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Originally Posted by Bingo
You guys don't think they saw all this coming?
Back away from negotiations in a splashy way by walking the commissioner out (their biggest mistake in my mind) and then what?
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They expected Flames fans to rise up on opposition to Nenshi and City Hall, and damage Nenshi in the upcoming election.
It's pretty evident that's not going to happen. Even here, the most hardcore element of the fan community, fans are charitably (to CSEC) split 50/50 on the issue. In fact, my sense is CSEC's tactic has soured a lot of fans on them. Turns out we aren't as irrational as King and company hoped. My sense is public support for the Flames, never particularly strong, is actually weakening.
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Originally Posted by Locke
See, this is something I've been saying for a while now. We've got the head of the CSEC dealing with the head of the City, maybe we need different people sitting in the seats talking this over.
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I doubt it would make any difference. King takes his marching orders from Edwards, who's the one really in charge here. Anyone else will get the same marching orders. As for Nenshi, he may be a self-aggrandizing blowhard, but the deal he's offering is perfectly defensible from the perspective of the City and taxpayers.
The crux of the problem is that Murray Edwards wants and expects a deal a lot closer to what Edmonton got. The City, and Calgarians, aren't willing to cut that kind of deal. Changing the public faces of the negotiations won't change those stark realities.