Don't give NFL a pass on this one

Mercury News ^ | February 3, 2003 | Skip Bayless

[agrarianlady]

I had a great time being the only grocery shopper in our brand-new Safeway Sunday night. Was the most peaceful experience one could imagine. My husband could care less about watching football. He likes to play sports, but could care less about watching perfect strangers play.

Someone ought to come up with a rival show that would bring Americans together on that same night. Perhaps some sort of TV experience that involves internet contests. Something that would provide entertainment for families. The *only* thing about the Superbowl that those in my circle look forward to is the food and comraderie. Perhaps that could be accomplished in another sort of national pasttime. Perhaps the advertisements could be just as good, or better, but within the realms of good taste . . . perhaps I'm just dreaming . . .

[OldFriend]

Did that something who told you I was no conservative have purple skin, green hair, orange eyes and was 1 foot tall?

Second question, have you been drinking?

[flashbunny]

Thread #43 in the ongoing nipplegate saga.

Check the keyword nipplegate for all the latest coverage in this developing story...

[NYCVirago]

The Latoyafication of the Jacksons is now complete.

La Toya looks downright sane compared to the rest of this bunch. As least she kept her stripping to Playboy, instead of foisting her perversions on kids, the way her brother and sister do.

[Minn]

Then, I saw how my state politicians were blackmailed by the Steelers and Pirates (well-named) of Pittsburgh, and the Eagles and Phillies of Philadelphia, into robbing the taxpayers to subsidize the billionaire owners, and millionare players. I haven't watched a football game since

So, I was shocked, but not surprised when I heard about the wardrobe malfunction on the morning news. Why, after all, would nudity gross out fans of a sport that thrives on theft of taxpayer money?

Professional sports are every bit as much a public good as the city park down your street. Tax dollars spent on stadiums benefit a large portion of tax payers. They also tend to benefit the people that pay the most taxes. How many welfare queens are season ticket holders? How many season ticket holders and other avid sports fans pay massive sums to the government? Do they exist solely to fund roads for you to drive on, or are they entitled to a bang for their buck?

If conservative principals say government has no business in this sort of thing, lets close Yellowstone, Central Park and every other publicly funded recreational facility everywhere. After all, what’s mine is mine, right? Haven’t pro teams always played in publicly funded facilities? Why the sudden outrage over a century long arrangement? Congratulations to the people of Pennsylvania for doing the right thing and preserving your rich heritage; in spite of the fact that some of your citizens suffer from acute digestive blockage.

[jazzo]

I think the halftime show was an outrage, and the NFL should be held responsible. I flipped over to the "Lingerie Bowl" for some good wholesome entertainment. Boy, ED and LT have some coaching skills, I think some teams will be giving them a call.

[Nephi]

Oh, you can challenge others motivations (Post #9), but look how sensitive you are when someone challenges yours? You both must be moderates.

[Daveinyork]

Actually, given the choice, the voters reject the stadium subsidies, as they would her in York, PA, and in Lancaster, where a long-term state legislator lost in the primary because of his support for a tax subsidised stadium. In Pittsburgh, the voters rejected three to one a 1/4% hike in the sales tax to build the new sports facilities, in spite of being outspent eight to one by the proponants. The politicians did it anyway.

As for the rest of your suggestions for conservatives, yep. Government ownership of property is socialism. You wanna go to Yellowstone, pay for it. Leave the rest of us out of it. Same goes for football games.

[Psycho_Runner]

"If enough people turned off their TVs, we wouldn't be having this discussion."

Amen Brother. I have already decided to watch College football on Saturday and LISTEN to NFL football on the radio. Being a Raider fan, I am already used to all the blackout games because they don't sell out at home.

On Superbowl Sunday, the world saw the death of two cows, the first is the cash cow of the NFL, and the second is end of Janet Jackson career. Both are cows.

On Sunday, I realized I wasted 4 hours of my time watching garbage. I will never again support the NFL (and I have emailed them this) until they clean up the NFL.

[BlessedBeGod]

Too bad 40 + million aborted babies dont merit as much outrage from Amerians as Janet Jackson's 'apple-in-a-bread bag' exosure

Yes, but that doesn't make it any less offensive. You can be outraged at more than one thing at a time, you know.

[Minn]

Actually, given the choice, the voters reject the stadium subsidies, as they would her in York, PA, and in Lancaster, where a long-term state legislator lost in the primary because of his support for a tax subsidized stadium. In Pittsburgh, the voters rejected three to one a 1/4% hike in the sales tax to build the new sports facilities, in spite of being outspent eight to one by the proponents. The politicians did it anyway.

Isn't it great that mob rule doesn't always carry the day in a republic such as ours? In city after city hotheaded loudmouths have stood on soap boxes decrying the use of their precious tax dollars to finance billionaire owners and millionaire players. In city after city, gleaming new stadiums have gone up anyway. With the exception of Milwaukee and a few other baseball venues, recriminations don’t seem to follow. The new facilities become centerpieces of civic life. The whining detractors disappear like snow in the spring.

When anti-stadium types temporarily get their way, as in Cleveland and Houston and Minnesota with it’s earlier hockey team, really nasty things happen. Teams pack up and head for cities hungry and willing to pay the price. Maybe it’s not right but it’s a fact. After the depth of the loss is felt, deep remorse sets in. The collective conscience of the community is awakened, and a massive premium is paid to regain a new team when the old team could have been retained earlier at a much lower cost. Their bluffs having been called, the anti-stadium loudmouths disappear from editorial pages and airwaves to wipe the egg off their collective faces.

Kudos to the Pennsylvania legislator that did the right thing, and was willing to pay a personal price for exercising wisdom in the face of foolishness.

As for the rest of your suggestions for conservatives, yep. Government ownership of property is socialism. You wanna go to Yellowstone, pay for it. Leave the rest of us out of it. Same goes for football games.

Yellowstone Park is a manifestation of socialism? How about the local playground? Teaches kids evil collectivist values I suppose. How about your local airport and air traffic control? Should be financed completely by airlines, I guess. Airlines are a private business after all. Owned and operated by rich people to boot. Let them build their own infrastructure. Keep me out of it. I don’t like to fly anyway. I used to like it back in the ‘70s. Then I started to read about all those pilots showing up drunk and beating their wives. They’re just not worthy of a saint like me and they can’t have my money. Damn socialists all of them. I’ll just continue to drive. After all, driving is a purely capitalistic endeavor not requiring me to mooch off my fellow citizens. What? Roads are socialist too? Oh, never mind.

[Daveinyork]

It's easy to spend other people's money. Curses on those greedy voters who figure that they need their own money more than the football players do.

[AnnaZ]

There's this, too:

 

from: Athletes and Guns ^

 

Unfortunately all of the nation's four leading pro sports leagues -- the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League and Major League Baseball -- trivialize the athletes’ concerns over safety. The NFL’s official advice: “In some circumstances, such as for sport or protection, you may legally possess a firearm or other weapon. However, we strongly recommend that you not do so.”

 

Grrrrrrr...

[AnnaZ]

P.S... I have yet to see contact info for the NFL posted, which could have been my oversight. If ya got it, can ya post it? Please?