Must not be THAT much of a small

[SPURSX3]

if we caught his attention..


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Tagliabue placates Hardberger: S.A. mayor appreciates 'peace offering' by the NFL commissioner
Web Posted: 09/23/2005 12:00 AM CDT

Tom Orsborn
Express-News Staff Writer

NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue faxed a conciliatory letter to Mayor Phil Hardberger on Thursday, promising to work with "the New Orleans Saints, your administration, and the Alamodome authorities" to make the team's three games in San Antonio a success.

Hardberger termed the letter "a peace offering" after Tagliabue dismissed the city as a "small market" in an interview this week with the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

Still, Hardberger made it clear he expects more from Tagliabue, who seemed to indicate in the Times-Picayune interview that San Antonio couldn't provide adequate support for an NFL team.

"A better peace offering," Hardberger said, "would be for him to say how appropriate it would be for us to become an NFL city."

The letter also prompted Hardberger to backtrack on a promise he made last week to reserve for Tagliabue "the highest seat at the Alamodome" for the Saints' game with the Buffalo Bills on Oct. 2.

"We are going to invite him to the game and give him a better seat," Hardberger said. "That's what happens when you write a nice letter."

The Saints' other games in the Alamodome are scheduled for Oct.16 against the Atlanta Falcons and Dec. 24 against the Detroit Lions.

More than 18,000 tickets remain for the game with the Bills, the Saints announced Thursday in a release that included a statement from owner Tom Benson urging fans to buy tickets.

"As the first regular-season NFL game ever in San Antonio, the Oct. 2 Saints-Bills matchup is the most important to sell out — selling out the first game sets the tone for the rest of the schedule," Benson said.

Benson also pointed out that the game must be sold out before Sept. 29 to ensure it would be televised in San Antonio. The NFL traditionally blacks out games in the local viewing area if they fail to sell out 72 hours in advance of kickoff.

Thursday marked the deadline for Saints' season-ticket holders to tell the club their plans for the Oct. 2 game.

With the deadline gone, "all seats are available," Saints marketing director Conrad "Connie" Kowalt said.

The Saints declined to say how many tickets remain for the other games. As of Tuesday, 6,883 were left for Atlanta and 40,439 for Detroit.

Hardberger said he is confident the three games would sell out. He also said he looks forward to talking to Tagliabue at "one or more" of the games about the city's rapidly growing corporate base.

City officials view the three Alamodome games as an opportunity for the city to show it can support an NFL team. But Tagliabue said in the interview with the Times-Picayune the league has no plans to move "any teams into small markets" and is determined to put a team in Los Angeles.

Hardberger responded by saying Tagliabue must be unaware of the city's growth since the league considered it for expansion more than a decade ago.

"I would certainly want to familiarize him with San Antonio," Hardberger said. "I would not really see it as a proselytizing trip but one in which I want him to realize how much potential San Antonio has and how much we have grown and matured as a city over the last 10 years.

"San Antonio is a different town, but he's not going to know that until he sees it. I hope he comes."

Tagliabue's letter also praised Hardberger for organizing efforts in San Antonio to care for Hurricane Katrina evacuees and for giving the Saints a place to practice and play.

"The consequences of Katrina certainly appear to be unprecedented in scope, and I was impressed in early September when I saw you on CNN making it clear that San Antonio was prepared to lead, to provide and to care for the evacuees with tremendous urgency," Tagliabue said in the letter.

Said Hardberger: "It was a nice, gracious letter and I was glad to get it," Hardberger said. "It was a different tone than what I read in the newspaper."



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torsborn@express-news.net  

[Reality]

More than 18,000 tickets remain for the game with the Bills, the Saints announced Thursday in a release that included a statement from owner Tom Benson urging fans to buy tickets.

"As the first regular-season NFL game ever in San Antonio, the Oct. 2 Saints-Bills matchup is the most important to sell out — selling out the first game sets the tone for the rest of the schedule," Benson said.
 

While the storm and it's suffering is definitely foremost at this time, is it Xs3 also not a reality that a large # of displaced Houstonians (4th largest populated city in US) are going to be in SA around Oct 2.   Would not some of these want to see the game?  Especially if damage to Houston is serious but not catostrophic.  

Media says the low lying areas of Hou are very much in danger, higher areas are not.

 

[SPURSX3]

More than 18,000 tickets remain for the game with the Bills, the Saints announced Thursday in a release that included a statement from owner Tom Benson urging fans to buy tickets.

"As the first regular-season NFL game ever in San Antonio, the Oct. 2 Saints-Bills matchup is the most important to sell out — selling out the first game sets the tone for the rest of the schedule," Benson said.
 

While the storm and it's suffering is definitely foremost at this time, is it Xs3 also not a reality that a large # of displaced Houstonians (4th largest populated city in US) are going to be in SA around Oct 2.   Would not some of these want to see the game?  Especially if damage to Houston is serious but not catostrophic.  

Media says the low lying areas of Hou are very much in danger, higher areas are not.

It depends Reality, download google earth at earth.google.com and look at the satelite picture of houston - it's free by the way.  If the storm keeps moving east houston will be spared the brunt of the water wind and rain.  the bay of galveston may still be flooded if the water surge is still at 37 feet - Pasadena is only a little over 10 feet above sea level, galvestons seawall wont protect them if the surge hits the bay of galveston first because the wall is facing the gulf of mexico - not the bay of galveston, so there could be major damage to galveston, baytown and lower houston, and pasadena by flood waters.  i hope it keeps moving east.  as far as when everyone goes home?  could not say, i am sue people will wait out flood waters, they will wait out to seeif throngs of people go back at the same time again or not, they will se if re have restocked our gas as it keeps dwindling here in san antonio, they will want to seek out fema aid at the local shelters, etc.  who knows how long it will take...

[Reality]

Great website.  Heard of it away back when but 1st time I went there.

I think some 'Stoners will still be in SA around Oct 2.  Bush will still not have gas here by then.  Oh wait, an artificial shortage will create tons of $4 per gallon gas.

San Diego tv just did an expose with documents directly from the big oil tards, ie Mobil, Shell.  Word for word 1999 "We have a large oversupply.  We need to create the illusion of a shortage if we ever are to reap the profits we desire.  The problem is currently we have an oversupply"

Article went on to point out refineries were making 25 cents on every gallon refined in 1999.  They have schemed that to 1.00 per gallong in 2004.

I love how there is *no gas* for cars wanting out of Houston yet the refiners for 1/4th of the nations **supply** sit ten miles away.  FEMA must be overseeing.
Did you catch the part on ice being shipped to N.O. with FEMAs oversight.  Trucker took off from San Jose, CA.  Arrived near FEMA drop off spot in MS.  Told to go back west 100 miles.  Told to come back again to MS 100 miles east.  Told to park his truck.  Unloaded two weeks later.  Said this is not an isolated incident but the norm.  New Jersey trucker left with semi loaded with ice.  Got to MS.  Told to park it.  Sat for one week.  Told to take ice back to Boston Mass.  In Boston ice was unloaded back into a storage facility.  Never was used.

[SPURSX3]

Reality, the refineries and rigs are where the storm is going to hit, they are closed, i dont know how true an "oversupply" is, we know we have reserves here and in alaska, by no means is the production anywhere near what we get from the middle east - think about it, if it came down to money and we really did have that much oil, wouldnt we sell it and become even richer???  Last i heard our reserves would last the country a few montsh at our current rate of consumption.  not selling that they would not be lying about it or anything like that.  it could be true.

[rickortreat]

There's a very BIG difference between oil consumpiton now vs. 1999.  China has been importing huge amounts of oil, and there have been disruptions in the middle east and Nigeria.

The dollar has also declined in value by 25% since that time.

Also, the exodus from Lousianna and South Texas consumed a lot of oil that normally wouldn't have been so rapidly exhausted.

 

[Reality]

here 'tis;
http://www.10news.com/investigations/index.html
"10News Investigates Gas Gouging Politics" look at the "memo" icons also, especially Texaco.

Consumption might have changed but I'm sure their ability to lie, scheme and profit has not changed a bit.  These were word for word internal documents "we have an oversupply, we need to create a shortage real or not to reach the profit goals we have envisioned".  Look at the profits for Exxon, Smell, Mobil, BP etc.  That is just for what they report.  We know accountants would never intentionally misreport. :rolleyes:

Also a state station examiner we have become friendly with said gas station owners in SoCal were snickering at him and saying what a scam the *shortage* due to Katrina was.  Nothing more then an excuse to gouge.  

There may be less of a supply after Rita hits Houston area but i dont trust these buzzards one iota.  That they have huge oversupplys in tanks here and there would suprise me zero.  Of course we know DouBullya would not take any of Iraqs oil for the US oil conglomerates. :rolleyes:  

I'll bet he has more troops on pipeline security and oil exec behind kissing then any other facet.

[Rickortreat]

All of that may be so, but look at this chart of oil:

http://tinyurl.com/cbcb8

Any way you slice it, the oil companies are paying substantailly more for a barrel of oil, and the costs to refine the oil, as all the other materials they consume have gone up in price.

In 2001, the price was 17.12 a barrel, yesterday it closed at 64.19.  That's almost a 4-fold increase!  

I wouldn't call that an artificial shortage.  If there was really ample supply, some producer would be happy to sell at that price, and the price would drop.  The oil market is world-wide, so any attempt to manipulate supply would see some effort by someone to profit. Speculators bidding up the price, would get their heads handed to them.  Producers can only make money by selling their product!  

[Reality]

All of that may be so, but look at this chart of oil:

http://tinyurl.com/cbcb8

Any way you slice it, the oil companies are paying substantailly more for a barrel of oil, and the costs to refine the oil, as all the other materials they consume have gone up in price.

In 2001, the price was 17.12 a barrel, yesterday it closed at 64.19.  That's almost a 4-fold increase!  

I wouldn't call that an artificial shortage.  If there was really ample supply, some producer would be happy to sell at that price, and the price would drop.  The oil market is world-wide, so any attempt to manipulate supply would see some effort by someone to profit. Speculators bidding up the price, would get their heads handed to them.  Producers can only make money by selling their product!

So there is no price gouging going on by the oil companies?  Their massive profits are just a way too feed their families.  Like the tabaco company folks.

Straight shooters who give out clean, accurate, truthful stats on supply and demand?  1999 they were snakes but since then they have found George Bush and religion and are now giving out Ned Flanders type reports?

As to the oil chart, check the prices they charge for a gallon of gas in the same time frame.  Refineries in 1999 made 25 cents per gallon.  2004 they made $1.00 per gallon.  Go figure.

[rickortreat]

On a percentage basis, their margins are the same.  Is that gouging or are they simply trying to compensate for the decline in the value of a dollar?

Their costs are up four-fold and so is their cut on the price they charge.

You're just unhappy becasue their raising their prices faster than your salary is rising.  Inflation doesn't affect all aspects of an economy at the same rates at the same time.

The current process is destroying the American middle class, and will inevitably hurt the oil producers.  When people have less money to spend, they will minimize the use of your products.