|
Hockey's
dilemma viewed with indifference
Hockey
has been cancelled. Hearts are breaking
across America, but should we care?
The
story behind the National Hockey League's
(NHL) "labor dispute" is a standard
tale of athletic greed. Break out the party
hats and laugh at the schmucks who think
enough just isn't enough. But don't laugh
too hard. There are some folks that are
actually getting hurt by this.
The
NHL locked out the players on Sept. 15,
2004. The two-word story is salary caps.
The league wants team-level salary limits.
The limits would give each team no more
than $42 million to pay players. Keep in
mind, the average team size is slightly
less than two dozen people.
Hockey
is hard work and the boys on the ice deserve
money for their efforts. But nearly $2 million
a year? The heartache and belt tightening
that comes from such a reduced salary is
immense. That's why the players won't settle
for being paid slave wages.
Being
so poverty-stricken that you can only afford
one BMW a year is a pain nobody deserves
to suffer. Imagine telling your wife and
children that you can't take them to Cancun,
Hawaii and the French Riviera this year.
The wailing and tears would be unbearable.
The strain of not being able to buy custom-made
designer clothes for your children, being
forced to buy clothes off the rack, would
break any father's heart.
This
is a serious matter. Recall Latrell Sprewell,
the basketball player who wanted to extend
his $14.8 million contract. His reason,
he said, was that "I've got a family
to feed." Who can argue with such a
need?
File
this in the "no, really, don't be an
ass" category.
But
the blame is not all on the players. The
NHL and owners want these salary caps for
a reason. They want to save money.
The
money that the league and owners will save
is going to be put to excellent use. Expect
press releases any day now describing plans
for the creation of foundations to support
orphans, war widows and kittens.
Rampant
humanitarianism will become the norm once
the NHL expands into opening soup kitchens
and providing scholarships for low-income
college students. It's just a matter of
getting the money from those greedy players
and into the hands of the saints and Schweitzers
who run the league.
Jokes
aside, there is a group of people who will
actually suffer. The people who work at
the arenas, the guy driving the Zamboni
and even the parking lot attendants will
all have a lot less work this season. The
workers who support the hockey teams and
arenas are the people who don't have a voice.
Ironically,
they are the ones who really get hurt. It's
a shame that nothing can be done to help.
Join
us in laughing at the arrogance of the athletes.
The whining and griping from both sides
is really quite amusing. Just don't forget
that there are some people who are going
to deal with hardship because they're caught
in the middle of a rich man's tug-of-war.
|
