Taxpayer-Funded Stadiums a Lose-Lose Proposition

Michigan Capitol Confidential ^ | 1/2/2012 | Jarrett Skorup

[SeminoleCounty]

Sad part is that we have a lot of Liberal PhonyCon GOP who support this taxpayer funded welfare program for pro sports teams

In Orlando we built a new arena for the Magic.....which was supposed to lure new players.

It lured Dwight Howard to LA.

And Magic owners, the DeVos family, are one of the biggest donors to the GOP

[BfloGuy]

But definitely a worth-while investment for the city.

I can't agree. Entertainment [which pro sports are, of course] is the simple exchange of money for a show. No wealth is created and the dollars spent at the Alamodome would have been spent elsewhere.

Now, to the extent that those dollars came from outside the city, it is true that there's a benefit -- for the city. But for the region and the state, it's a wash or a negative [that's where the money came from].

Without the Alamodome being built, the Spurs would have left town.

The use of taxpayer money to attract and keep professional sports teams should be identified for what it is: sports-lovers using a corrupt political system to buy some prestigious entertainment on the weekend.

If it were sold that way, I'd still disagree with the policy, but at least it would be honest.

[PGalt]

Thanks for the ping; post. Bread & circuses. Does the useful idiot really want to DEFUND socialism?

DEFUND socialist collectives, foreign and domestic...and their ancillary distractions. Precedents that have been set, are hard to unset.

live - free - republic

[kevintime]

I am tired of these big corporations having unlimited ability to influence society. If unions are a problem so too are corporations and more importantly their influence on the political process. someday these corporations will be relegated to the ash heaps of history. “speak softly and carry a big stick” the red wing stadium is a symbol of that