A Call To Arms In Defense of The "Little Guy"

by user JB82

After reading about Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson complaining about the direction the National Football League was or would be taking and how it would affect his team, I couldn't help but weigh in on the issue.

Have you ever heard of those stories about towns in America where high school football games are the big sporting events? That is because the local team is an intricate part of the town's fabric, socially and/or emotionally.

The Bills and Western New York, let alone Buffalo, have just that intricate a connection. However, there is also an economic dynamic. According to the Associated Press report about Wilson spurring a meeting with league commissioner Paul Tagilabue and US Senator Chuck Schumer, the Bills pump $33 million into Western New York's economy. And this is an area with the highest unemployment in the state. Former governor Mario Cuomo once said that he attended the Bills' games because they were the only NFL team truly in New York State.

I had to put this out even though I live on the opposite side of New York State, and am also a New York Giants fan. I knew a teacher in elementary school who grew up in Buffalo and got me cheering for the Bills during their Super Bowl runs in the early 1990s (that was me: young, dumb, and full of – you know...) In the early days of the third millennium, I listened to Van Miller call the games on the radio here in this part of Upstate New York. So, there is also a bit of a personal dynamic at work with The Little Team That Could ... and Almost Did (no offense given, Bills fans).

So, Bills fans and anyone who cares about the "little guy", I urge you to sign the online petition to keep the Bills in Buffalo. Just click on the link below and it will take you there.

Losing four Super Bowls in a row was bad enough for Buffalonians' and Western New Yorkers' psyche. Relocating the team to another market becuase of the faults of its league's labor plan would be hundreds if not thousands of times as devastating. Let's keep the Bills where they are so Buffalo, Western New York, and the Empire State will all be Talkin' Proud!

External link

 * Online petition to keep the Bills in Buffalo started by New York State Senator George Maziarz

Date
Sun 04/23/06, 5:53 pm EST