantly I fail to see how the manner in which I spend my free time is of any concern to you, whoever you are.
One could theorize that living in a town like Hamilton might be what drives your motivation to drag others down to that level.
Now see, that is simply flaming, which is a breach of posting rules last time I checked. Whether you disagree with my opinions or not, you have no basis to flame a town. Cities are cities and people are people, sir, wherever they live. If you are any kind of gentleman, you will retract that statement.
Here is the thing; your opinion on whether or not Winnipeg deserves an NHL franchise means squat in the real world, as do your online attempts to make yourself into some sort of an arbiter of same.
Really? Really? I had no idea.
Here is a news flash for you, chum. If the standard of whether you or I or anyone else should post on this board is whether we can actually influence anything, the Board will have no posts. Since you clearly are working under some sort of misconception as to the purpose of an Internet message board, here is the deal: it is a place for people to exchange views on matters of interest to them. If you have a philosophical concern with that, perhaps the internet is not the place for you, or alternatively you can hang out in places where everyone holds precisely the same view as yours. I know of a place.
Winnipeg will one day perhaps gain an NHL franchise when someone such as the Asper family decide they want to bring one here.
Well, of course it is not quite that easy. There are a bunch of folks who want NHL franchises, but the decision as to whether anyone gets to join the club is the league's decision.
It would make an ideal platform for a launch of their Can West Global network into sports programming. David currently has 65 million of his own money on the line in a partnership bid to potentially buy the Bombers & build a new stadium. Perhaps one day soon that money may instead be earmarked toward an NHL purchase or partnership. There are others in this city that could also buy an NHL team either outright or in a partnership... out of pocket money, be they the Richardsons, or maybe the Cohens' (the original Sony Canada distributors), the Parrish family, Chapman, etc. I'm really sick of people on this board saying this city can't afford it, we can. The conditions just weren't right during the Jets exit (the old barn & no hope of a new one, the CDN$, no shared Winnipeg Arena revenues, league revenue sharing), but they are looking much better now.
Well, even billionaires do not consider $150-200 million commitments "pocket money", but that is just quibbling. As for whether Winnipeg can afford it, I stated quite some time ago that one needs to demonstrate what has changed since the las time when the Jets failed. As I understand it, the Winnipeg economy is doing better than it has doen for a decade or more. That is a good start, but a couple of decent slightly above average years does not make a trend. Surely you would concede that it would be foolhardy to base a franchise location or relocation (which is a traumatic and critical decision for any sports league) on the basis of a couple of years of decent economic performance (or bad perfromance, for that mattter). As for the Canadian dollar, same thing. It is a favourable exchange rate now, but it is a risky business decision to depend on it retaining that very high level as part of your basic business plan. Same thig for revenue sharing. Are you aware that revenue sharing is not an automatic thing, even for lower revenue teams? If you have read the CBA, you would know that there are a number of requirements all of which teams must meet in order to qualify. I have read the jetsowners.com business plan, and frankly it is amateur hour. I appreicate you mentioning the big-money Winnipeg families. They do have a wad of it, and I am dead certain there are many others. The fact remains, however, that the major corporate community is a thin roster by major league sports standards. That is no one's fault, but it is what it is. Corporate money makes the pro sports world spin. It will always be so. Winnipeg falls short in that respect. Unless someone shows the NHL that not to be the case (I set out some standards that they would likely require IMO in an earlier post), Winnipeg will not be considered.
IMO. Get it?
I. M. O.
It may or may not happen, but nothing an anonymous internet poster located in Hamilton has to say about it will impact such a decision one iota. They will base such a potential purchase on their own knowledge of the market, not yours.
See above. If that is the standard for you giving me permission to speak on the topic or not, perhaps you should apply the same standard to yourself. If you do, that should be the last we hear of you.
Incidentally, as far as "anonymous" goes, my handle is my real name, as opposed to posters who hide behind the anonymity of screen names of NHL goalies and former goalies.
As a former long time Jets season ticket holder, I'd hate for us to gain a team at the expense of fans in another city, because I know how they'd feel. If it happened though, such is life. I doubt many others in this city want to gain a team at someone else's loss, so please quit trying to generalize and lump all Winnipeggers in with the small group who post at that Jets Owner site.
Well, I will take you at your word as to how you would feel, notwithstanding your personal attacks (the third such attacks I have experienced in this thread, all from pro-Jet folks) but there is a loud cadre of pro-Jets folks who do not subscribe to that view. Read the board, and review their gloating every time another city has an attendance figure that they deem to be unworthy.
Also, I would defy you to show me where I lumped all Winnipeggers together. My posts have (I think) clearly indicated that I am referring to the pro-Jets devotees. Everyone here knows who i am talking about - the zealots. You also know damn well who I have been talking about. In another thread where I have been posting on this topic, I specifically noted that there were some posters here who took a more reasoned view and could engage in civil discourse on this topic and address the real issues. Based on your personal attacks and your unprovoked attack of the entire city of Hamilton (which is not where I am originally from or even where I work), you do not number among that group (at least based on first impressions).
P.S.: When I started posting on this topic, I decided to fill in some of my location particulars since I was frequently being assumed to be a southerner. I see that many of the pro-Jet zealots have hopped on to that as some kind of target for themselves, so that they can dismiss my views as those of someone with an axe to grind (ie., Hamilton's failure to get a team). Unfortunately for you and the others who have jumped on to that, my disdain for the Hamilton market as a potential NHL market is even greater than that of Winnipeg. I have posted to that effect repeatedly. My views are well established in that regard. Accordingly, please save your fingers from typing such bile.
