"Seattle's citizens take a stand"

As not just a sports fan, but a sports journalist, I feel it is important to write on this topic.

To paraphrase the topic: A week ago, on election day, Seattle's residents overwhelmingly voted for a ballot measure to end public subsidies for the city's three sports teams - the NBA's Sonics, the NFL's Seahawks (who lost in the Super Bowl last February), and MLB's Mariners.

This measure will almost positively mean the departure of the Sonics to Oklahoma City in 2010. A team riddled by a change in ownership and mediocre play on the court is not going to stay in Seattle unless it gets a new arena, those new owners said.

And that ain't happening.

Check out the New York Times story.

I have a mixed bag of feelings on this issue.

I am a firm believer that sports teams, especially when successful, help lift up cities - especially those struggling economically or otherwise. Detroit is a perfect example.

This has been one of the toughest years for Detroit's auto industry, as thousands of workers from GM have been laid off. Yet throughout the summer and especially in September and October the Detroit Tigers dominated the headlines.

Once an abysmal team - much worse than Seattle's Sonics - the Tigers had nothing short of an amazing season, as they made the playoffs for the first time since 1987, then upset the Yankees and swept the A's before finally succumbing to the Cardinals in the World Series.

The city came together to support the Tigers. It didn't matter if you were rich or poor, you were a Tigers fan. It didn't matter if you couldn’t afford a ticket to a playoff game. You watched it with all your friends or even made your way down to the park to stand outside and listen to the deafening cheering from within.

For a month, the city forgot about its problems and instead embraced its baseball team. And it's a season that won't be forgotten for many years to come. It's a memory even those struggling to put food on the table will be able to recall with a smile, making them forget, at least for a few minutes, their plight.

A successful sports team doesn't just make its fans ebullient. It also brings in outside revenue, as people from out of town - whether fans or the media or businessmen - contribute to the city's economy.

It makes the cold water begin to boil.

But what if that team that citizens supported - by paying $500 million in taxes for its new stadium - flounders? What if its players do nothing to make the taxpayers feel good about their investment?

That, obviously, is the other side of the coin. Or at least part of it.

Seattle's citizens made a statement last week that is not very common in America.

"We don't need a basketball team to feel good about ourselves," to paraphrase.

Instead, they want their tax dollars to go to education, transportation projects and health care.

That's pretty hard to argue against.

In this day in age, where so much of the federal budget is spent on never-ending wars and "the war on terror," it is refreshing to see a group of people dedicated to improving their community.

And, undoubtedly, because the Sonics won't get a new arena, more money will be spent on other things, which, I assume, will be good things.

And it's not like Seattle's sports fans are now without a team. They still have the Seahawks, one of the NFL's best, and the Mariners, although they're in a bit of a rut. Throw in the University of Washington and Seattle remains a sports town.

The only negative about the Sonics' eventual departure will be the effect on Seattle's die-hard fans, which, I assume, there are still a few of. I've never experienced it, but I can imagine what it was like for Cleveland Browns fans when their team was uprooted all of a sudden to Baltimore. And LA Rams fans, when out of the blue their team was on the opposite side of the Rockies.

And so many other stories.

A true sports fan loves his or her team, but is also realistic about that team's chances of being successful.

I just hope that Sonics' fans realize the fate of their team and are able to move on, like the rest of the city.

Because Seattle will still have plenty to offer.