Date: 11 December ‘07
From: AlumniShockerBlackAndGolds.com
Bare Bones
• There is another fairly new carpetbagger, sports scribbler in town, who is 32 years old and grew up in Detroit watching Barry Sanders from Wichita and his NFL hall of fame career; who in anomalous fashion also advises us we can’t have football at WSU. Why is it only out of state types tell us Kansans we can’t have football at WSU in Wichita, Kansas.
It’s just fine for every other university and community college in the state, and for the states they came from, but no, not on your life for WSU. His name is Joshua Wood. He holds himself out as an online sports producer. Apparently he didn’t bother to review, or rather ignored just to prattle on, any of the previous articles on our on line internet site or previous Eagle articles and our responses thereto. So on Sunday November 25, 2007 in his “Run ‘n’ Gun” article [perhaps the first article he has been assigned and allowed to write for the anti WSU football bigoted Eagle – at least none of us Black & Golds recall any other article], Mr. Wood basically reiterates Eagle and Dr. Beggs previous failed and discredited arguments, for the reason that they have no meritorious arguments, they feel the heat like a knife in the ribs, they need to say something, but try as they might they just can’t come up with any substance, and the issue lives on upon its own self evident merit.
• Apparently, Dr. Beggs is feeling the heat for having never in his eight year tenure ask for a single dollar for new building state capital improvement money [resulting in double taxing Sedgwick County citizens uniquely in the State from any other county]; and needs to change the subject so apparently he rings up his Eagle water carriers [perhaps his political sole mate Phillip Brownlee] for some support and relief. But no matter how many times the false rationale is repeated, it just won’t fly, as the facts are still the same and won’t go away. And the bottom line is that WSU football should not be blamed for the current “movers, shakers, doers, and shockers”, opposition of president Beggs.
• It’s now over a year since the substantive issue of double taxation of Sedgwick County tax payers uniquely in the state from all other counties, caused by 43 year old KU Board of Regent policy and Dr. Beggs, who was committed by the KU folks who hired him, not to ask for any moneys from the State for new building capital improvements for WSU, so as to allow more such moneys to go to KU. And, Dr. Beggs was additionally committed not to bring back football at WSU, as a condition of his employment by these same KU folks who ask him to apply for the position, and who selected him for the position.
• By the way, since the Eagle is supposedly in the business to sell papers, why: in over a year since this issue of double taxation has been broached publicly, with the Eagle following our internet site and documents written on the issue; is it do you suspect this double taxation issue is of no interest to the Wichita/Sedgwick County public, sufficient to cause the Eagle to write a series on the subject, or would not otherwise sell papers? Clearly, the Eagle’s indignation is selective, and selling papers and printing “the news” is apparently not part of the consideration. When is it do you suspect the Eagle will become a legitimate news paper, for the purpose of selling papers and making money, printing “all the news fit to be printed”, for the benefit of the community, letting the community make up it mind on issues, like double taxation?
But don’t hold your breath waiting, as only about 1 out of 7 Wichita/Sedgwick County residents bother to take the Eagle, and the Eagle has been about the process of watching its circulation dissipate, without substantive change in the policy of using the Eagle’s machinery, 55 gallon barrels of ink, and dissipating circulation, to plead their petrified mind liberal ideologue, coupled with their king maker politics and political impact upon local political races; say for example, the liberal school board elected last election, and the race to depose Mayor Mayans. We submit our opinion that the two biggest king maker politicians in town are Brownlee and his editorial board, and Beggs and his apparent desire not to fully account for his mill levy shuffling and manipulations.
• And it was Mr. Wood’s predecessors at the Eagle who tried to have Cessna Stadium torn down in the first instance. One of the results would have been no recent Rolling Stones concert for the community, thanks to the Eagle.
• But then Mr. Wood has the unmitigated audacity and based upon his interloper Wichita status and short scribbling career, and at the ripe old age of 32, after growing up watching Wichita’s Barry Sanders Hall of Fame NFL career, to opine his infinite wisdom about football at WSU: “Sure, it would be nice to have Division I football in town again. But it’s not going to happen.” Mr. Wood has now spoken, and the rest of us should just genuflect and go away. Not hardly! And, who anointed Mr. Wood with the authority to make that definitive decision? The answer is, no one, except perhaps other scribblers at the Eagle, including editorial folks, who assigned him the bigoted football hit piece. If not, well then, where is it does he obtain such definitive determine? Would you suspect that it could perhaps be Dr. Beggs himself, or more likely his surrogate, as he avoids making any public statements himself on the issue or writing a single word, God forbid a position paper on the issue of the merits of football. It is Dr. Beggs who is the sole individual with the unilateral authority in his position at the university, to make the decision; supposedly in the best interest of the university, but in reality to comply with his commitment to Dr. Hemenway and the KU folks; that stands athwart progress and the correction of the unjust corrupt history of the issue like the great wall of Hadrian. Dr. Beggs does so we submit for his own interest and commitments at the time of his hiring, not the best interest of WSU; notwithstanding the return of football and being once again a traditional university, is the solution to Dr. Beggs’ 21 year old loss of traditional student problem now amounting to 11,000 lost students, 2000 on Beggs watch alone. Dr. Beggs solution to his loss of traditional student problem, is simply to give away tax payer money for “scholarships”, buy students, and to force Sedgwick County tax payers to pay for it on the 1.5 Wichita/Sedgwick County mill levy, for which purpose the mill levy was never voted on and legally authorized in the first instance. Tax Czar Dr. Beggs. Who pray tell, gave Dr. Beggs the authority to tax Sedgwick County tax payers for moneys to pay for scholarships? Was it the Sedgwick County Commission? Was it the City Council? How did they do that? What is the legal basis upon which to do that? The folks paying the taxes sure never legally voted to authorize paying for their neighbors’ kids college education. But, somehow, Tax Czar Dr. Beggs can just require it on his own authority, and neither the County or the City have the political courage [to say it kindly],notwithstanding the legal responsibility, to challenge Tax Czar Dr. Beggs. Perhaps if our County Commission and City Council members or the County manager would do their duty and raise the question, Dr. Beggs would be forced to defend and justify the legal basis for his Tax Czar policy. Then he would have to bring back his KU assigned in house legal counsel Ted Ayres, apparently on sabbatical for a year at tax payer expense, on his knees apologizing for our past sins against artist Parks, and begging for Parks art collection to add to the WSU art collection; another more important priority than the loss of traditional students, for the university. KU assigned in house legal counsel Ted Ayres could then work his magic and attempt to defend Dr. Beggs’ Tax Czar policy. And, by the way, when did the Board of Regents ever assign art collection as a prime priority and mission of WSU? And, why will the Board of Regents not make regaining the loss of some 11,000 traditional students a priority for Dr. Beggs and KU assigned legal counsel Ted Ayres to work on; just like the Board was profoundly concerned with the precipitous loss of students at K-State in 1986, when they hired president Jon Wefald and tasked him with stopping the loss of students and emphasizing football, while at the same time the Board was involved in the suspension of football at WSU; thereby transferring, by the process, the same loss of traditional student problem to WSU? We don’t know why there is no public expressed Board of Regent concern for the festering 21 year old loss of traditional student continuing problem at WSU, but it makes sense to us nardo well Black & Gold graduates of WSU, that in equity and justice, there ought to be the same Board concern for WSU today. But there clearly isn’t.
• Lets go over his tired old arguments one more time:
• First Mr. Wood opines his wisdom that it has been 21 years and WSU and the state have survived. Some argument. It has also been some 21 years since Wichita and the Eagle had interloper Wood’s opinion to rely upon, but somehow both Wichita and the Eagle have managed to survive. But surviving isn’t the issue. Surviving in what form and size of student body is, as it affects not only WSU, and the economy of the community as advised by Mayor Mayans, but also WSU graduates for the community. Yes WSU has survived, but it lost 11,000 students in the process, with over 2000 lost on Beggs watch alone. Only by forcing Sedgwick County tax payers to pay taxes to support Beggs buying over 2000 students with scholarships paid for by the mill levy, has Beggs managed to break about even, down 164 students in his 8 years; while every other university and community college in the state has substantially increased enrollment.
• Next Mr. Wood carps that we only had 10,000 attendance at a WSU vs. “West Texas A&M” game. Why not cite the SMU game in which we had over 30,000 in attendance. It’s simple, when you bring in schools like SMU with Craig James and Eric Dickerson, people come watch the game. We might need to be an independent for a while, but with our present sports programs, along with football, we would be a good candidate to join the Mountain West, the WAC, or Conference USA. When the KU Board of Regents and President Armstrong agreed in 1986 to suspend WSU football in exchange for 3 doctorate degrees in engineering WSU had been trying to obtain for 20 years, but was always turned down by the then KU Board of Regents, prior to our de-packing the Board by Statute in 2000, the year after Dr. Beggs was hired; we had 240,000 folks from which to draw a football crowd. Now we have 462,896 folks in the county, and over 600,000 in the Wichita metro area. In short, even as an independent, if we bring in teams people want to watch, we will fill the stadium from folks in the Wichita metro area, just like we did when we had 30,000 out for SUM when we only had some 240,000 to draw from. We have over twice the population now to draw from, and it is fundamentally irrelevant how many came out to see West Texas in the mud. Some 12 years ago, we renovated Cessna stadium [over the objections and contra to the stated desires of the Eagle, with Myrne Roe pleading the case, as does Johnny come lately carpetbagger Wood, for “other priorities”], including drainage systems and asphalting understand the stands on both sides to get rid of the mud problem for folks.
• Just like Myrne Roe’s designated assassination of the Cessna stadium renovation vs tear down [whenever the Eagle deems it not in their political interest aligned with the power structure, [perhaps as requested by the power structure, they assign a scribbler to assassinate the issue, to carry water for the power structure], upon “Mr. Wood’s authority” we are to understand that the university “rightly” has “other priorities”. He doesn’t bother to tell us any, but he knows they are the right priorities. Perhaps the trotted out spokesman for Dr. Beggs didn’t bother to say what other priorities there were. Well let’s see: perhaps the loss of about half your student population, some 11,000 and growing, ought to be a right priority. And it is undeniable from NCAA studies with the latest NCAA data from all 117 Division IA schools, that: “there is a direct measurable relationship between the suspension of football and the loss of students”. “Other priorities” is education speak. It’s subjective and non definitive. It’s just an excuse for no substance, and no substantive argument. Was it Dr. Beggs, or more likely his trotted out surrogate who advises Beggs has “other priorities”? No doubt he has. First he has his commitment to Dr. Hemenway and the KU folks not to bring back football, as a condition of his obtaining his position in the first instance. That certainly is a priority, but it is personal to Dr. Beggs and not in the best interest of WSU loss of traditional student 21 year old festering problem. But then Dr. Beggs also needs an additional 2000 square feet add on to his 8000 square foot president’s house on the campus, with which to party in. And that sure is a priority, although it isn’t going to solve Beggs loss of traditional student festering problem. Or maybe it is a priority to spend $600,000 to install what, some kind of fictitious model of a 20 foot long, 5 foot wide, and 4 foot tall pre-historic millipede on the campus green. That’s right, $600,000 for an ugly worm for the campus green. We understand Dr. Beggs’ worm is a priority, but not a single new student will come to the WSU because of Dr. Beggs’ worm. More than likely, it will have the opposite affect and drive students away. Who would want to be laughed at as having gone to the school with the $600,000 worm. We predict Beggs’ worm will become for other competitive universities students, their purported mascot of WSU waived from their stands when WSU is playing their team. Thank you Dr. Beggs.
But maybe we are giving too much credit to Dr. Beggs for the $600,000 ugly worm. Maybe KU assigned legal counsel Ted Ayres worked another year at tax payer expense to bring us this God send to ugly up our campus green, and subject us to ridicule. But the KU folks will like it just fine.
• The suggested Wood rationale against “sinking millions into the athletic budget to restart a program and then keep it afloat” on football, suggesting by implication that the money would come from other athletic programs, is a total and complete red herring and fraud. It has always been the case that if football is to be reinstated, it will have to be a stand alone program capable of maintaining itself. We can have a middle of the road WAC football program for about $4,500,000 a year. With the scholarships on the mill levy, some two years growth in the mill levy, $1,250,000 for 85 football and even an unneeded 85 Title IX scholarships to appease the politically correct crowd, we would then need to sell 17,000 at about $191 per season ticket, to run a break even $4,500,000 program; even without a $20 million dollar football fund to start campaigning for contributions with. Nor does new scribbler Mr. Wood evidence he has any substantive idea how much would be reasonably involved in order to reinstate and maintain the football program as a stand alone program. He has no idea. In short, his statements amount to nothing but mindless prattle.
• Finally, Mr. Wood guesses that if someone would hand Dr. Beggs a blank check, he would listen. Don’t bet on it Mr. Wood. $20,000,000 has already come forward, just to start the raising of money to return football, and Dr. Beggs isn’t even interested enough to talk to folks. Not one, but two universities have recently announced the reinstatement of football and the starting of funding with $5,000,000 in pocket, with a view towards raising a fund to support football in the amount of $10,000,000. Dr. Beggs doesn’t even have the intellectual substance to come forth with his reasonable analysis and explain in detail each of the considered necessities, and the reasonable estimate of each, in order for him to consider reinstating football to WSU.
If he came forth unreasonably, everyone would immediately know his posturing; and if he came forth reasonably, the moneys would be there, and he would be forced to admit that he committed to Dr. Hemenway and the KU folks not to reinstate football in order to obtain the position they ask him to apply for pursuant to their conditions.
• Stay tuned. If the case goes long enough, the truth will out.
cc: The County Commission
The City Council
Selected Community Leaders
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