Lesson in teamwork
Usually we look to the fields and courts of play for examples of teamwork.
May I offer up different examples?
A good one, and a bad one.
Watch my latest video commentary or read below:
City leaders in Seattle still can’t agree on anything.
If this whole Sonics saga has taught us anything, it is this — Oklahoma City has local leadership that we can be proud of. Perfect, it is not, but it is pretty darn good.
And in light of what’s still going on in Seattle, pretty darn good is pretty darn good.
The inability of city leaders to get on the same page has hampered efforts to improve KeyArena for years in Seattle. There’s been a lack of willingness to even talk to people from the Sonics, and that was the case long before Clay Bennett and Co. bought the franchise.
Watching Seattle’s local government is like a soap opera.
That hasn’t changed. Last week, the NBA Board of Governors approved the relocation of the Sonics to Oklahoma City. You’d figure the seriousness of that vote might spur Seattle leaders to come to some sort of consensus.
Uh, no.
First, there’s Seattle mayor Greg Nickels, who called his own press conference on Friday and stood firm on the city’s plans to take the Sonics to court. He said, “We’re focused on litigation and keeping the team here.”
But then, there’s King County official Ron Sims who said, “You’re not going to stop them from moving. That’s just a fact.”
Aren’t these guys supposed to be playing for the same team? If these folks can’t agree with each other, is it any wonder that they’ve had trouble working with the Sonics?
Again, I’m not ready to call Oklahoma City’s local government a bastion of all that is right and good in the world, but the fact that they all seem to be working together is no small feat. It is a triumph worth celebrating.
Listen, I know I’m a sports writer, not a political pundit, but I do know the difference between soap opera and teamwork.
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Comments
Ms Carlson:
What good does it really do if all of the leaders are on the same page if it is the wrong page?
Also, your article that appeared on the front page of Saturday’s Oklahoman was shameful to say the least. To somehow link the Murrah Bombing with getting an NBA team is abhorrent. How it ever got by your editor much less printed on the front page of the paper goes beyond reason.
If it had been written as two separate articles: one being about how the community came together and survived those terrible events and another article celebrating the BOG vote approving relocation (conditionally as it turns out due to the one year clause in the NBA by laws), there wouldn’t be any problem.
great commentary. i am in total agreement that governments should not have any opposing views or checks and balances. that is true efficiency. how can we expect governments to get anything done if they have to consider the entire publics interest?
okc should truly be “proud” that they can easily mortgage their future by diverting children’s education funds to the 3 wealthiest people in their city without any messy governmental balking or public outcry. education, culture, environment, health, transportation and economic prosperity are insignificant when you’re trying to prove you’re a “big league city.” seattle should take notes from okc government, when big business asks for a free handout don’t question it, bend over and give them what they want. thinking never did anyone any good.
jenni, way to uphold the standards of free press and professional integrity. you have to censor posts because they expose your foolishness? too bad you didn’t have the power erase the video of you looking foolish on national television.
that guy:
It’s true that I have to approve all comments on my blog, but as you’ll see by many of the comments, I don’t delete the ones that disagree with me.
Ones that are racist, sexist, homophobic or derogatory, though, will not be approved.
Even though this is an open forum, we have standards to uphold. I want readers of all ages, races, creeds and backgrounds to be able to read my blog and the comments posted on it without feeling like they’re being attacked.
And I saw that you self-edited one of your comments that would not have been posted, so I believe you understand from whence I’m coming.
Jenni
Things must be really slow in OKC if all you can write about is Seattle politics. The reason all of the Seattle pols disagree is because they are all gunning to be Governor. They also have more than the Sonics asking for money. Seattle is a diverse city. We have alot of different points of view. But we respect the differences.
Jenni,
I see you had enough time to play the victim and assail the motives of your readers but not actually respond to a single point raised by anyone. Evidently your goal is not to engage or inform your readership. I guess you’re more into taping yourself reading your blog entries verbatim and uploading them on youtube. Unfortunately you don’t have the wit, insight or delivery to be the least bit interesting. If you were going for grating and insufferable, though, you nailed it.
I suspect when you take a place with three times the population it is three times as hard to manage. Take California for example the Gov has a job that is much more complicated than Oklahoma. Unless you have lived outside a small community it is something that is difficult to grasp.
I am from Anchorage, Alaska about the same size as your town and we also could come together. That is because we all came from the same background. Seattle is international and it is complicated mix of people.
So Jenni when I wrote to the Seattle P.I. report with this question that you presented to the public he provided me this response.
Hi Darrell,
I suppose it could be interesting to examine how any city chooses to spend its money, but I don’t think that argument is restricted solely to Oklahoma City. Clearly OKC public officials are doing everything possible to attract a professional sports team, in stark contrast to the mixed reaction of Seattle’s leaders and voters.
That isn’t surprising, given Seattle has had the team for 41 years and has endured heated battles in the past decade over funding for Qwest and Safeco fields. But this region has committed nearly $1 billion to those two stadiums in order to keep pro baseball and football here, so it seems a little hypocritical to question OKC’s willingness to spend $121 million to upgrade the Ford Center in order to attract a team.
Every city has to make these choices at some point, unless the private sector is willing to foot the bill. Right now, Oklahoma City has a much higher interest level and willingness to do whatever possible to fight for the Sonics than Seattle has displayed.
Does OKC have other needs? Sure. So does Seattle. Look no further than transportation and education issues. It’s why groups like Citizens for More Important Things have argued against Seattle providing any more public money for an NBA arena.
Many will counter by saying the ability to bring a professional sports team to OKC will open up other avenues of revenue for their city. It will be their ticket to the big time. Perhaps they’ll solve some other problems by taking this chance to bring in a high-profile sports team that elevates the visibility of their entire region. Whether that’s true or not remains to be seen, but it’s an issue every major municipality faces to some degree when deciding how and when to pay for professional sports venues.
-Greg
“Aren’t these guys supposed to be playing for the same team? If these folks can’t agree with each other, is it any wonder that they’ve had trouble working with the Sonics?”
Welcome to American politics. Seriously, I know you’re a sportswriter, but have you ever, like, read a newspaper? You find it shocking that politicians don’t agree? Make sure you don’t start following current events, your head might explode.
“You’d figure the seriousness of that vote might spur Seattle leaders to come to some sort of consensus.”
What consensus would you expect them to come to? Some think Seattle should let them leave, some think they should keep fighting. Please enlighten me as to what the obvious choice is.
This column seems to be heavy on snark and light on substance. I hope nitpicking about city govt squabbles that exist anywhere makes you feel better about hijacking a city’s franchise. It must be hard for an alleged sports fan to reconcile that.