Is this an AIFA fan board?

[blackbeard]

I’ve been away for awhile. Imagine my surprise to see that the AIFA FAN forum now more closely resembles a UIFL fan forum; with prominent, long time AIFA fans praising the merits of a new & untested rival league? Really? Didn’t this board once exist to promote & develop the AIFA, its’ member teams, and the AIFA fan base? If so, when did it morph into a UIFL pep rally?

I mean should the AIFA fan forum administrator’s icon openly feature the UIFL logo?
Really? Gene, I have tremendous respect for you. Honest! But what are you thinking? Burning the AIFA on your way out the door (to start a new UIFL fan board) only further blemishes the reputation of the indoor game itself; making it harder for anyone to have success, in any market or league. My sincerest hope is that you will move forward in making the UIFL the league which you dream of; yet remove the UIFL logo from the AIFA fan board administrator’s icon and resist the temptation to air this league’s laundry in public! For, the truth be known, ALL of the indoor leagues have transitional issues as they attempt to forge forward in what is a very uncertain economy.

And DaytonaDan? Really? Whatever happened to ethics in journalism? I mean should a professional sports writer whose catch phrase is “(Indoor football) needs an enema, but no one wants to be the proctologist” ethically work for one league (the SIFL, now UIFL) while starting threads which are clearly designed to stir up the <feces> on a rival leagues’ fan board? I mean, you are witty and your ‘sources’ have often proven accurate. Yet isn’t there a principle in journalism known as “full disclosure” which requires you to openly state that you have a vested interest in the success of a rival league, before starting or contributing to a negative thread on the fan board of another? Or does modern journalism no longer have principles? (That was rhetorical. There is no need to answer that one!)

So, Come on Dan! Regardless of your personal history with the M&Ms, you are a far better journalist than to allow yourself to submit to such subversive tactics. And with your excellent PR skills, your new employers shouldn’t need to build their product by having their media guy openly flame their rival leagues for them. This is not meant to attack you. I am simply encouraging you to be professional and to focus your time on building the product of the league which now employs you; versus tearing down leagues which chose not to. So drop the negative baggage. Show us your vision & dream! Set the standard of what things should be like! After all, maybe other leagues will someday adapt to model your efforts in such a way that you can truly “flush” our sport out?

Blue? OMG man! REALLY? What in the <place of eternal punishment> happened to you these past few years man? I remember the day when you bled AIFA red, white & BLUE! I remember you as a true BLUE friend & supporter of JM; not as his accuser. Dude! I remember when you locked up the threads of people who used this forum to flame individuals with personal cheap shots. Now you allow people to not only toss JM under the bus but to leave skid marks all over his reputation! I mean, if the man needs to be called on the carpet, call him personally! You have his number. But this forum wasn’t designed to wash the AIFA’s dirty laundry. It was designed to help the M&Ms wash it.

Blue, no offense is intended. You will always have my respect & friendship. However, I really don’t see how such public attacks on JM will assist the AIFA in developing into a stronger, more stable league? Is that still the goal of this message board? Or has the goal become: “Damn the AIFA and launch the UIFL”; perhaps thereby persuading Erie, Reading, Baltimore & others to abandon ship?

If so, God help the entire sport of indoor football (AFL, A2, IFL, AIFA, SIFL, & CIFL)!! After all, are we ALL so naïve as to fail to understand that investors, sponsors & potential fans read these boards when making their decisions on where to invest their resources? Are we? It seems that we all smash & bash our respective league owners, our local team owners, the various markets, the arenas, etc. in the name of trying to “improve” the game which we love. As such, we become arm chair Quarterbacks & fantasy GMs. It’s fun! “Listen to the fans!” we say!

Yet then we stand back utterly amazed that indoor football cannot seem to attract solid financial backing (in ownership); cannot fill the arenas, cannot find markets / sponsors willing to support a team, cannot find teams to fill divisions and cannot draw more than 750 fans for a Wild Card playoff game – while failing to give credit for the fact that this was a game which was scheduled with only a week’s notice, in a developing market, in an arena under renovation, with a short staff, on the July 4th weekend. Can’t exactly do the fireworks thing in the cattle barn – can you? Yet nobody stood up for JM on that one.

Bottom line: This sport needs fans; not cannibals. So lighten up. Otherwise there will be NO bottom line – for anyone of us! Just sayin…

[Gene]

Im sorry, do we know you? ;D

[Free Agent Fan]

I have bled red/white/blue. I do(and always will) support my team in Erie. When these boards were first set up, the fans had a voice. I've attended owners meetings,met other team owners, fans throughout the league. Somewhere down the line, our voice was silenced. Gene,Mitch, and myself had great ideas to make the league flourish. And set it apart from other leagues. But when some fans get unnoticed, it weighs on a person. Countless times, Gene had asked his team to atleast put a link up on their page for the fanclub. Nothing was ever done. Turn away your most loyal fans and they will defect on you. As for the UIFL logo under Gene's name. I don't have a problem with it. The owners of that league are listening to fans input. And changing the way they set up things. These boards are for positive and negative comments. Nothing is ever perfect. Which is why we aren't the "official messageboard" anymore.
No one is throwing anyone under the bus. When rumors come out that are true, someone needs to clarify it. If it's a bad thing, maybe someone that does have a voice can do something about it. I want to see a league get better, not worse. When I get confronted about helping out the UIFL. Don't tell me how bad that league is, or how they don't play their games, pay players,etc. When games get canceled here, or tv deals that never come to fruition, etc. Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining. Our fans are smarter than that.
I would love to offer ideas to our league. But no one wants to hear it. Or none has time for the fans. It's funny how a new league has already used some of the fans ideas. I've sat thru 3 conference calls already. The fans are a big part of what pays the bills. If you crap on them,they will leave. They can only take so much. I will continue to support my team.

[djh0722]

Blackbeard, well said. However, it will fall on deaf ears here. The fans used to be an integral part of operations in the AIFA. There was the Fan Advisory Board (FAB) and they were invited to the league meetings and given a voice. It was important because it allowed the AIFA to mold its product accordingly.

When the Baltimore Blackbirds were expelled from the league at the conclusion of the 2007 season, I received a phone call from John Morris. He knew I was one of the biggest advocates for indoor football in Baltimore. He allowed me to work closely with the league in implementing a new team in the Baltimore Market. It was my first foray into professional sports. I was invited to meetings with the Arena management as the Mariners and the AIFA hashed out the ticketing prices and details. I was then brought on to write the game and press articles for the brand new Baltimore Mariners. That opportunity continued into the following season, when I was the communications director for the team. I resigned toward the end of the second season for personal reasons.

I was able to interact closely with John Morris and Mike Mink during the Mariners' inaugural season, as the team was owned by the league. Even when the team was bought by a private investor in their second season, I still saw John and the AIFA staff on a regular basis.

I am not sure exactly when things started to fall apart with fan relations. I do know that at one time, this very messageboard became the official messageboard of the AIFA, and John Morris wanted the forums heavily moderated. When this site turned into that heavily moderated site, it caused a lot of animosity amongst the fans that felt they were being wrongly censored. It was probably around that time that the league and the moderators of this site became strained.

It is a problem when a small league (manpower small, not footprint small) puts the saddle on fans. The AIFA should have done things differently. They ended up biting the hands that feed them. They seemed to forget that it is the fans that matter. Not the product. What good is a product if the fans feel slighted. The AIFA wants to put out the impression that it is a professional organization, but only want to report on the good things that happen. they want to sweep the negatives under the rug. When people come onto this site and mention the negatives, the AIFA wanted it silenced immediately, criticizing Joe and Gene and the gang in the process.

I have no personal problems with John Morris. he gave me my first break in profesisonal sports. I have since left that realm, but hope to return one day. I just wish things were done differently when addrssing the fans. Every league will have problems. It is how you address those problems that will set you apart from other leagues. this is not a publicly traded product. You do not have to hide the failures. the stock will not drop. If the products is good, the fans will come (see Reading Express).

My message to the AIFA is this. Do not forget who makes this league and product possible. You seem to have lost sight of that somewhere along the line. Vet your potential franchise owners better. But most importantly, communicate with your fans. Let them know what the plan is. Respect your fans, and they will respect you back.

John Morris and the AIFA went from an accessible, fan friendly league, to a closed-door, iron fist exclusive club. Get back to the basics of what made this league so fun. Before it is to late (which some will argue that it is already so).

[blackbeard]

Gene:
Yes, you do know me. I am but a ghost of my former self; as much of me died along the way. Yet we once spoke at those earlier league meetings (cited above) and, as I stated, I continue to have tremendous respect for you. The UIFL picked the right guy for their FAB. My only hope is that your frustration with the AIFA (while probably very legitimate) is short lived.

You've clearly given them a wake up call. So let's see if they answer the bell. If so, everyone wins. Yet, sadly, if not, we will all take it on the chin. For the indoor game is beginning to get a tarnished reputation amongst potential investors, local arenas & sponsors & quality players such that another failed league - ANY league - only adds more fuel to the naysayers bonfires.

[blackbeard]

Blue:
As I stated, "you will always have my respect & friendship." You have my respect, because of your passion for Erie (in particular) and for the indoor game (as a whole). It is a passion which always translated itself into action. Indeed, I would argue that you were a MAJOR reason that an indoor franchise was able to return to Erie after the Freeze closed their doors.

As for my friendship, you once stood up for me at a time when few others did. You posted the truth when others chose to rely on heresay, rumors & slander. That I will never forget; long after my ghost crosses over. You made a difference my friend - if only to my own life & career.

[blackbeard]

djh0722:
Sadly, (to my knowledge) we have not previously met. Perhaps our paths will cross in the future; as I would love to sit down with you and explore your ideas further.

You have great insight and write an awesome post. Thanks for helping me to better understand what has led to the change in the tenor & tone of this message board.

It was like I stepped out to the lobby for some popcorn and (while I was away) someone changed the <fricken> movie...

[djh0722]

Blackbeard,
Did you go to any Mariners games last year?

[djh0722]

Jul 24, 2010 13:27:45 GMT -5 blackbeard said:

djh0722:
Sadly, (to my knowledge) we have not previously met. Perhaps our paths will cross in the future; as I would love to sit down with you and explore your ideas further.

You have great insight and write an awesome post. Thanks for helping me to better understand what has led to the change in the tenor & tone of this message board.

It was like I stepped out to the lobby for some popcorn and (while I was away) someone changed the <fricken> movie...

I can get a bit wordy at times. But it is just my passionate nature I suppose. I would very much enjoy talking about ideas to improve the operations of the AIFA/indoor football.

[Free Agent Fan]

Blackbeard. Feel free to call or email me anytime.

[blackbeard]

dj:
I never made it up there this season. Hope to visit during the off season. If so, I'll send you a post. We can have a "beer summit."

blue:
Will definitely call you soon. As Jimmy Buffett once wrote: (I am just) "Trying to Reason with the Hurricane Season!" Need to get my land legs back.

[Canton Cougar Fan]

I have seen a great deal of mismanagement in inddor football, mostly with my former team. For the past two years I have not had a team in the AIFA. I have missed the friendships and the rivalries.

Now, I have a team come back and I will back them 100%.

Joe is absolutely right about the UIFL. They are listening and acting on fan input. As a matter of fact the seating arrangement for Canton was developed by me and adopted by the team. There have been dozens of suggestions I have sent for the team as well as the league which have been discussed and acted upon. I am very excited about this league and having a team back in February.

I hope you can understand why I would be down on the AIFA. I'm just sorry my friends around the country that love indoor football like I do had to endure these two years of frustration and aggravation.

Oh, and any teams that feel they are fed up with these shenanigans ... come to the dark side.