Letters: Don’t get those Farmers Field tickets just yet

In following the City of Los Angeles and AEG’s lead on the new football stadium, I announced to my family that I am buying a house with a salary from a job that I have interviewed for, but don’t have yet. I have also announced the name of my child that has yet to be conceived with the girl I just met. I was stunned that their reaction was not pure jubilation.

Todd Montgomery

Laguna Niguel

::

I think I’m seeing this correctly. Intimate Farmers Field will be located next to an arena that’s already tough to get to that has inadequate and prohibitively expensive parking that’s near a tiny Metro Rail stop that’s adjacent to an impacted freeway that’s next to a convention center that’s next to a giant hotel that’s next to a giant movie theater complex that’s next to a concert hall that’s next to a bunch of restaurants (forget the rest of downtown).

Now, picture in your mind’s eye the parking required for 56,000-seat Dodger Stadium and ask yourself how 64,000 fans will get to the stadium on game day (assuming, of course, it’s not a Sunday when the Lakers also play). No thanks. I’ll watch on TV.

Mike Kichaven

Sherman Oaks

::

The NFL is coming to Los Angeles! Why do I feel like Charlie Brown trying to kick the football Lucy is holding?

Roy Bagdasarian

Los Angeles

::

So Farmers Insurance is going to pony up $700 million for a 30-year naming rights deal for a proposed football stadium downtown next to Staples Center.

How nice. I can hardly wait.

I predict this latest plan has about as much chance of coming to fruition as the Lakers do of “three-peating” in June.

Ain’t gonna happen.

Bill Bell

Mar Vista

::

A few billionaires and a lot of millionaires hyperventilating about a football stadium (jobs, hooray!) which will serve the purposes of a bunch of upper class people (shhh, don’t tell) in Southern California, all the while saying the poor people won’t have to put in a cent (Ha! Funny!). Except for the millions of dollars of bonds that will one day (“someday”) have to be paid back. And except for environmental impact report which is of no concern (What toxins? What traffic?).

Where were all these people when teachers were being laid off, schools needed upgrading, and corporations were firing people and leaving L.A.? Al Michaels, Jerry West and others should be ashamed, but they know a buck when they see a buck. Even if it exploits (molests) the public trust. There’s a word to describe all of them, and the rest of the NFL, but it’s not polite.

Ron Wells

Corona del Mar

::

As a hockey fan I am glad to see the rest of the sports world begin to do what Kings fans have been doing for years. Namely, question the motives of Invisi-Phil Anschutz and Tim Leiweke. They have already bungled one franchise, unless you are a fan of reduced player payrolls, lack of accountability, false promises and a 15-year rebuilding plan. So why the rush to hand them the keys to another team?

Jonah Bergson

El Segundo

::

Staples Center has been an unqualified success because the Lakers, Clippers and Kings play around 140 home dates per year.

Farmers Field will be an total failure because any NFL team will only play around 10 home dates per year.

Bob Munson

Newbury Park

If the Jaguars move in to the proposed Farmers Field, they should be called the Beverly Hills Jaguars. There are more Jaguars in Beverly Hills than in Jacksonville, that’s for sure.

Richard Sieger

Valley Village

::

The growing global business model for sports franchises and their stadiums now adopted by AEG and Farmers Insurance:

“If you name it, they will come!”

Mario Palladini

Torrance

Time to panic!

The media, the players, even Phil, say the Lakers are not playing up to their potential. Here’s a scary thought: Maybe they are!

Jack Wishard

Los Angeles

::

So Mitch Kupchak suggested the Lakers may need a trade to shake things up and rejuvenate the roster? It seems to me they could trade Ron Artest (31), Steve Blake (30) and Joe Smith (35) for Trevor Ariza (25), Jordan Farmar (24) and Sasha Vujacic (26). In so doing, the Lakers would instantly become much younger, quicker and more athletic. Heck, they won a title with those guys in ’09. The only problem is, I don’t think the Hornets and Nets are stupid enough to make those trades.

Kevin Reading

Laguna Hills

::

Here are four things the Lakers can do to improve their chances.

1. Teach everyone how to fall. It is best to learn to fall backward as that is a sure foul for the other team.

2. Take video of all the fouls called, send them to the commissioner and see if he can see who the foul is on.

3. Give all the officials a seeing-eye dog to help them make the calls.

4. Change Kobe’s jersey to number 6 and put instead of putting “BRYANT” on the back, put “JAMES.” This way he will get the calls and the respect he rightly deserves.

Robert M. Freedman

Los Osos, Calif.

::

Here’s a defense the Lakers might employ: It’s called the “yell” defense. Whenever their opponents prepare to shoot, the Laker guarding him yells out “don’t make it.” The Lakers bench could also help out. When the opposing team spots up for a three-pointer in front of them, the bench could yell out “miss it.” Hey, it couldn’t hurt.

Charles Conner

Irvine

T.J. Simers’ critical reference to Kobe Bryant as the “ball hog” is way, way off the mark for Sunday’s debacle against the Celtics.

Yes, there are times when his teammates are actually playing up to their potential and he does sacrifice sharing the ball for his own game. However, that was not the case against Boston. As Chick Hearn used to say, his team “stunk up the joint.” Kobe was left with no other option than to try to do it himself.

Rick Solomon

Lake Balboa

Bad times for Bruins

As a former UCLA football season-ticket holder and now just a fan watching from afar, it is sad to see how far the program has fallen from the ranks of the elite. There was a time when top-flight student-athletes were lined up wanting to attend UCLA and be part of a program that was a regular contender for the Rose Bowl and even had national championship aspirations. Now we are losing top-flight athletes to the likes of San Diego State and Pac-12 powerhouse Washington State.

When USC went on probation Bruins fans rejoiced and were certain some of USC’s recruits would abandon their commitments and flock to Bruinville. Instead Rick Neuheisel with his calm and supportive sideline demeanor showed future recruits what it is like to be ridiculed and embarrassed on national TV.

Robert Graves

Glendora

::

Congratulations to Slick Rick for his 2011 recruiting class. Quite a coup to snag quarterback Jerry Neuheisel.

Mark S. Roth

Los Angeles

::

The Times has lumped Rick Neuheisel with Frank McCourt and Donald Sterling as a favorite whipping boy, so that a recruiting class that meets the most glaring team needs is dismissed as another impotent exercise. UCLA’s football demise runs parallel with a decade of subpar and injured quarterbacks. As any seasoned observer of football knows, a bad quarterback can render a good team average and a quality quarterback can make an average team good. Quarterback guru Norm Chow found that even he could not make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

The value of recently signed four-star quarterback Brett Hundley is immediately worth more to the UCLA program than a half-dozen linebackers, receivers and “athletes.” Enjoy being the journalistic schoolyard bully while it is fashionable.

Wesley V. Wellman

Santa Monica

::

In the Wednesday article on UCLA’s lack of sharp basketball recruiting and on the list of transfers, The Times left out Chance Stanback from Fairfax, who moved on to UNLV, where he earned all-MWC defensive first-team honors last season and is playing well again in 2011.

If one kid leaves, it’s probably on the kid, but if three, four and five transfer, you have to look elsewhere.

Fred Walling

Westlake Village

Ouch!

I see that the Rose Bowl management has committed to renovate various facilities, but no mention was made to their outrageous seating structure. Their stadium seats and aisles are much too narrow — a person over six feet has to sit with his knees at his chin. If you are unlucky enough to sit in the end zone and are faced with bleacher seating (no back rest), you should avoid sitting next to anyone over 200 pounds if you expect to be able to move any of your body parts.

Tim Newhart

Irvine

Jeer leader

If we follow Bill Plaschke’s Jan. 27 article to its logical conclusion, not only will we see the end of high school cheerleading, but we can also say goodbye to such national institutions as the pep rally, homecoming and the prom. My guess is that Plaschke’s children have already had the pleasure of participating in these activities so now he considers them to be irrelevant and outdated. Maybe we should also abolish middle-aged sports columnists who have forgotten what it is like to be young.

Maury D. Benemie

Corona

He’s not the story

Kudos to CBS in Sunday’s round at Torrey Pines for sparing us Tiger Woods’ fits of anger, punctuated by expletives and club throwing. Instead, they focused their cameras on a handful of gentleman golfers that displayed all the skills and thrills any golf fan could ask for.

Tom Turner

Dana Point

Gender bender

I was shocked and extremely disappointed that USC’s Nikola Vucevic said: “I felt like we played like women. … We didn’t play hard at all. Every single one of us just played like women.” This is extremely sexist and offensive to women basketball players like myself.

I think that if the USC players had played like “women” they might have won.

Natalie Smith

Ventura

::

The Los Angeles Times welcomes expressions of all views. Letters should be brief and become the property of The Times. They may be edited and republished in any format. Each must include a valid mailing address and telephone number. Pseudonyms will not be used.

Mail: Sports Viewpoint

Los Angeles Times

202 W. 1st St.

Los Angeles, CA 90012

Fax: (213) 237-4322

E-mail:

sports@latimes.com