Written By TED MILLER
Seattle P-I COLUMNIST
"And I saw when the Reporter opened one of the Press Releases, and I heard the noise of thunder, a Man From Oklahoma City saying, Come and see. And I saw, and beheld a white horse, and he that sat on him had a Threat of Relocation for the Sonics. And, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind."
And everyone knows that an untimely fig shaken by a mighty wind or an out-of-town owner formally announcing his dastardly plans to rip a professional sports franchise away from its home of 41 years is a real bummer of an apocalyptic moment.
Or not.
In a gesture utterly devoid of drama, the lead horseman of the Seattle Sonics apocalypse, Clay Bennett, cast a single 475-word document at this city and then galloped away:
"Given the clear lack of public, political, and business support for a new multi-purpose arena, plus the enactment of Initiative 91 as a City of Seattle ordinance following a public vote authorized by the Seattle City Council itself, and the significant operating losses the businesses are now incurring, we have no option but to commence the NBA relocation process.
"Today we notified Commissioner (David) Stern that we intend to relocate the Sonics to Oklahoma City if we succeed in the pending litigation with the City, or are able to negotiate an early lease termination, or at the end of the lease term."
In sum: As soon as the law permits, the Sonics are leaving for Oklahoma City, whether that is next season or in 2010.
Not exactly conquest, war, famine, pestilence and the Whore of Babylon, but it clearly articulates the threat to Seattle's oldest pro sports franchise.
So we arrive exactly at the destination most predicted on July 18, 2006, when Howard Schultz betrayed the public trust by selling the franchise to a group that fully intended relocation from the beginning -- unless, of course, it could finagle a sweetheart deal for a new arena that would generate a revenue stream far exceeding the trickle that could be expected in Oklahoma City.
What now?
Well, the first question is do enough people still care, and the second is do any of them have the means or will to lead the salvation effort?
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