More NFL Los Angeles talk. This idea that some ownership group is going to build a stadium AND THEN lure a team is nonsense. They cannot break ground on or line up financing and other needed commitments for that type of project, which will run in the neighborhood of $1 billion and require considerable infrastructure, until they have a team sewn up and announced. The Jaguar franchise is in trouble and I feel somewhat for Jacksonville but it's a total bummer to me that the Bills are also considered to be in trouble. Their fans have been loyal despite very little joy on the field and despite the ridiculous weather they play about half of their games in up there in Buffalo.
Remember when businesses would try to improve their revenue by improving their products and services? It's not about that any more, is it? It's all about leverage and who has it these days.
I give Texas a chance in tonight's BCS Championship game because they have a good, experienced quarterback and because Alabama doesn't have anyone like Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh to get after him. If I'm the Rams, my people are talking to Suh's people right now. I digress. I can't pick the Longhorns, though. I still like the Tide because they just have too much talent across the board. The SEC will make it four in a row.
- Universe 3:38 Sonny Landreth From The Reach
- Woad To Ruin 11:32 Hans Zimmer King Arthur Soundtrack
- Se A Cabo (Live) 3:48 Santana Abraxas
- Bleed Like Me 3:59 Garbage Bleed Like Me
- Benjamin 3:30 James Taylor October Road [Bonus Disc]
Quote of the Day
Building a bigger stadium for Jacksonville football fans would be like building a bigger public library for high school drop-out crystal meth tweakers. It's just not going to get much use.
MJD, Yahoo Sports
Blog of the day is here.
Quote from said blog: "It's 4am and the forecast is still a little uncertain but the children of Helena dont care because it is a Snow Day!"
As that link notes, the Vikes are supposedly a target of that LA group, though not the first choice. The Wilfs are using that as, you guessed it, one bit of leverage to get a new stadium. Though I will say that the NFLPA is just as greedy as the owners. Well, maybe not as much as Jerry Jones.
The NFLPA is greedy in the way all people are greedy, Dave. They want compensation for the goods and services they provide. I think the owners are a different breed. They expect the public to build, finance, and maintain facilities FOR them and turn over most of the revenue they produce TO them. They expect the public to guarantee profit regardless of product. The NFLPA at least understands and accepts that revenue diminishes as product diminishes.
Well, according to this article the players are currently getting 60% of all revenue, which puts them in pretty much the same category as the owners in my book.
http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=pfw-20091012_owners_set_to_discuss_labor_issues_at_fall_meeting&prov=pfw&type=lgns
We build stadiums as much for the big bucks players as we do the owners.
The players are providing the value, though. The owners are unnecessary (See Green Bay) and provide nothing. They're tantamount to dons receiving tribute ... only the dons don't skim as much and are a little less ruthless. :)
I'll have to ponder that some more, but I think the owners, like any company ownership, usually does bring something to the table in terms of capital and management. I guess my point with regard to public subsidies is that we are also subsidizing the multimillion dollar per year salaries of a lot of players too. I don't have much sympathy for either group when the NFL comes crying for new stadiums on the taxpayers dime.