以下是这篇的外电原文: http://www.indystar.com/article/20090311/SPORTS04/903110367/1088/SPORTS04 Pacers' future is up in the air As financial losses mount, the team makes a plea for public help 溜马的未来摇摆不定　由於财务亏损，球团向外界求援 Indiana Pacers co-owner Herb Simon stressed Tuesday that he wants to keep his team in Indianapolis but was equally adamant that he can no longer afford the operating expenses at Conseco Fieldhouse or the team's year-after-year financial losses. 草药老板说溜马可能不能留在印城了，因为球队的亏损让他撑不住了 Simon said the Pacers have lost money nine of the past 10 years, including the year the Pacers played in the NBA Finals. (Forbes.com offers a different financial picture; see the graphic at right.) Jim Morris, president of Pacers Sports & Entertainment, said the team has lost $200 million total since Simon bought it in 1983. 溜马过去10年中赚钱的只有一年，Simon兄弟买下球队後共亏损了2亿美金 10 million＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ █ ▅ 5＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿█＿＿＿█＿＿＿＿＿＿ ▂ █ ▂ █ 0＿＿＿▃＿▄＿█＿█＿█＿█＿＿＿＿＿＿ █ █ ▄ █ -5＿█＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿█＿＿＿█ █ █ ▆ -10＿█＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿█＿＿＿＿ █ █ -15＿█＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ █ -20＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ '99 '00 '01 '02 '03 '04 '05 '06 '07 '08 "There comes a point where you have to say, 'Maybe I can't do this anymore,' " Simon, 74, said in an hourlong meeting with executives and reporters at The Indianapolis Star. "Certainly my family, if I'm not here, is not going to be able to do it. 草药老板认为自己已经无法再扛下去了 "So, let's straighten this thing out. Maybe we can't. But let us try. Sure, I would have picked a better time than the world's greatest economic crisis. The timing sucks, but that's what it is." 偏偏现在经济景气又很惨 The timing is triggered by a clause in the Pacers' lease -- signed when the team moved into the fieldhouse in 1999 -- that allows the team to renegotiate with the city's Capital Improvement Board after 10 years. 溜马在1999年跟Conseco Fieldhouse的租约也在今年到期了 Under the agreement, the Pacers agreed to operate the fieldhouse, which is costing the team about $15 million a year. Simon said he did not want to negotiate in public, but it's clear, based on what CIB officials have said, that neither side thinks the team can continue to pay that much. 根据条约，溜马每年大约得花1千5百万来养主场，据CIB (Capital Improvement Board) 官方指出，球团跟球场双方都认为溜马能够继续支付下去。 <按：小欧,丁丁两人是不是该把薪水吐出来ψ(╰_╯)σ‧‧‧> The CIB is facing its own $20 million shortfall. If it were to absorb the cost of operating the fieldhouse, it almost certainly would need help from taxpayers. CIB自己也面临两千万的负债，如果要帮溜马解决亏损还需要靠纳税人帮忙 Simon avoided making threats to leave town and said he has not spoken to other cities that might be interested in the team. But, he stressed, "it's very important we resolve this in the near future. Very important." 老板尚未寻求其他城市来接掌球团，但他强调财务的问题刻不容缓。 And it's not just the Pacers that Simon is concerned about. The fate of the Fever seems tenuous at best. Simon said he is committed to the WNBA team for just one more year. The team has lost "several million dollars," he said, and must double corporate sponsorships and attend ance if it is to survive. 老板更担心WNBA的Fever的命运。 But while Simon bemoaned his financial situation, others looked skeptically at the latest example of a wealthy professional sports team owner wanting public money. Cathy Burton, president of the Marion County Alliance of Neighborhood Associations, said she doesn't fault Simon for trying to get a deal as good as the one the Colts received at Lucas Oil Stadium. "The fault," she said, "lies in giving it to them. The citizens can't afford to bail them out." She said the team brought many of its problems on itself, with player misbehavior that has hurt attendance. She called on the Pacers to open their financial books to the public. 但是相较於溜马老板的惨澹经营，其他球团的老板并不领情。Cathy Burton说溜马 是自己让问题球员赶跑观众的。 David Carter, a sports business expert from the University of Southern California, said he can't evaluate the team's claims of losing money in nine of the past 10 years, including 2000, when they went to the NBA Finals. But, Carter said, "even if they are (losing money), you still need to take a look at how valuable the team would be if it were put up for sale -- and not necessarily in the home market." The Simons bought the Pacers for $11 million. Forbes magazine said the team is now worth a little more than $300 million, a figure the team disputes. 南加大的体育经济学专家David Carter不认同溜马在千囍年争冠时也亏钱，而就算 是亏钱，溜马队的身价比起以前的价码也提高很多。 "The accumulated losses are close to the value of the franchise," said Morris, the Pacers Sports & Entertainment executive. "There is not some golden egg out there somewhere." 溜马的行销执行长Morris表示，过去几年累计的亏损也差不多是球团现在的价值， 绝对没有稳赚这回事。 Potential suitors for the Pacers include Kansas City, which just built a new arena. 刚兴建完球场的堪萨斯城可能会是溜马的下一个主人。 But, Carter said, "just because a city is interested doesn't mean they can pull the trigger. States, cities and school districts are laying people off, and there's going to be a headline about giving money to a new basketball team?" Carter说堪萨斯有兴趣并不代表真的会出手，现在大家都在裁员减薪会出钱买球队？ Simon said he has been a community-minded steward of the team, which almost certainly would have left Indianapolis if he had not stepped in. 老板说如果他没有坚持留守印城，球团可能就要搬家了。 Now, it appears taxpayers may be expected to step in again. A number of options have been floated to cover the CIB's operating debt, which, depending on the outcome of negotiations with the Pacers, may very well include some if not all of the $15 million to operate the fieldhouse. 问题可能还是得靠纳税人来帮忙。 Paul Okeson, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard's chief of staff, said the mayor wants to focus first on increasing admission taxes to help the CIB, spreading the burden to those who use the facility. But a 1 percentage point increase in that tax would raise only an estimated $1.5 million, not nearly enough revenue to cover the problem. In addition, the Pacers are concerned they would have to absorb that cost because they're not certain they could raise ticket prices without losing fans. 市长要求先提高门票价格，但因为提高1%的门票只能提供150万的预算，帮不了溜马 多少，而溜马也担心损失的成本最後还是自己吸收，因为提高票价不大可能不减少 球迷入座。 Another possibility is raising the existing tax on restaurants, but Okeson said the city needs to be cautious, especially because it would make that tax among the highest in the country. 提高驻场餐厅的租金也是个可能，但这必须小心谨慎，因为有可能会变成全国税收 最高的地方。 Still, the city senses it must do something. "I think everyone involved would agree that a picture of Indianapolis without the Pacers would not be healthy," Okeson said. Simon said he didn't have any recommendations for how the CIB comes up with the money. "That's not our job," Simon said. "We want to cooperate, but I think some creative people can come up with creative ways of doing it." 如何让溜马继续待在印城，就看老板、CIB和印城政府去想罗… -- 一马离了～～ 西‧凉‧界～～ --

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