So far, this lockout has divided some fans and Gary Bettman's reputation has fallen further (as evident by the radical outspoken fans). But before you view the NHL commissioner and collective owners as callous, here is a list of reasons why I am taking the owners side in lockout 2012 and you should also.
- I am a non-conformist when it comes to populism. I see the hate and piling on Bettman and I think it's outrageously cruel. He's had so many pictures of him making him look foolish, but there is no real substance or solution offered by those fans. They just demonize Comish Bettman. It's a childish immature response.
- To quote James Carville: "It's the economy, stupid". There are people out there who will never see a million dollars. For the players to trot out the "I'm starving" when they have more than what they need just to play a trivial game is a slap in the face to people who can barely make ends meet and have to save up to even buy one overpriced ticket.
- Donald Fehr. He was instrumental in baseball for making sure that we have irreversible competitive non parity in MLB.
- NHLPA hypocrisy. As reported by Yahoo! Sports Hockey, The players union meet in "New York Marriott Marquis, a non-union hotel, as the Fortune Limousine service idles outside. A black SUV displays an NHLPA sign and this license plate: "FORTUNE1."
- If it's evident to me that they can't respect each other on the ice with constant intent-to-injure hits, why should I believe they are so arm-in-arm in brotherhood now?
2 comments:
1. Being a non-conformist simply for the sake of being a non-conformist is actually being a conformist, since you are letting others dictate your thoughts.
Bettman is a weasel of a man, and has helped strange CBA negotiations with his own ego and allowed a small cadre of owners (Jacobs, Snyder) to dictate the NHL.
2. The players are the NHL...fans don't pay to see the owners. The players, being the product, deserve the lions share of the money they generate.
3. Competitive non-parity in the MLB? Really? Look at the MLB the past 10-15 seasons, and a large variety of teams have been competitive, and lots of different World Series winners. So-called small markets such as KC and Pittsburgh choose not to spend the millions in revenue sharing they receive. For them, there is more incentive to be a 'failure'.
4. It's not the players choosing not to play. The players were willing to agree to play under the old/current CBA, which happens in many union environments.
5. The players gave the owners everything the owners wanted: A salary cap, revenue sharing, revenue splitting, buyouts, and a HUGE Rollback. The owners' greed and lack of control has allowed for inflation. Nobody forces the owners to sign huge contracts.
Jes:
As soon as I find a truly suitable place to host an hour-long podcast, we are going to have to resurrect that hockey podcast idea of our own.
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