Thank you for clarifiring this issue, thats is really good that we as fans can voice or opinions and not worried that will get sensor. I know sometimes (most of the time for me )we are a tough crowd, that it's because we love this club so much that we want the best of the for it.
Good. Maybe I deleted it on accident. Shall I ask David Kaval again when he is going to bring in decent players?
You'll be surprised ! I read somewhere on these boards that actually he does answer whe you email him directly with an specific subject.
Well he didn't answer me then but now I'm really curious to know whats going on in his mind? Thanks for the info!
He responded very promptly to me when I emailed him. As I said at the time, I was very impressed by his level of energy and how much he cared about the team. If you send him a one-line email that says "you must fire Frank and JD" he might choose not to answer, but he struck me as an eminently reasonable person. On the other hand, I did have a critical comment deleted from the FB page a while back. (Critical, but polite, because I was posting under my real name!) I figure it's the prerogative of the mod to delete such comments, and if they have decided they only want to have happy, affirmative comments stand, so be it.
Policies change If you didn't read the threads from our losses earlier in the season on Facebook, there was plenty of negativity that was left. We will delete a post if it contains expletives (similar policy to what you have here on BS, I believe). I try to steer conversation on Facebook to stick to the thread topic (again, very similar to your policy here on BS). Our approach has evolved over the last 1.5 years and continues to do so. We're not perfect, but we're certainly willing to adapt
On BigSoccer, we won't delete posts for expletives but will @#$% out the offending word. I realize you do not have that option on Facebook, but I assure you that I have never left any comments even resembling obscenities anywhere! As I recall, there were a slew of negative comments (on what topic, I don't recall, but it was pre-season) that got wiped out. I appreciate that your policy is evolving and that you no longer are deleting critical comments as long as they are polite and on topic. The most passionate fans are also likely to be those who are occasionally negative, and I would hope that you do not want to alienate those of us who care a lot about the team!
The recap says there were over 9k...... http://www.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2011-05-14-san-jose-earthquakes-vs-columbus-crew/recap
May have been that many sold or "distributed", but, certainly not that many attending. We really need news on the new stadium. I ran into a friend of a friend at the game. I asked if he was a season ticket holder. He said, "no". I asked what would it take. He said, "a new stadium". I am sure all of you have had similar experiences, or are waiting yourself for the new stadium.
It's a chicken-or-egg phenomenon. Part of the delay on the stadium is almost assuredly the failure to fill Buck Shaw with season ticketholders or, lately, to fill it at all. Some of you fault ownership for being cheap while undoubtedly they consider Quakes supporters to be phantoms rather than fans. We can all urge ownership to "Build It Now!" and SSV has been doing so for more than a year. The loudest message, though, is butts in seats, and thus to my mind -- as I've said before -- it is the minimal obligation of every Quakes fan who is able to do so to purchase a season ticket. (And if you are able to carry the weight of others as well as yourself, you might also consider a tax deductible donation to the SSV Kidzone so that additional seats can be filled by deserving youth.) I am still confident the new stadium will happen. But we fans should not be complacent. The status quo is not sustainable in the long term.
Hey Don. I respect you, but from the fan's perspective, I think your logic may be a bit upside-down. I wonder if a lot of folks aren't looking at it like this: We've been burned by several ownership groups in the past, and until the current owners demonstrate some real commitment to my community by breaking ground on a stadium what real assurance do I have that these folks are in it for the long-haul? Remember, the last incarnation of the Quakes were around for ten years before it unceremoniously moved away, and I think the fans thus need a greater level of assurance that the current owners are serious and the team is permanent -- not ephemeral...
Excactly. I've probably missed three home games since 2008, but my wife and kids have been staying away. They have little faith in Wolff or belief that we'll ever get a stadium...
As I said, it's chicken-or-egg. It's a real conundrum. Many fans reasonably want to see shovels in the ground on a stadium before they emotionally and financially invest in this team. The ownership reasonably wants to be assured that this is a viable market before investing tens of millions in a stadium. Chicken. Or Egg. So, here's my logic: we fans can only control what we fans can control. We each do our bit by purchasing our season ticket each year and have faith that our fellow fans and the ownership does their bit. It's akin to the act of voting. My individual vote (like my individual season ticket) is considered alone meaningless in the grand scheme, but grouped with other votes (and other season tickets) it is the fundamental building block of the entire democratic system (or pro sports franchise). We have to trust that collective votes will best promote the collective commonwealth (and that our collective support of our favorite club will ensure its long-term survival.) And just as the act of voting is more poignant in a nascent democracy (who can forget the purple fingers in Iraq?), the act of purchasing a season ticket for a team brought back from the dead is all the more meaningful. I vote because it's my duty as a citizen. And I purchase a season ticket because it's my expression of loyalty as a fan. That's my logic.
Edit: Looks like Don G beat me to the punch. But this is what I wrote: I think Don addressed that. The "logic" is neither up nor down. It's sideways - chicken and the egg. I think what can keep things moving in a chicken-egg situation like this is good faith on the part of both parties until there is sufficient momentum to break through. To my mind the ownership has been moving forward in good faith. Demolition on the site is proceeding without delay, perhaps ahead of schedule. They are moving forward, albeit maybe not with the pace or the conviction that some fans would like to see. Good faith on the part of the fans would be to continue to attend the games at the very least, and ideally bring friends. Staying away in protest or with the thought that it would somehow induce a quicker resolution to the chicken-egg dilemma is not going to work IMO. Actually, it would probably bring about a quicker resolution, but it wouldn't be the resolution we'd want. We'd have neither chicken nor egg.
As a new season ticket holder of 2 this season, first since 2004, the main reason for me if I do not renew for 2011 is not so much about the new stadium (yet) as much as it is about watching a winning team. I would like to see GM, coach, front office make more of an effort like some of the newer teams try to do and upgrade each year. I have brought over 20 first timers so far this season and there first questions are "this is where they play?" "are they getting there own stadium?" "are they any good?". Buck Shaw is hard to bring the casual fan in but I know a new stadium could make it more of a destination. If they are not winning, who wants to come see them lose? I am already wandering whether I made a bad decision or not in becoming a season ticket holder. They will always be my team but not winning, awful stadium does not make a good combo.
The best way to put butts in seats is as follows: A. Sign top rated talented players. B. To win especially at home. C. All of the above.