Tuesday, March 6

Gay Marriage and the Sonics

It’s been beat to death on the internet in the past couple of weeks (seriously, no matter what side you’re on, can anyone read LZ Granderson’s column and come away thinking anything but: Shut up?), so I’m curious as to what people who visit this site think about the Sonics being owned by two men who rather not see two other men walking down the aisle.

I’ll put my opinion out there first. Personally, it doesn’t bother me that the Sonics would be owned by people opposed to gay marriage. Honestly, I don’t think the government should be involved in anybody’s marriage; it’s a matter between two individuals, and nobody else ought to be messing with it. I guess I look at it that it’s their money and they can do what they want.

But that’s me. Most folks in Seattle are much more left-leaning, I’d say, although it’s possible sports fans are slightly more conservative than the bran-eating Volvo drivers who are more likely to watch PBS than ESPN.

All that said, do you care if Tom Ward and Aubrey McClendon gave $1 million of their own cash to pay for an initiative that would ban gay marriage? Is this truly worth talking about, or is it merely a ploy of anti-stadium activists looking to cause trouble? On the one hand, it’s their money. On the other, if the Sonics turn a profit (and you know they will, at least in the long run), your ticket money will – at least partially – be funding these types of initiatives.

Let us know your thoughts. And, please, try to keep the rhetoric to a minimum. If you think gay people are the devil, fine, but we’re not interested. Go phone Rush Limbaugh, or somebody who cares. We’re only interested in getting a feeling as to whether this story even is a story.

10 comments:

Paul said...

I wouldn't care, except for the fact that the week before this story broke, the NBA bent over backwards to put the smackdown on Tim Hardaway for merely speaking his homophobic mind. But when it was a member of their owners group? Complete silence.

So, it's OK for an active member of the NBA (team owners) to donate MILLIONS of dollars towards anti-gay groups, but it's not OK for a retired NBA player to TALK about being anti-gay.

Guh?!

Anonymous said...

The more I think about it, the more it bugs me. Obviously one can't go through life avoiding every person/organisation that believes something different from you, that would be impractical. However, when it comes to my entertainment dollars I have a choice. I will watch my Sonics on TV, not in person. Yes, they still get money from the broadcast deals, but that deal is in place. I will not pay directly to their bottom line by buying tickets, drinks etc. at the arena. I'm the same with movies. I won't pay to see a Mel Gibson or Tom Cruise flick as I think they are wackos with objectionable views. I don't campaign against them, but I sure as hell aren't going to add to their wealth.

Eric Reynolds said...

I tend to agree with Paul about the odor of hypocrisy in the way the NBA approaches these delicate matters. Ultimately, the Sonics ownership can spend what they want where they want, but between that and the way they're handling the arena situation, I'm that much less inclined to feed their coffers with my own money, for whatever that's worth.

Anonymous said...

It bugs me in general that people like these two asshats believe they have the right to meddle with others' lives. I don't see how two guys, or girls, being legally "married" bothers these fuckers so much they're willing to drop a million bucks just to make it stop, when everyone with a half a brain knows it's past the point of no return. At this point, neither their $1M, nor the millions others are paying will stop gay marriage. It's over, and people like Ward and McLendon better get used to it. Plus, if you actually care about the "sanctity of marriage" spend your money so 50+% of straight marriages in the US don't go down the crapper. If you wanna do something constructive give to educational institutions. Save innocent kids in Africa who die because they get to eat dirt once a month.


Now, when it comes to the Sonics it doubly bugs me. It hurts to see that my favorite team is owned by a group of close-minded right-wingers who probably don't give a shit about Seattle, the Sonics organization and the fans. The plan isn't to keep the team in Seattle. It never was. The plan isn't to "work" with the state to keep the team around. It never was. The plan was to buy a team that's doing bad, try to get a freebie arena from the state, and in case that doesn't happen move the team to a different city eventually. The truth is they're probably going to relocate the team. The fact that they focus on anything but basketball is just one of the many signs.

Anonymous said...

Re tonight's game ...

Amazing how everyone expected Eddy Curry to make a difference (again) tonight, and then he goes and scores 2 points in the first half (still some time remaining)... even though Fortson has sat his behind on the bench the entire game.

Anonymous said...

If it wasn't for Marbury, the Sonics would be destroying the Knicks right now. Even with him hitting 5 of 6 from 3, the Sonics are still up by a dozen.

Where do I stand in line for playoff tickets?

Anonymous said...

Kudos to (at least most of) you posting on this website. This is one of the most civilized discussions of the whole Hardaway and gay marriage thing that I've seen in a long time. Thank you for being sensible about something that more juvenile minds have great difficulty with.

---TonyJazz

Anonymous said...

Gay marriage? Honestly, I couldn't care less. Many, many people donate money to causes that I don't agree with. This story wouldn't even make the papers if the Sonics were located in Cleveland or Phoenix. I think this is just a move to sell papers and create more controversy with the arena.

Anonymous said...

You are right anonymous, it wouldn't make the papers in Cleveland or Phoenix. But this is Seattle, it's a very different place.

To me, it's just another indication of how out of touch and distant the new ownership group is. I have a very hard time supporting a team that is owned by not only outsiders physically, but outsiders mentally from the rest of the city of Seattle.

I'm curious about what rights homosexuals had in respects to benefits for their partners and children under the Schultz ownership and if any of these have changed or will change under the new ownership.

Anonymous said...

Well said.