Stadium Debate: Zeroes And Heroes
By Mitch Berg
Let’s be clear on this; I oppose government funding for stadiums. All of it. Any government. Ever. End of sentence.
Zigi Wilf could afford to build his own stadium. But the status quo in the sports industry today is to treat stadia as a public good – which is a loathsome perversion of the idea of “public good”.
The big “Zero” in this debate so far has been Governor Dayton. The Governor’s entire approach to this issue could be summarized as “Hey, you guys – get something done! I don’t want the NFL goons tramping through my office again”; it’s what peple call “leading from the rear”.
And if there’s a hero? It’s the Senate GOP Caucus. It was the Senate Republicans – especially Senator Robling – who’ve managed to cut the crap and get “both” sides – the NFL, the state, and the various local and county governments who,alternately, crave the crowds and commerce but who’ve gone all Ron Paul about paying the tab, and of course RT Rybak, who wants to commit his city full of compliant DFL sheeple and ripe business sucks to a big share of the tab…
…which is dumb, but hey, I didn’t vote for him. Anyway – for cutting to the chase, and getting Zygi Wilf out of all of our pockets and fixing him up with a politician who actually believes he has the political oomph to stick his city with a $1000/head bill.
Am I cynical to say “it’s your problem, now, Minneapolis”? (No, I’m not being a hypocrite; I have been to exactly zero Vikings games at the Dome since 1987 – and even then, I was working).
On a bit of a tangent – this is a great example of an issue where principle and politics are completely at war. It is a fact that if you’re a conservative, spending public money on stadiums is anathema. It’s also a fact that this is a state full of voters who want their damn football team, and they don’t really care (or think that hard about) who pays for it. Emphasis on “voters”.
It’s not the ideal solution – especially if you’re in Minneapolis – but the fact that we have a (potential) solution is entirely due to the Senate GOP caucus.
December 16th, 2011 at 10:06 am
Minneapolis is a city my wife and I abandoned when we realized A) the schools didn’t work, B) crime was endemic and, C) the taxes and regulations allied with being a homeowner and landlord had made life a living hell. If historians want to figure out whatever brought down Babylon, they should study what is happening in Detroit and Minneapolis..
December 16th, 2011 at 2:16 pm
Am I cynical to say “it’s your problem, now, Minneapolis”?
Rybak can surround the stadium with his $50K water fountains, however in the end he’ll be crying to the state for more money to cover his exposed butt. He’ll complain that the city will need to cut police, fire, and other needed services if the rest of us don’t anti-up and come to his aid. If they do force the darn thing on us I pray that they build it ANYWHERE but Mpls or St Paul. That’s just spite on my part!!
December 16th, 2011 at 2:22 pm
I haven’t followed this. Did the plans for the Arden Hills palace and estate grounds fall thru? I know the boy wonder threw out one last gasp attempt to keep’em in Mpls a few weeks ago, but I haven’t heard anything whether that was successful or not since.