And here I was having just disavowed the Seattle Times forever, when I found this. Thank you Brian Robinson for your amazing and undying support for this cause and for all of us.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2018782774_guest27brianrobinson.html
"SONICS fans are used to being kicked around. Since the team's sale in 2006, we have watched helplessly as Seattle's political leadership disregarded our passion and ignored our team's place in our city's history.
We let people tell us that our love of sports was somehow less culturally relevant than other civic interests and we felt powerless to change that perception.
The scene at Seattle City Hall last week told an entirely different story. The most important public hearing on the arena proposal put forward by Seattle native Chris Hansen was so packed that both the main Bertha Knight Landes Room and council chambers upstairs were filled to capacity.
As Sonics fans told their stories eloquently and respectfully to members of the councils, I was struck by the diversity of our supporters. During its 41 years in Seattle, the Sonics touched fans as young as the 19-year-old who lost out on the chance to grow up with the team and as old as the fan who recalled how painful it was to watch the Braves leave Milwaukee some 40-plus years ago. They touched fans of all races and from all backgrounds, both men and women, and those who drove from as far as Yakima and Thurston County to show their support.
Within an increasingly fragmented society, few entities still manage to unite a community in the same manner as professional sports franchises. Pulling for the same team creates lasting bonds that cut across cultural divisions like race, wealth or political views. Shared sports memories bridge cultural gaps and provide common ground between generations that help us to reach and engage with our youth."