Letters: If they build it, will they come?

Feb. 27, 2015 4:59 PM PT

It was a shame Bill Dwyre’s column on the proposed new stadium in Carson was relegated to the back page of Saturday’s sports section. Much as it’s considered dangerous to wake a sleepwalker, it could be dangerous to the psyche of those in the self-induced hypnotic state cheering on the return of not one, not two, but possibly three NFL teams to Los Angeles to suddenly be confronted with the realities of this irrationality.

Have these people not noticed what is causing this sudden flurry of activity? Are they not aware of the pressures being put on the governments of the cities about to be abandoned to come up with the money to provide the owners of those teams with public money to keep them? Is there something that will make Los Angeles immune to this kind of blackmail in the future? No? Well, they only have to look to the past for the answer.

One definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result (See: Rams. See: Raiders). Fool me once, shame on you: fool me twice, shame on me. What do you say if you’re fooled a third time? It appears we may be about to find out.

John Snyder

Newbury Park

In response to Bill Dwyre’s column suggesting “The Carson Exxon Valdez” as the name for the proposed Carson stadium on a site with surface oil seepage and methane emissions, I would propose a simpler, easy-to-remember name: “Frackin’ Field.”

Jim Stewart

Playa Vista

Lets take this a bit further: Build all four stadiums, plus one adjacent to Dodger Stadium, reopen the Coliseum and Anaheim, and activate the Rose Bowl as well. Two teams in each. Raid the NFL of half its teams and maybe, just maybe, they will never jerk around a great city for 20 years, ever again!

Rick Wallace

Malibu

Returning the NFL to L.A. at a refurbished Coliseum makes better sense than a new facility elsewhere, but only if Julie’s returns too.

Jerry Selby

Pasadena

Clip joint

So Rick Barry thinks that all DeAndre Jordan need do to improve his foul shooting ability is to practice longer or harder. Using that kind of logic, all I need to do is spend a few more hours on the practice green and soon I’ll be putting like Ben Crenshaw!

Kevin H. Park

Encino

Kudos to Ben Bolch, whose Feb. 25 article on Doc Rivers pointed out his shortcomings in improving the Clippers. My friends and I (all season-ticket holders) have said from the beginning of the season that the team is not as good as it was when Doc got here. Let me count some of the ways:

No continuity in the coaching staff. Signing Jordan Farmar, whom the Lakers did not want. Not addressing the critical need for a small forward. Allowing Darren Collison to get away.

When Doc got here, the Clippers had one of the best benches in the NBA and now have one of the worst. They may not make it out of the first round this year.

Alphonse Edwards

Los Angeles

Tank brigade

The overreaction by Lakers players to a meaningless win against the Celtics is surpassed in its absurdity only by the reaction of my Little Leaguer to a base hit.

Maury Benemie

Corona

My advice to Jimmy Buss: Don’t make a decision without consulting Magic Johnson. If things don’t pan out, blame Magic.

Ralph Llamas

Pacoima

Old college try

I feel that these tactics employed by Arizona State [“Tempe’s Skit Row,” Feb. 26] to interfere with the other team’s concentration when they shoot free throws is outrageous! Yes you can be enthusiastic, root for your team, holler and cheer, but this is akin to harassment and in my opinion is not sportsmanlike conduct. These skits should be disallowed.

Deborah R. Ishida

Beverly Hills

Every basketball coach in the country should get a copy of the Connecticut-South Carolina women’s game, show it to their teams and emphasize that this is how the game should be played.

Dan Alessini

Los Angeles

Fight on?

Floyd Mayweather “the best ever?” No, big mouth. Here are just a few superior fighters that boxing fans are well aware of and are still being remembered over the last 100-plus years: Jack Johnson, Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Archie Moore, Sugar Ray Leonard, Muhammad Ali and the real best — Sugar Ray Robinson.

Noel T Brown

West Covina

Base relief

So MLB wants to speed up the game. Good idea, but why limit changes to only the players? How about cutting the seventh-inning singing of “God Bless America.” Shorter commercials would also help.

Jack Blecher

Long Beach

The MLB “pace-of-play” committee (where did that come from?) should know that some of us who have been fans of the game for many years actually like and appreciate the slower pace of the sport; it is one of the few that are not on the clock. Let’s not ruin a good thing.

David Lessley

Burbank

If players are going to embarrass the sport and expectorate in the faces of fans who want the game to move along, baseball should adopt a more effective sanction such as automatic called strikes when the batter delays the game. I imagine that would get the attention of Big (Ego) Papi.

Oren M. Spiegler

Upper St. Clair, Pa.

I am really looking forward to seeing how the newly reconstructed Dodgers bullpen turns out with its MASH unit of rehabilitated pitchers.

Sol Bialeck

Van Nuys

With spring training games starting this week, there’s a very easy way to see every Dodgers game on TV this season — move to San Diego.

Jeff Prescott

La Jolla

Great to hear Lori Mattingly talking about the Dodger skipper’s newborn son. “Every day, Donnie talks to him about switch-hitting, goes through the motions and everything.”

Bottom line is, we know this kid’s gonna hit, but can he manage?

Patrick Drohan

Monrovia

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