To: Minnesota Vikings
From: Mitch Berg – Bears Fan
Re: Your Fiscal Plans
Dear Mr. Wilf,
if having “Mitch Berg” come to your new bit of political swag stadium and spend money on user fees, or going to some pull tab machine to lose a pre-planned amount of money to pay for the stadium improvements to your investment on the public dime is in any part of your plans, please subtract from your plans appropriately. Not going to happen. You will not see one voluntary dime from me.
(I was going to add “If any of my legislators vote for this bit of legislative larceny, I’ll work tirelessly to remove their lame asses”, but I think you know I’m “represented” by Sandy Pappas and Rhea Montgomery, so I’ll be working tirelessly against them anyway).
I’ll be at Alary’s with the Bears fans. That’s a private sector business.
Unless they demand money from the state to pay for improvements to their real estate. Then I’ll tube them too.
The Vikings may suck, they may in the Super Bowl. But you, Zygi, will never voluntarily get a dime from me.
That is all.
Well fair is fair – I won’t give a dime to the Bears either.
“Bears Play, Public Pays” – Chicago Trubune
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2002-04-21/news/0204210349_1_dirk-lohan-soldier-field-stadium-renovation
Well said.
Well, Mitch, there were plenty of “private sector” businesses in Minneapolis that were behind this; i.e. Huberts, Colin Folliard and his group, Brits. I only wish that the Red Star would have lost all of that parking revenue.
Listen, I’m not happy about this, either, but mostly, I’m pissed off at that pork laden bonding bill that the majority of the GOP, including that RINO Zellers, supported! 50 some more million dollars for rail! Another 40 some million on the credit care for renovations to the capitol building, instead of using the Legacy Fund. Jebus, when will these morons pull their heads out of their asses?! I sent Zellers, not that it will matter, because he’s retiring, but to Geoff Michel and Pat Mazerol emails to remind the morons in the party that voted for this crap to review what happened in Indiana last night, then start cleaning out their desks, cuz they are getting the boot.
Unfortunately, all the teams in the NFC North have clamped onto the public teat.
I hadn’t heard that Kurt Zellers was retiring. The last I heard was he got the endorsement to run for another term. I generally don’t do litmus tests when it comes to candidates but I am so disgusted by the “leadership” in the Legislature and the way that they caved on Wilfare for the Vikings that I’m about at the point where I will not vote for any Republican who says that they will vote to return the current crew back to leadership roles.
I’ll expect 16-0 and a Super Bowl win.
After all, it’s what they’re making me pay for.
Thorley,
Looked like a mis-type; he went on to refer to Michel and Mazerol, both of whole are leaving after the session.
Thanks, Mitch. That is exactly what I meant.
Note to self: Don’t comment on Mitch’s site until after I’ve had my second cup of coffee! 😉
I had an eye opening experience last night. I went to Kurt Zeller’s FB page and read the comments from people (towards the top of the right hand column). Good lord, so many people out there using all the pro-stadium tactics, persuasions and bully threats against him because he voted against the stadium. “The vikings are a cultural heritage of this state” “More revenue comes into the state from NFL than the other three pro sports combined” (uhhh…we don’t KNOW that….</Soucheray>), “Vote for this stadium or your ass is out next election!!!!1111!!11!1” etc etc etc.
What the heck is Senator Rosen smoking? “It seems like we’re hanging the Vikings upside down and trying to get all the loose change out of their pocket”. $452 million of a $1 billion dollar stadium with the NFL probably paying half of the $452 is shaking out the change? And the Governor won’t sign off on tax breaks for every other business owner in the state! We’ll lose too much money he says. How about the property taxes we won’t be getting from the stadium? And why doesn’t the State part of the funding count as lost revenue?
So Mitch as a fan of the Bears were you willing to help out for Soldier Field?
POD,
Do I look like an Illinois resident? No. I do not live on Kielbasa, I own legal firearms, and I don’t curse during prayers.
Above all? Professional sports fandom is a *voluntary* thing. Not geographic and compulsory, not hereditary.
So tell me Mitch how much of your tax money and general fund money is going into this project? And sorry Minneapolis doesn’t want to end up like Grand Forks, minus the awesome economy
I love how all you idealogues take a purist view on this point and this one alone. Was there this much bleating going on during the Twins talk, (sorry don’t remember, wasn’t following the blog back then, too busy trying to protect Larry Craig from himself) or when the Guthrie got $30 million for improvements (I was against that but since it passed might as well try and bank on it too).
If only this much outrage was harnessed against the choo-choo trains.