birdog1960 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 The way I look at is that Pataki recommended the name change (knowing the team didn't want to sell it) and Ralph acquiesced. I suppose accepting Pataki's suggestion is the same thing as naming it after himself, but since the idea originated with the Governor, it makes it a bit more "arm's length." I think Ralph's stance on stadiums not "selling out" their naming rights was always an honorable, old school thing. In a multi-billion dollar industry, chasing every last dollar (ie, Jerry Jones) was not necessarily a bad business practice in his view. We can debate whether Ralph's point of view was appropriate, but you have to give him credit for not changing his principals over the past four decades. i think this is the most charitable interpretation possible. i could imagine one just as uncharitable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. L. Hot-Flamethrower Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 He just passed. It's news...now. The time to analyze is now. Not a year from now. The guy is not in the business of being respectful. He's in the business of news and opinion, regardless of whether you agree with that opinion. There is nothing wrong with people wanting and demanding a respectful society! Since when does news and opinion get of scott free. That's bull ****, and is at the heart of the problem. Too many people accept that kind of behavior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just in Atlanta Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) There is nothing wrong with people wanting and demanding a respectful society! Since when does news and opinion get of scott free. That's bull ****, and is at the heart of the problem. Too many people accept that kind of behavior. They are paying the writer money to write opinion. He has an opinion on a news event on a public figure, who just passed. No one will read the column a year, or a month, from now. (That's why they call it NEWs, not olds...corny joke.) He was public, and gets the positives and negatives that go along with it, including after death. Emotion is high with a beloved figure, and that is understandable, but I have zero problem with this piece. Edited March 28, 2014 by Just in Atlanta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) They are paying the writer money to write opinion. He has an opinion on a news event on a public figure, who just passed. No one will read the column a year, or a month, from now. (That's why they call it NEWs, not olds...corny joke.) He was public, and gets the positives and negatives that go along with it, including after death. Emotion is high with a beloved figure, and that is understandable, but I have zero problem with this piece. its a little of each - while some here are feeling highly emotional about the passing and wanting to defend ralph against anything perceived as negative (and im not trying to judge that here), the writer also was a bit more blunt than needed. if things like "now that hes gone" were replaced with "with his unfortunate passing" i think it would probably be a much more defendable piece. its topical content isnt terrible from what i skimmed but its blunt phrasings arent needed and dont do anything to further the story being told Edited March 28, 2014 by NoSaint Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 its a little of each - while some here are feeling highly emotional about the passing and wanting to defend ralph against anything perceived as negative (and im not trying to judge that here), the writer also was a bit more blunt than needed. if things like "now that hes gone" were replaced with "with his unfortunate passing" i think it would probably be a much more defendable piece. its topical content isnt terrible from what i skimmed but its blunt phrasings arent needed and dont do anything to further the story being told This. The notion that the outcome is uncertain and could favor Toronto is actually not news to anyone who follows the team or the league (and I'm dubious of the idea that Cathal Kelly does either). This is just crass opportunism the way he phrases it. It's doubly ironic when we celebrate Ralph's capacity to consider more than the bottom line (how his players loved him, what he brought to Buffalo) in an era where that kind of crass opportunism rules the day. C. Kelly sounds like a greedy distant grand-nephew excited to "get his" when his relative dies. Kelly is well within his rights to say what he's said. We're well within our rights to point out that what he's said lacks good taste, respect for the dead, and respect for those whose lives he touched, including the city of Buffalo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just in Atlanta Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 its a little of each - while some here are feeling highly emotional about the passing and wanting to defend ralph against anything perceived as negative (and im not trying to judge that here), the writer also was a bit more blunt than needed. if things like "now that hes gone" were replaced with "with his unfortunate passing" i think it would probably be a much more defendable piece. its topical content isnt terrible from what i skimmed but its blunt phrasings arent needed and dont do anything to further the story being told I see and respect your point. But I don't think there's anything "unfortunate" about dying at 95. I would call that pretty fortunate to live that long. He's gone, and that's all there is too it. Don't understand the need to sugarcoat words with fluff just to be sensitive about a guy we all knew was going to go anytime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I see and respect your point. But I don't think there's anything "unfortunate" about dying at 95. I would call that pretty fortunate to live that long. He's gone, and that's all there is too it. Don't understand the need to sugarcoat words with fluff just to be sensitive about a guy we all knew was going to go anytime. When you speak of the dead, you are really speaking in part to his/her family. Any way you slice it, "now that he's gone" is bad form. I'm sure that Kelly has someone dear to him, and it would set him off if a person referred to them in this way less than a day after death. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 The way I look at is that Pataki recommended the name change (knowing the team didn't want to sell it) and Ralph acquiesced. I suppose accepting Pataki's suggestion is the same thing as naming it after himself, but since the idea originated with the Governor, it makes it a bit more "arm's length." I think Ralph's stance on stadiums not "selling out" their naming rights was always an honorable, old school thing. In a multi-billion dollar industry, chasing every last dollar (ie, Jerry Jones) was not necessarily a bad business practice in his view. We can debate whether Ralph's point of view was appropriate, but you have to give him credit for not changing his principals over the past four decades. It's a lot easier to do the "honorable" thing when you're subsidized by the rest of the league. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apuszczalowski Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I find it hypocritical that people are up in arms about things being said about Ralph Wilson that were being said on this board the days before his death. Yup, couldn't agree more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
millbank Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I believe this article in ways says much the same only in less cold fashion. http://www.syracuse.com/kirst/index.ssf/2014/03/ralph_wilson_in_the_end_he_owner_far_more_upstate_than_just_the_buffalo_bills.html end quote : Wilson's death, then, is like the passing of the maddening grandfather about whom the whole family loved to complain, until he is gone and you realize how he held the place together. The ultimate tribute is the immediate new ending to the thought: If only Ralph ... Could still be here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdog1960 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I believe this article in ways says much the same only in less cold fashion. http://www.syracuse....falo_bills.html end quote : Wilson's death, then, is like the passing of the maddening grandfather about whom the whole family loved to complain, until he is gone and you realize how he held the place together. The ultimate tribute is the immediate new ending to the thought: If only Ralph ... Could still be here. that's the best article i've read about buffalo, the bills and the fans in a very long time. he nailed it. i might finish that last sentence differently though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadian Bills Fan Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 that's the best article i've read about buffalo, the bills and the fans in a very long time. he nailed it. i might finish that last sentence differently though. Great article. CBF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I believe this article in ways says much the same only in less cold fashion. http://www.syracuse....falo_bills.html Excellent column. It really nailed the essence of being a life long Bills fan... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuffMuff Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 The sad part is this guy is only making Candians look like D-bags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3rdnlng Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Who cares what that idiot has to say! He dosent even know how to spell "favorite" for chrissake! Classic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderstealer Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 As Kevin Durant would say...can't hate on him gotta pray for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Aren't the words "sow" and "seed" synonyms in Canada? We never used "seeding" to mean reaping on our old farm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanCity Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 And you expect anything less...Lets face it, the majority of Canadien fans in any sport despise the United States and any chance they get to take a shot at anything in the US they will..Ever been to a Sabres Leafs game at the Arena? they are the rudest most obnoxious fans you will ever be around, they are loud irritating and mostly jerks, they however usually are shut up because they mostly lose here..With that said I usually never listen to anything a Canadien has to say or let them impact any part of my life becasue they just dont matter Rarely has a more arrogant statement been made in relation to others arrogance. CanadiAns(check your spelling bud) don't matter to a Bills fan?! Ever checked any of the border crossings on a game day? We flock in droves to Buffalo games. Many of us, myself included, would stop being Bills fans if they moved elsewhere. If we are talking hockey fans, then you are probably correct. Canadians take hockey seriously and many take that passion in the wrong direction. But your generalizations about a largely friendly and humble populace are both offensive and wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ny33 Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Most of the content- regarding the details of what it would take to bring the team to Buffalo, and who the potential suitors are, like the Bon Jovi/Rogers possibility- is valid and useful information for anyone interested in the Bills or football. It's a shame that the writer had to have a lede about Mr. Wilson's being "out of the way." This article's timing is fine, but the attitude towards someone's passing is certainly not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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