Morning Look: Fire Ernie Shirts?

Interesting trip to the mailroom this morning. Among today's prizes: an actual potato, sent to promote some sort of Ultimate Couch Potato contest, which had been sitting in my box long enough to begin sprouting.

And also this t-shirt. What ever happened to "In Ernie We Trust?" The man had a 92 percent approval rating six months ago!

Anyhow, if you read Wizards Insider with any frequency, you know a commenter there, going by the name of "Fire Ernie," has been offering free t-shirts to anyone who writes to him and asks. I didn't write to ask for a shirt, but I got one anyhow. (The mailing address on the package, by the way, was suspiciously close to the Verizon Center. Could be an inside job.)

When combined with the Fire Vinny shirts offered at Mister Irrelevant, we now can observe that two of our five GM's have been honored by 100 percent cotton calls for their dismissal. It's a shame the Caps are so gosh-darn hot, because "GM Needs a Bailout" would look great in red white and blue.

In these economic times, it's hard to ignore the offer of a free t-shirt, so I asked this anonymous soul for a mission statement. Here's what he or she sent me:

My mission is to help Abe and Irene Pollin realize that Ernie needs to be gone.

I am mailing anybody a t-shirt who asks for one. For free (while supplies last).

By firing Eddie Jordan, Ernie FedEx'd the season to oblivion.

(My wife and) I have gone to most games since the Gar Heard-Darrell Walker-Leonard Hamilton era, and were very disappointed when they dismissed Eddie Jordan. Jordan was a first-rate coach with a first-rate record -- four straight playoff appearances -- and easily the best in franchise history since Dick Motta.

Ernie Grunfeld has largely received a free pass for the team's worst-in-the-East performance. In truth, the Eddie Jordan-led Wizards probably exceeded all expectations, and masked what was a terribly flawed team.

Switching GMs really can make an immediate difference, even when the salary cap situation is difficult. See for example, last season's Philadelphia 76ers after Billy King was replaced by Ed Stefanski.

[The statement closes with a litany of specific complaints, ranging from Gilbert's contract to the Tapscott hiring to the Roger Mason and Etan Thomas and Darius Songaila contracts. But I'll leave that alone for now.]