Series Thread: tOfficial Mariners 2019 Season Thread

[wazzu31]

I've never attended a double header so I didn't know you pay for both tickets. Although now that I think about it, I feel stupid for thinking that because they'd lose money if it was a two for one thing.

It would be really interesting to know what goes on behind the scenes. I'm probably biased on this, but I wouldn't think that lowering ticket prices with a team where demand is low would hurt a team where demand is high. If anything I think it would have the opposite effect because lowering the prices with a non-contending team would increase revenue which boosts revenue sharing.

I keep trying to look at it from the business side and it seems like it would make sense. I've probably said this in about 500 posts but I would really love to know the justification for not making a change. All obvious jokes about Mariners ownership aside, you would think that whoever makes these decisions must have some sort of reason for not advocating it.

The first part I guess is where I was going with it. You have two games but are only getting the price for one or maybe 1 1/2 I don’t know how MLB works because I don’t think they’ve ever had a double header in Seattle? I know they had it where the Mariners were the road team because U2 or some band like that had a concert at the other teams park.

It doesn’t make business sense so I agree. The only thing I can think of is there is a gentlemen’s agreement. Since all of the major sports have some type of revenue sharing. I’d love to be an owner but I’m way too competitive to just sit back and be happy to rake in the luxury tax. But on the same note I’m not filthy rich so I don’t know if I’d surround myself with yes men like ownership has done.

 

[Cloud]

Fuck the Rays!!!

Actually, I'm not even all that mad... how can you be mad at another small market team performing.

Jumping on the Rays Bandwagon I go.

 

[Cloud]

Couldn't agree more - especially with people my age. A lot of my close friends weren't born and raised in this area and the biggest complaint they have about Seattle isn't the weather, isn't the homelessness, it's how anti-social people are here. Friend of mine who did his PhD at UW but did undergrad at Texas A&M and grew up in Arkansas was mentioning to me one time he tried to strike up a conversation with someone on the bus and the guy looked at him like he had some sort of mental illness, and this guy is probably the funniest/most charismatic person I know.

I didn't really notice it until I went other places and others pointed it out to me. I've spent probably 90% of my life within 15 miles of Seattle and I consider myself pretty outgoing - I mean shit just look at my posts, I can't shut the fuck up and will talk about anything - but if some random person starts chatting me up at a coffee shop or something I'm wondering when they're going to either try to sell me something or try to get me involved in their pyramid scheme.

I think it's kind of self reinforcing because I find it strange when someone strikes up a random conversation with me and figure if I do that to someone else, they'll have the same reaction I do when someone does that to me.

Believe the term you're looking is "Seattle Freeze" -- there was a Seattle Times article about it and how people in Seattle are cold and standoff-ish. I live here my whole and I can say it's a real deal.... we are not that friendly here to each other and definitely not friendly to transplants.

I believe this could be relating to the seasonal weather stuff here.

 

[wazzu31]

Fuck the Rays!!!

Actually, I'm not even all that mad... how can you be mad at another small market team performing.

Jumping on the Rays Bandwagon I go.

I like the Rays but it is criminal they are in Tampa and I can’t believe MLB was going to move the Mariners there. There are many other cities in the country that deserve a franchise over Tampa.

 

[wazzu31]

Believe the term you're looking is "Seattle Freeze" -- there was a Seattle Times article about it and how people in Seattle are cold and standoff-ish. I live here my whole and I can say it's a real deal.... we are not that friendly here to each other and definitely not friendly to transplants.

I believe this could be relating to the seasonal weather stuff here.

That was the term I was going for but couldn’t remember it. I work with a lot transplants and they first brought it up to me cause we are in and out of elevators all day. Once they said something I started noticing it every time. I wish they hadn’t though because now it is uncomfortable since now I just think the people are jerks if they don’t at least acknowledge I’m in there.

I was just mostly saying at Wrigley it does seem like a gathering. Haven’t been to Yankee stadium or Fenway but that’s how I heard it too.

 

[Cloud]

I like the Rays but it is criminal they are in Tampa and I can’t believe MLB was going to move the Mariners there. There are many other cities in the country that deserve a franchise over Tampa.

Portland. This is if Oakland can’t manage up a stadium

 

[wazzu31]

Portland. This is if Oakland can’t manage up a stadium

I think I brought this up earlier. I’m pretty sure the Rays have been semi promised to Montreal. But I also am bias towards Montreal as they got screwed. The strike destroyed that franchise. Player for player, IMO the 1994 Expos were the best team in the history of the sport if you go up and down the roster.

I think the only way Portland gets a team is either the A’s or some other small market team, which I’m not sure who is available though. MLB would be idiotic IMO to do expansion.

 

[seahawksfan234]

Believe the term you're looking is "Seattle Freeze" -- there was a Seattle Times article about it and how people in Seattle are cold and standoff-ish. I live here my whole and I can say it's a real deal.... we are not that friendly here to each other and definitely not friendly to transplants.

I believe this could be relating to the seasonal weather stuff here.

Yeah I'm aware of the phrase. Just wasn't trying to be cliche by mentioning it.

I definitely think it's more of a millennial thing. I don't notice it as much with people that are in their 40s-60s, although to them I might just be approachable because I'm substantially younger than them. Now that I reflect on it, that could be a reason why I have a lot of friendships with people who are much older than me.

I mean shit a few months ago some random guy I met at a bar offered to let me take out his boat that night.

Personally I wonder the reason for it. I previously mentioned that it's self-reinforcing because although I'm really outgoing, if someone sober strikes up a conversation with me I'm wondering when they're going to try to sell me something. I feel bad for anyone who moves here and has no friends. I'd imagine it would be pretty difficult.

 

[seahawksfan234]

I couldn’t find anything on the proposal, I kind of went ADD when the article I thought was going to mention said his net worth and just don’t get it.

My thoughts are I hate OVG, I hate the Seattle City Council and is the only time you will ever see me rooting for the hippies or environmentalists to ruin a project. Even with how poor I think of the City Council the Key Arena project was corrupt as hell by a really, really good conman in Tim Leiweke. I am really curious to see which magic tax you folks in Seattle are going to get hit with because OVG was suppose to pay for cost overruns and the last I heard they were already 200 million over the estimated cost and none of the hard work has actually been done. I’m assuming there is some serious kickbacks coming OVG’s way too. But anytime you question OVG somehow the councilwomen turn it into you hate women because sports fans see it as the NHL arena, Tim sees it as a music venue and the council sees it as the Storms venue.

My opinion is the NBA should want and deserves their own arena especially when the new Key Arena or whatever is going to force the NBA to pay boat loads to rent it all the while the City essentially pays the Storm to play at the Seattle Center. I don’t know anything about hockey but from the few things I have read up on it is that hockey and basketball arenas don’t work. The only real places they do work is at MSG and the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, but I can’t remember which way it went but the article said the day they opened it was a bad either NBA or NHL Arena. Similar to Sterns remarks about how much he loved Key Arena until the next night when he went to whatever brand new Bulls Arena was called.

When it comes to owners and their net worth, I think it comes down to a personal preference/business model. These guys could not spend a cent if they wanted to and still make a massive profit just on the fact that even if you lose money on a year-to-year basis, the franchise will appreciate in value substantially more each year than the money you lose.

I'm also wondering about what kind of tax will be levied or how Seattle residents will somehow eventually pay the cost overruns. Initially the proposal was something like $600m for the Key Arena renovation, and now it's around $900m. A privately funded arena renovation that costs $900m sounds too good to be true.

It honestly blows my mind how inept the Seattle City Council is. Being a UW graduate and having lived my live here for a long time, I know a lot of people who really do endorse democratic socialism, but I've never seen anyone defend or support the Seattle City Council. It's strange how these people get elected.

I wonder what the issue is about having an NHL and NBA team share an arena. I'm also not all that educated on hockey. Sharing an arena with an NHL and NBA team I can't imagine is the same as having an MLB and NFL team playing in the same venue.

As an aside, I highly recommend going to an NHL game if you ever get the chance. I know nothing about hockey but I'm really excited about getting a team because I've had a blast every time I've attended an NHL game.

 

[seahawksfan234]

The first part I guess is where I was going with it. You have two games but are only getting the price for one or maybe 1 1/2 I don’t know how MLB works because I don’t think they’ve ever had a double header in Seattle? I know they had it where the Mariners were the road team because U2 or some band like that had a concert at the other teams park.

It doesn’t make business sense so I agree. The only thing I can think of is there is a gentlemen’s agreement. Since all of the major sports have some type of revenue sharing. I’d love to be an owner but I’m way too competitive to just sit back and be happy to rake in the luxury tax. But on the same note I’m not filthy rich so I don’t know if I’d surround myself with yes men like ownership has done.

The guys who own the teams are billionaires so I have to assume there is some justification for it, but I personally don't get it. If I was an owner and was interested in the financial/on field success of the team I'd surround myself with people who challenge me so I meet those goals.

I suppose we'll never know.

 

[wazzu31]

The guys who own the teams are billionaires so I have to assume there is some justification for it, but I personally don't get it. If I was an owner and was interested in the financial/on field success of the team I'd surround myself with people who challenge me so I meet those goals.

I suppose we'll never know.

Haha that’s the issue I’m guessing. Almost all fans aren’t billionaires so we are fans and have passion for the sport. Most owners seem to think of it as an investment and pay for someone to care. Paul Allen didn’t give two licks about football but spend millions on guys who did.

 

[wazzu31]

When it comes to owners and their net worth, I think it comes down to a personal preference/business model. These guys could not spend a cent if they wanted to and still make a massive profit just on the fact that even if you lose money on a year-to-year basis, the franchise will appreciate in value substantially more each year than the money you lose.

I'm also wondering about what kind of tax will be levied or how Seattle residents will somehow eventually pay the cost overruns. Initially the proposal was something like $600m for the Key Arena renovation, and now it's around $900m. A privately funded arena renovation that costs $900m sounds too good to be true.

It honestly blows my mind how inept the Seattle City Council is. Being a UW graduate and having lived my live here for a long time, I know a lot of people who really do endorse democratic socialism, but I've never seen anyone defend or support the Seattle City Council. It's strange how these people get elected.

I wonder what the issue is about having an NHL and NBA team share an arena. I'm also not all that educated on hockey. Sharing an arena with an NHL and NBA team I can't imagine is the same as having an MLB and NFL team playing in the same venue.

As an aside, I highly recommend going to an NHL game if you ever get the chance. I know nothing about hockey but I'm really excited about getting a team because I've had a blast every time I've attended an NHL game.

I totally get the A’s owner not wanting to spend money, it’s a different philosophy than I’d like to think I would be but I get it. What I don’t get it how I have been led to believe that is it just a cash scrapped team my whole life.

With the tax situation is I cannot imagine OVG, which Tim broke away from AEG, bidding out a building that I believe what around 600-700 million to have that spare capital lying around when the bill reaches my projection of 1.2-1.5 billion. With Hansen’s arena proposal he had his land to use as collateral for cost overruns. The city owns the land of Key Arena. I just feel you guys in Seattle are going to get hosed somehow or they are going to steal money from another tax like they did with the Soda Tax.

Obviously I’m on the opposite end of the Seattle Councils ideology but my father in law just retired and my sister in law works for the Seattle PD. So I just get infuriated with how they talk to them and are raping them with their new union contract. Then I dislike that they use only one ideology with no opposing voices. I wouldn’t despise them so much if they didn’t screw over every other area in the vicinity with them needing to tax people who don’t live in Seattle for Seattle projects. They hate guns so they force feed anti gun bills that screw people over like me, they force feed their dumbass Sound Transit that I get screwed over with even though there is no train tracks in my city. On my route there is an Elks Club blocks away from the Sound Transit station but they are trying to use eminent domain to take it from them.

I truly don’t know anything about hockey either, but from the few things I’ve read cause it was mentioned by someone on the radio the NBA would never go for being the 4th tenant in the building. I’m bias because I would prefer the NBA but I whole heartily believe the NBA should have a separate arena (but I am bias towards Hansen) just for the fact OVG is in the concert business. Tim’s brother Todd is the hockey guy, then the city pays for the Storm to play at the Seattle Center...essentially. I don’t feel it is right to blame the NBA for not wanting to be the 4th tenant when they would generate the most money, or basketball in general will make more money than hockey, the Storm and most likely the concerts or maybe slightly less than concerts.

I’ll agree with you I’m excited to watch hockey. I just hate that it is quite possibly put in the worst part of the city now to get into and out of. It’s not exactly easy to get into and out of the stadium district but it is set up for that, unlike Mercer and Denny where they’ve stolen road for bike lanes and dumbass lights that aren’t synced.

 

[NWinAZ]

 

[seahawksfan234]

Haha that’s the issue I’m guessing. Almost all fans aren’t billionaires so we are fans and have passion for the sport. Most owners seem to think of it as an investment and pay for someone to care. Paul Allen didn’t give two licks about football but spend millions on guys who did.

With how much pro sports teams have appreciated relative to inflation since the 90s, it was a hell of a great investment. I think the Nintendo ownership group purchased the team for around $100m and it's now worth around $1.6b.

Controversies aside that's why I actually like guys like Mark Cuban and even Jerry Jones a lot. Sure they're making tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars each year but you know they live and die by their teams and will do anything to see them win.

Don't know what's going to happen with the Seahawks ownership but I hope that they continue to maintain that commitment to excellence, to steal a Raiders slogan. I could feel differently if I was a billionaire owner, but I'd go bankrupt to ensure the team wins.

 

[mcnabb7542]

Yeah I'm aware of the phrase. Just wasn't trying to be cliche by mentioning it.

I definitely think it's more of a millennial thing. I don't notice it as much with people that are in their 40s-60s, although to them I might just be approachable because I'm substantially younger than them.

Oh I could totally see myself walking up to you in a bar then punching you right in your face!

You just have that look about you!

 

[seahawksfan234]

I totally get the A’s owner not wanting to spend money, it’s a different philosophy than I’d like to think I would be but I get it. What I don’t get it how I have been led to believe that is it just a cash scrapped team my whole life.

They're obviously not cash strapped, just cheap and Billy Beane somehow finds a way to make it work. I don't want to do a case study on the Athletic's financial situation, but even if the team technically lost money every year since 2009 the franchise is likely worth a substantial amount more. Unfortunately I can't think of a good analogy but I think you get my gist.

With the tax situation is I cannot imagine OVG, which Tim broke away from AEG, bidding out a building that I believe what around 600-700 million to have that spare capital lying around when the bill reaches my projection of 1.2-1.5 billion. With Hansen’s arena proposal he had his land to use as collateral for cost overruns. The city owns the land of Key Arena. I just feel you guys in Seattle are going to get hosed somehow or they are going to steal money from another tax like they did with the Soda Tax.

I agree. The ineptitude of Seattle leadership aside, I don't know why they would prefer the Key Arena proposal over Hansen's proposal. I could be vastly oversimplifying it but what just sticks out to me regarding the decision is (1) Both are "privately financed" yet the Hansen proposal is/was half the cost. (2) Hansen's proposal is a piece of land near the light rail, the Key Bank renovation is in a highly congested area that has been up zoning substantially which will lead to more traffic.

That soda tax thing is a mess on so many levels. I could write an entire essay on it but that's a different subject.

Obviously I’m on the opposite end of the Seattle Councils ideology but my father in law just retired and my sister in law works for the Seattle PD. So I just get infuriated with how they talk to them and are raping them with their new union contract. Then I dislike that they use only one ideology with no opposing voices. I wouldn’t despise them so much if they didn’t screw over every other area in the vicinity with them needing to tax people who don’t live in Seattle for Seattle projects. They hate guns so they force feed anti gun bills that screw people over like me, they force feed their dumbass Sound Transit that I get screwed over with even though there is no train tracks in my city. On my route there is an Elks Club blocks away from the Sound Transit station but they are trying to use eminent domain to take it from them.

Don't get me started on the way they treat law enforcement. From what I've observed, among many liberals there is this belief in "compassion" and an emphasis on not incarcerating people who commit crimes. Yet many offenders either are not prosecuted or given a slap on the wrist and then put back on the streets.

I once again I might be oversimplifying the issue, but instead of just providing housing for homeless people, why don't we put them in rehab then give them job training? I also believe that housing a number of people with serious addictions just reinforces the issue. It gets normalized. It's sort of like hanging out with your drinking buddies when you're trying to quit drinking.

I truly don’t know anything about hockey either, but from the few things I’ve read cause it was mentioned by someone on the radio the NBA would never go for being the 4th tenant in the building. I’m bias because I would prefer the NBA but I whole heartily believe the NBA should have a separate arena (but I am bias towards Hansen) just for the fact OVG is in the concert business. Tim’s brother Todd is the hockey guy, then the city pays for the Storm to play at the Seattle Center...essentially. I don’t feel it is right to blame the NBA for not wanting to be the 4th tenant when they would generate the most money, or basketball in general will make more money than hockey, the Storm and most likely the concerts or maybe slightly less than concerts.

I’ll agree with you I’m excited to watch hockey. I just hate that it is quite possibly put in the worst part of the city now to get into and out of. It’s not exactly easy to get into and out of the stadium district but it is set up for that, unlike Mercer and Denny where they’ve stolen road for bike lanes and dumbass lights that aren’t synced.

That's fair regarding your opinion with the NBA. I think my confusion is that for the money, I'd assume that the venue has to be amazing. It's also just sort of mind boggling that an arena that cost nearly $900m to essentially build wouldn't be good enough.

If I didn't live downtown I could not imagine trying to get to Key Arena for a game with how bad Seattle traffic is. At least with Sodo you could park somewhere and take the light rail.

 

[wazzu31]

With how much pro sports teams have appreciated relative to inflation since the 90s, it was a hell of a great investment. I think the Nintendo ownership group purchased the team for around $100m and it's now worth around $1.6b.

Controversies aside that's why I actually like guys like Mark Cuban and even Jerry Jones a lot. Sure they're making tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars each year but you know they live and die by their teams and will do anything to see them win.

Don't know what's going to happen with the Seahawks ownership but I hope that they continue to maintain that commitment to excellence, to steal a Raiders slogan. I could feel differently if I was a billionaire owner, but I'd go bankrupt to ensure the team wins.

I totally agree with how I admire them. But Jerry Jones, Mark Cuban and George Steinbrenner were all guys who got fined by the commissioner (which is their employee) With Donald Sterling all the stuff came out after the audio was leaked that he was adamant racist, but it seems like since it’s the Good Old Boys type thing they put up with it.

We won’t know for a few years what is happening really with the Seahawks or Blazers. Right now she “isn’t selling” but the whole cluster F of Paul Allen dying and her taking control or whatever the legal term is has barely begun. No evidence at all but my assumption is she knows how much Paul loves the community and thought owners were stewards for the community when she does sell it is going to be to a passionate local ownership group. Which luckily for Hawks fans there is more than enough money in the area to buy the Seahawks.

 

[wazzu31]

They're obviously not cash strapped, just cheap and Billy Beane somehow finds a way to make it work. I don't want to do a case study on the Athletic's financial situation, but even if the team technically lost money every year since 2009 the franchise is likely worth a substantial amount more. Unfortunately I can't think of a good analogy but I think you get my gist.



I agree. The ineptitude of Seattle leadership aside, I don't know why they would prefer the Key Arena proposal over Hansen's proposal. I could be vastly oversimplifying it but what just sticks out to me regarding the decision is (1) Both are "privately financed" yet the Hansen proposal is/was half the cost. (2) Hansen's proposal is a piece of land near the light rail, the Key Bank renovation is in a highly congested area that has been up zoning substantially which will lead to more traffic.

That soda tax thing is a mess on so many levels. I could write an entire essay on it but that's a different subject.



Don't get me started on the way they treat law enforcement. From what I've observed, among many liberals there is this belief in "compassion" and an emphasis on not incarcerating people who commit crimes. Yet many offenders either are not prosecuted or given a slap on the wrist and then put back on the streets.

I once again I might be oversimplifying the issue, but instead of just providing housing for homeless people, why don't we put them in rehab then give them job training? I also believe that housing a number of people with serious addictions just reinforces the issue. It gets normalized. It's sort of like hanging out with your drinking buddies when you're trying to quit drinking.



That's fair regarding your opinion with the NBA. I think my confusion is that for the money, I'd assume that the venue has to be amazing. It's also just sort of mind boggling that an arena that cost nearly $900m to essentially build wouldn't be good enough.

If I didn't live downtown I could not imagine trying to get to Key Arena for a game with how bad Seattle traffic is. At least with Sodo you could park somewhere and take the light rail.

The A’s thing I don’t think I will really understand. He has more than enough money to at least go half public half private stadium. Has more than enough money to have spent money to help keep the broke (in terms of net worth) Raiders when Al died too. Just a weird situation.

I completely understand why the city prefers the Seattle Center because it is a city asset. But once the Sonics left and Amazon took over it would’ve made more sense to sell off the Seattle Center. The hatred the women showed though towards the Sodo Arena never made sense. The Key Arena was a public asset sure, but the city left north of $50 million free dollars out by not taking the free $40 million from the Thunder if they renovated the Key, as well as Key Bank hadn’t pay a dime towards the sponsorship of the Key Arena since I think it was 2010 or something like that. Unfortunately the Seattle Center became a residential neighborhood just no one in power wanted to acknowledge it because they (IMO) cared to much about history that realistically no one cares about except the Space Needle.

The Soda Tax and huge raise in property tax go directly against though who they say they support and I’ll never get it. Maybe people are too stupid to realize just because they don’t own a home the property tax hurts them, just as much as paying ridiculous car tab fees.

I don’t live in Seattle but only hear from the news all the disrespect they are shown then my sister in laws accounts. I just remember my wife and I were walking with her to a show we were watching and a group of kids spit at her. Then this chick was driving the wrong way on a one way street leading to Queen Anne and she was trying to help then all the vulgarity that was spewed at her when she was trying to help this lady who was crying because she had no idea what she was doing. She is parking enforcement so she hasn’t had to deal with the homeless and all that except when they do the sweeps. Which is what I’ll never understand about the sanctuary city stuff because people don’t want the police holding an illegal but are cool with paying the PD to be maids.

The homeless problem to me is simple but it is also cold hearted. We have food banks and homeless shelters, if they don’t want either then they are arrested. Once in the system you are forced into rehab. Going cold turkey I’m sure completely sucks but being forced into going cold turkey to me is more humane that allowing some one who is high out of their mind sleeping outside all the time or being surrounded by garbage and possible disease. And need to quit this myth of people are homeless because they missed a paycheck or aren’t paid enough and just admit it is people who are addicts or have a mental health issue that our governor has screwed the pooch. I live out in Pierce County where we have two mental health institutions/facilities and our governor paid such little attention the two facilities lost millions in federal grants.

But my personal opinion is mental health is similar to how PTSD has become. I have this co worker who is the most vile and disgusting person I personally know but my company won’t fire him because he went to Iraq. Dude wasn’t anywhere near combat but because everyone think PTSD is an excuse for terrible behavior he has gotten away with semi sexual assault and threatening to kill a supervisor. It is one thing I don’t get about todays society, two things can be true at once. Antonio Brown can play football but be a terrible person at the same time and doesn’t mean CTE is the reason or some phantom mental illness that only formed once he became famous and wealthy.

 

[seahawksfan234]

I totally agree with how I admire them. But Jerry Jones, Mark Cuban and George Steinbrenner were all guys who got fined by the commissioner (which is their employee) With Donald Sterling all the stuff came out after the audio was leaked that he was adamant racist, but it seems like since it’s the Good Old Boys type thing they put up with it.

We won’t know for a few years what is happening really with the Seahawks or Blazers. Right now she “isn’t selling” but the whole cluster F of Paul Allen dying and her taking control or whatever the legal term is has barely begun. No evidence at all but my assumption is she knows how much Paul loves the community and thought owners were stewards for the community when she does sell it is going to be to a passionate local ownership group. Which luckily for Hawks fans there is more than enough money in the area to buy the Seahawks.

I personally wouldn't give a shit if we had the most controversial ownership if it resulted in wins. Robert Kraft and Bill Belichick appear to be less than ideal characters, but I wouldn't give a shit given the success of the franchise.

It'll be interesting to see what happens with the ownership. I believe Paul Allen was one of those billionaires who pledged to give away most of their worth after they die, but I'm not positive on that. I'd have to assume that for the time being, someone else has taken over the ownership responsibilities.

I don't really worry too much about the future ownership of the Seahawks. I have some sort of blind faith that it'll work out. Also given the salary cap and the revenue that NFL teams bring in, an indifferent owner likely wouldn't matter much as long as the right decisions are made regarding hiring the right people in the front office.

 

[seahawksfan234]

The A’s thing I don’t think I will really understand. He has more than enough money to at least go half public half private stadium. Has more than enough money to have spent money to help keep the broke (in terms of net worth) Raiders when Al died too. Just a weird situation.

Given how much money California likes to burn he likely figures he can get a real nice subsidy for a new stadium without having to worry about paying for much himself. I do think it's fucked up that owners are able to leverage states/cities to pay for so much of their stadiums, but that's a different conversation.

I completely understand why the city prefers the Seattle Center because it is a city asset. But once the Sonics left and Amazon took over it would’ve made more sense to sell off the Seattle Center. The hatred the women showed though towards the Sodo Arena never made sense. The Key Arena was a public asset sure, but the city left north of $50 million free dollars out by not taking the free $40 million from the Thunder if they renovated the Key, as well as Key Bank hadn’t pay a dime towards the sponsorship of the Key Arena since I think it was 2010 or something like that. Unfortunately the Seattle Center became a residential neighborhood just no one in power wanted to acknowledge it because they (IMO) cared to much about history that realistically no one cares about except the Space Needle.

From Key Bank's perspective, I wouldn't pay a cent either. I hate to be insensitive but lets be realistic, nobody really cares about the Storm so Key Bank doesn't really have much incentive to try to negotiate a new naming rights deal and I can't imagine many other corporations would. I imagine a new naming rights deal will be negotiated once the NHL season starts.

The Soda Tax and huge raise in property tax go directly against though who they say they support and I’ll never get it. Maybe people are too stupid to realize just because they don’t own a home the property tax hurts them, just as much as paying ridiculous car tab fees.

Fundamentally I support doing whatever necessary to curb obesity and I don't mind the soda tax. I have to say that I'm somewhat biased because I don't purchase soda and when I was 12 or so I became obese and was drinking 800+ calories of soda a day. I ended up losing all the weight in high school when I got into sports, but a big reason for that was I cut out soda consumption. That said, it bothers me that the money was supposed to go to public heath causes yet instead Durkan re-allocated it to homelessness. As you mentioned it's somewhat ironic because that tax hurts lower income people who consume soda disproportionally.

I don’t live in Seattle but only hear from the news all the disrespect they are shown then my sister in laws accounts. I just remember my wife and I were walking with her to a show we were watching and a group of kids spit at her. Then this chick was driving the wrong way on a one way street leading to Queen Anne and she was trying to help then all the vulgarity that was spewed at her when she was trying to help this lady who was crying because she had no idea what she was doing. She is parking enforcement so she hasn’t had to deal with the homeless and all that except when they do the sweeps. Which is what I’ll never understand about the sanctuary city stuff because people don’t want the police holding an illegal but are cool with paying the PD to be maids.

I would never want to be a law enforcement employee in Seattle and I sincerely pity the cops in this city. In addition to the lack of support by the city, it really bothers me that there is this anti-cop sentiment in the city.

The homeless problem to me is simple but it is also cold hearted. We have food banks and homeless shelters, if they don’t want either then they are arrested. Once in the system you are forced into rehab. Going cold turkey I’m sure completely sucks but being forced into going cold turkey to me is more humane that allowing some one who is high out of their mind sleeping outside all the time or being surrounded by garbage and possible disease. And need to quit this myth of people are homeless because they missed a paycheck or aren’t paid enough and just admit it is people who are addicts or have a mental health issue that our governor has screwed the pooch. I live out in Pierce County where we have two mental health institutions/facilities and our governor paid such little attention the two facilities lost millions in federal grants.

But my personal opinion is mental health is similar to how PTSD has become. I have this co worker who is the most vile and disgusting person I personally know but my company won’t fire him because he went to Iraq. Dude wasn’t anywhere near combat but because everyone think PTSD is an excuse for terrible behavior he has gotten away with semi sexual assault and threatening to kill a supervisor. It is one thing I don’t get about todays society, two things can be true at once. Antonio Brown can play football but be a terrible person at the same time and doesn’t mean CTE is the reason or some phantom mental illness that only formed once he became famous and wealthy.

See I agree with you and I honestly don't think it's cold hearted. From everything I've heard/read there are various medications that can be prescribed to addicts that mitigate the side effects of going through withdrawals. I'm not a medical expert, but I believe the common one given to drug addicts is methadone which somewhat simulates the effect of taking drugs but you can slowly ween them off of it.

I'm not deluded enough to think that makes it easy for them, but it wouldn't be awful for them either. I think that mandatory rehab is the easy part, but the hard part is to ensure they don't relapse after completing their treatment. Most of them have no job history, and all of their friends/connections are likely fellow addicts.

This might sound kind of fucked up but I believe mental illness is overly diagnosed in this country. A lot of times I believe depression/anxiety disorders are given to people who are just experiencing normal human emotions. I exaggerated to a doctor my "ADHD symptoms" in college so that I'd be able to get an adderall prescription to use for studying. I cannot fucking believe that they give that shit to children.