>>Or they can walk away from their contractual obligations over six votes and red jerseys.<<
This is fascinating. There are "contractual obligations" that will be "walked away from"?
Despite all of the rhetoric, isn't this a situation in which SSC asked TH (Tormey/Hyslop) for help, TH set conditions and SSC decided it didn't like those conditions. Now TH can certainly "walk away" from SSC because SSC failed to meet those conditions, but there are no "contractual obligations" anyone is walking away from -- there is simply a failure by two parties to reach terms.
It's obvious that you see TH and even Flemming as relative "cogs" in the sense that if they walk, then you just get others to do the job. While I may strongly disagree that this is the way you successfully operate this business, I respect your beliefs that you can get go out and get a young energetic person to achieve all of your goals. It's clear that while most of those present at this SSC meeting don't believe in the philosophy of what you're saying, enough do so that the potential deal has been scuttled.
So I'm hoping that TH and Flemming do "walk away" cleanly from this. SSC has voted and needs to move on in a direction that you (and others) believe to be a better one for the club -- one that honors the rich history of SSC in terms of its name and colors. I understand that there may be hope that TH (and Fleming) may decided to work for less than the terms they set forth. I quite often hope that my doctor will come to my house for appointments and work for half his rate -- but I of course understand and respect the fact that if I don't follow his terms I can't expect to get treated -- likewise I'd hope that the folks at SSC would understand that if they didn't decide to abide by the terms set forth, that those who set those terms are under no conceivable obligation to continue to provide services.
The only folks I feel even a little sorry for are the kids that will not get better services because there were people who prioritized those behind honoring this rich history. But this is the reason I always say competition is good -- because Bridge is out there (as are other clubs.) Heck -- SSC might be able to by itself turn on a dime and by itself change the downward direction of the club and by itself offer these superior services. I sincerely hope that it does. It's now time for all of the folks at SSC who agree with you to in addition to typing on message boards also spend the thousands and thousands of hours it's going to take to make this happen -- not just in terms of the fun things but in terms of the grinding day-to-day labor associated with marketing, fundraising, tournament organization, and the countless other things that so few clubs ever do well. I sincerely wish you the best in this endeavor.
