Mets fortunate to have a nice, easy name like Citi Field
The New York Times broke the news last month that the German insurance and financial services giant Allianz is on the short list for buying the naming rights to the new Jets/Giants stadium. That was mildly interesting.
Then the paper followed this week with a story about the company's ties to the Nazis last century. That was more interesting.
Punishing modern businessmen for the sins of their grandfathers is a slippery slope, given the sordid pasts of many companies, including ones based here in the good, old USA.
But given the public relations implications . . . well, I'm guessing this naming rights thing might take a while to finalize, let's put it that way.
I'm still holding out hope for JetBlue.
Anyway, Max Kellerman just starting speaking Yiddish in ripping Allianz, a sign that it is time for me to stop procrastinating and write my Friday newspaper column.
Enjoy having both local baseball squads off today. Go for a walk or something.
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Comments (7)
JetBlue makes sense, Neil. Would there be a TV at every seat?
The problem with "Citi Field" is the obvious rhyming scatological reference to "Citi", especially if the Mets do poorly. Otherwise it is just fine unless the bank is gobbled up by someone larger ... like the rumored "hidden" name behind the new Yankee Stadium, Bank of America ... or some bank from Dubai.
Does anyone boycott or make a fuss over the US Open because IBM provides StatTracker?
How about the Jolly Green Giant Stadium?
Phil Mushnick is right. Name it "PSL Stadium".
Honestly if you look into the closet of any major corporation, there are bound to be skeletons. Coca Cola had direct ties to apartheid South Africa which led to a bunch of college campus boycotts of the product. Let's not even get to some of the southern companies that complied with Jim Crow Laws. Still today many corporations US and foreign are tied to Sudan and let their jobs be outsourced to China/India/Pakistan.
Not a big fan of corporate names on stadiums, not a fan of sharing the stadium with the Jets, not a fan of the stadium being in E. Rutherford rather than say Queens, and not a fan of the PSLs. That's all I can say about the subject but for the people like Foxman or Gary Myers complaining I ask them this: Ever use IBM? Ever drive a BMV? Ever drive a Mercedes? Ever want to? Pot meet kettle, black.
What about Green Giant Stadium? After the canned corn.