The_Admiral

It's time to realize the third jersey Mike Keenan scrapped on sight. It's just another Chicago Winter Classic, it's an automatic win for the road team, have fun with it.

I've given Reinsdorf credit for knowing how to work the government better than the McCaskeys--the bar is the floor on that one--but JB Pritzker and his quiet-but-not-that-quiet presidential aspirations may make him a worthier adversary than Madigan or Big Gay Jim or whoever else Jerry could buy off.

On 2/19/2024 at 6:53 PM, Walk-Off said:

Ballpark Digest: Report: Reinsdorf to seek $1B in state money for new Chicago White Sox ballpark

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Using hotel/motel taxes to fund sports facilities has a long history in the sports-facility world across the country: because the overwhelming amount is paid by out of towners, the impact on local taxpayers is minimal. 

WE DON'T GET CONVENTIONS ANYMORE. NO ONE TRAVELS FOR BUSINESS ANYMORE. The hotel tax is not some pot of infinite money. We're not even done using hotel taxes to pay for New Comiskey, which is 34 years old and in fine condition. There's not a billion dollars lying around to let 12,000 people look at the Sears Tower while complaining that A.J. Pierzynski should be the manager.

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Also part of the mix: a TIF district–also known as tax-overlay districts in Illinois–would divert sales-tax revenue generated by the development, up to $400 million. The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority would then issue bonds to back the ballpark construction. Again, TIF districts are a popular tool for financing sports facilities: the rationale is that the increased tax payment wouldn’t exist without the sports facilities.

There's our old friend, the TIF district. Longtime readers of the NHL Anti-Thread remember that Jerry Reinsdorf's plan to buy the Coyotes was to pay for it in installments from TIF district revenues, thereby making the taxpayers buy the team for him. Good thing Chicago doesn't need money for literally anything else right now [next Blue Line train to O'Hare departs in 35 minutes]

To what extent was the players' union consulted on these new uniforms? They're the ones who have to wear them. We're not talking about player input for aesthetic purposes, but more like "will your pants split."

On 2/16/2024 at 7:07 AM, WSU151 said:

They always say "the Angels" or something like "he'd be a good fit in Anaheim". Anaheim is usually the locator. They rarely, if ever, use the term "LA" when talking about the Angels...and mainly because have been around the game forever and know that LA = Dodgers and "LA Angels" just doesn't fit. 

I don't think there's that much conviction behind it. The Islanders are often "Long Island" instead of "New York" in similar situations. You hear it a little with the Texas Rangers and Arlington. I think it's useful to refer to them as Anaheim casually (I'm a firm believer that the park name should have reverted to "Anaheim Stadium") while still being the Los Angeles Angels. 

The NHL was used to get a new arena for the third-best basketball program in Raleigh-Durham, why not volleyball, too.

The Bay Area has to have some of the weirdest, clunkiest geography in America. It's probably a big reason why San Francisco became an urban theme park: it had to become an attraction for people reverse-commuting to all the tech campuses 40 miles south. Nothing can make sense when the population horseshoes a giant bay.

3 hours ago, Digby said:

The other three multi-team markets are also the biggest MSAs in the United States; SF/Oakland is something like 12th. Granted SF/Oakland punches above its weight economically and culturally, but by that token so does Boston.

Do you remember the brief but intriguing noise about the Expos moving to Boston? I think it got the same cursory attention as Norfolk did.

If the Nashville Predators fanbase could successfully mount a "don't take our toy away" push and get serious about the team after an existential crisis, so too can the fans of the Oakland A's, one would hope.

3 hours ago, Klondyke said:

We've also seen this a few times in some soccer kits, where they accidentally put something resembling to a Swastika in the design pattern.

I'm sure it was an easy mistake for FC Vilnius to make.

3 hours ago, Lights Out said:

Is it 2029 yet?

Manfred is a gentile but every photograph I see of him looks like an antisemitic caricature. Like, I don't like making this observation, but I see this photo and immediately slip into Jerry Lewis voice going "pehaps the Joyants I could interest you in?"

"Comrades! We have designed our glorious flag of the revolution! Are you ready to bear this standard?"
"lol did somebody say mcdonalds :)" 

25 minutes ago, BottomlessPitt said:

Holy $hit!!!, Virginia McCaskey is 101 years old. Jesus H. Tapdancing Christ.

Billy Joel wrote a song about her.

Bears lost their property tax appeal. Feel like this one's about over.

On 2/13/2024 at 9:23 AM, MCM0313 said:

Turrible, turrible. 

One Property Brother turns to the other and says "you know we have a lot of fun here but I think it would be irresponsible of us if we didn't talk about race in America" while Charles looks on dumbfoundedly

14 minutes ago, PittsburghSucks said:

Probably because he grew up in Cleveland Heights, which is a predominantly black suburb?

he's invited to the cookout!

2 minutes ago, Discrim said:

Anyway, liked the effort on his rendition of Viva Las Vegas, but hopefully he leaves the music to Taylor.

In fairness, it wasn't as bad as Whitnall grad Tyler Herro going "mah stahl is urrting t'me" in a Bose spot

Fot fo ya rot to pawwwtay. Congratulations Taylor Swift on your impending engagement to the American Dream Dusty Rhodes.

Oh my God, I've never heard Travis Kelce talk before. WHY DOES HE SOUND BLACK?

Just now, ManillaToad said:

Tbf I didn't notice any egregious blunders from Shanahan this time around

It wasn't any egregious error so much as just a night of never being able to step on their throats.

If he proposes to the billionaire horse girl I'm not going to work tomorrow.

4 minutes ago, BBTV said:

 

Ice Spice working on the lyrics for her next hit song, "Plow My Fat Ass From the Back," which will run 1:47 and break the record for Spotify plays in its first day

Just now, MJWalker45 said:

It's also important to remember how neutered they are compared to what the artist would do without the NFL deciding what's allowable.

Couldn't even get away with "fillin' cups like double Ds"!

14 minutes ago, TrueYankee26 said:

As a fellow millennial I like the HT show

The opening notes to "Yeah!" are like a Manchurian Candidate trigger for millennials

13 hours ago, VampyrRabbit said:

Is there any other team that throws back to a former identity in a former city as much as the Canes do?

They're making up for lost time--in the early 2000s, you couldn't even pull Whalers throwbacks in the video games because Connecticut still held the rights. 

There's always been something contemptuous (and contemptible) about the meme team's use of the Hartford stuff. It's not about honoring that history, because what history? It's a victory lap for them because they're still here and the Whalers will never be. It's their reddit-rot fans getting one over on the people who wish this were still the weird regional league we fell in love with. 

The old Colisee abutted a modest residential neighborhood. I remember watching some CBC story on the Nordiques where they panned from kids playing street hockey outside some stocky '50s two-flats to the arena itself, which was across the main road at the end of the street. I don't think you get the same effect with the Centre Videotron because it's a little deeper into the parking lot.