RE: Opening Night

[Ian]

As much as I would love to make a spectacle on opening night with he-who-shall-not-be-named, I'm going to bow out of the mix for that after coming to the realization that it's just not feasible. I cannot with a clear conscious start a crowdfund to bring in what will essentially require in excess of $50,000+ to pull off a stunt like that when there are certainly more people out there who could use that money for other far more important causes. There are people out there battling for their lives facing serious medical bills...I can't think of exerting the energy to raise money like that just for the sake of making fun of the commissioner and feel good about it.

Most of you know me enough to know that I'm not a self-promoter or into any type of publicity - which is to a fault and why this place still remains something that if you ask any random fan on the street, many people still after all these years don't know about it. But given what we have and all the great people here, I wouldn't trade that for anything. That approach works for some people and that's great. I just can't make myself feel good about taking that much money for something like that. Not when there are more important uses for it. If I'm going to exert that much energy to raise money, I'd rather do it for a better cause. This just, to me, isn't it.

Should I win the Powerball between now and September, I'll reserve the right to change my mind. But for now, that's where I'm at. My apologies to those who might be disappointed, but turning 40 has resulted in some things I've seen that have changed my perspective, and hopefully most of you will understand this decision.

 

[fgssand]

As much as I would love to make a spectacle on opening night with he-who-shall-not-be-named, I'm going to bow out of the mix for that after coming to the realization that it's just not feasible. I cannot with a clear conscious start a crowdfund to bring in what will essentially require in excess of $50,000+ to pull off a stunt like that when there are certainly more people out there who could use that money for other far more important causes. There are people out there battling for their lives facing serious medical bills...I can't think of exerting the energy to raise money like that just for the sake of making fun of the commissioner and feel good about it.

Most of you know me enough to know that I'm not a self-promoter or into type of publicity - which is to a fault and why this place still remains something that if you ask any random fan on the street, many people still after all these years don't know about it. But given what we have and all the great people here, I wouldn't trade that for anything. That approach works for some people and that's great. I just can't make myself feel good about taking that much money for something like that. Not when there are more important uses for it. If I'm going to exert that much energy to raise money, I'd rather do it for a better cause. This just, to me, isn't it.

Should I win the Powerball between now and September, I'll reserve the right to change my mind. But for now, that's where I'm at. My apologies to those who might be disappointed, but turning 40 has resulted in some things I've seen that have changed my perspective, and hopefully most of you will understand this decision.

I agree....we have 5 rings, that's non negotiable and certainly says it all.

Screw Goodell, I really don't care about him anymore, he's a jerk and most know it.

 

[oldrover]

It kills me to say this... but if Tom can be classy in victory...

...maybe we should be too.

The best revenge was winning.

 

[Mountain_Commando]

In any case, Goodell is just the puppet. The other 31 (especially some like Mara) are the real enemies.

 

[TB_Helmet]

No prob Ian, thanks for all you do for the site!

I got a lot of it out of my system when Goodell got booed on the podium after the Super Bowl. I had been waiting for the trophy presentation for a long time. What I hadn't anticipated was the ferocious boos from the 98% partisan crowd that was still there. Not that I should have been surprised, but it just hadn't crossed my mind.

Hearing how loud that was, watching Goodell struggle to maintain composure, and seeing Brady and Belichick smirk in the background, was all I needed. It was probably all Brady needed too. He let the fans do the talking while he was his usual self, full of grace and class.

 

[Clonamery]

Hey Ian, you know what you are!?!?...




a damn nice guy.

 

[bormio]

It kills me to say this... but if Tom can be classy in victory...

...maybe we should be too.

The best revenge was winning.

It always was.

 

[signbabybrady]

This feels like the day Kraft backed down lol

 

[convertedpatsfan]

Totally understand. You're a good person Ian.

But what if Giselle paid for it?

 

[PatsGuy]

I'll b there. I just need to find me a

 

[Ring 6]

Disappointing but understood.

 

[Gwedd]

Not to worry. I suspect that all that will be taken care of by the fans there once his mug gets plastered on the jumbotron.

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

Barstool sports should fund this. Hard to fathom why they wouldn't

 

[MitchKumstein]

I think that many very loud, very long "Roger"- related chants from the fans will get the point across.

No need spending a lot of time, effort and money on wardrobe

 

[PatsDeb]

View attachment 17338 I'll b there. I just need to find me a

I'm wearing one of these opening night and invite my fellow Pats fans to join me in my grass roots campaign to tell Fraudger where he can shove it. Thanks for trying Ian - too much of a burden to organize on a large scale, especially when you were never going to get the approval and/or assistance of the team itself. I still think a lot of folks will show up with these shirts by word of mouth. Good enough for me! Go Pats!!

 

[PatsDeb]

Barstool sports should fund this. Hard to fathom why they wouldn't

At first I thought the same, but think about it - they won't be allowed to give out the shirts on stadium grounds (Fraudger's friend Bob wouldn't allow that) and they might get kicked to the curb permanently by the team, which would not be great for their survival in the sports reporting world.

 

[AtomicDawg]

I say good on ya. Any amount of time, money, effort and energy spent on this loser creates mind space. There are better people and things to think about than that ******* on Park Avenue. I mean heck, there are plenty of these pics to blow up and put on T-shirts now.

 

[DarrylS]

Pretty confident that the NFL and Roger know the sentiment here in New England, and the vocal crowd will reinforce this on Sept. 7th...

Aside from a couple of TV shots not sure anyone would even notice, local media maybe.. and if they did it would be misinterpreted as a few "rabble rousing" fans..

Lets the Pats do what they do best, win!!! That is the best revenge..

 

[BTTA]

This off season roster build has me so focused on next year that I'd completely forgotten about this conversation and topic.

But I'm with you Ian, on purposeful use of money. As an example, a buddy of mine got a spinal infection a few months ago, out of the blue, that left him suddenly paralyzed from the chest down, probably for life. If he didn't have children, I think he'd just end it now. We are trying to raise the $125,000 he needs just to be able to survive once he's released from rehab. Without that money, he literally won't be able to have an apartment and get by day to day. I think the health care system will just put him out on the sidewalk in his wheel chair once his insurance stops paying the freight. So yeah, putting money into clown noses just doesn't work for me right now.

 

[Kontradiction]

It would have been shallow anyway since, in order to do it, people have to peddle millions of dollars into the NFL's pocket just to be at the game. The best revenge would have been to have opening night to an empty stadium while the spectacle took place outside. Since that won't happen, anything else would be ultimately pointless.