Dear Mr. Blank: About that line about NFL teams owning their stadiums . . .
Given the local debate about using $400 million-plus in tax revenues to build the Falcons a new open-air stadium, I couldn’t help but notice this nugget from team owner Arthur Blank’s comments about the penalties handed down to the New Orleans Saints for that team’s bounty program (via Pat Yasinskas at ESPN.com):
“I think the league has handled it well and appropriately,” Blank said. “One of the other owners made this point, but I told the commissioner I totally agree with him, the NFL, outside of our stadiums, the only things we really own are our reputation, our integrity, our shield and the relationship and trust we have with our fans and our sponsors. Anything that’s done that violates that or hurts that, is something that has to be dealt with.” (emphasis added)
Only a handful of NFL teams own their own stadiums, and Blank’s angling for taxpayers to fund a new dream home for his team certainly doesn’t put him in line to join that exclusive club.
Or maybe he meant the Georgia World Congress Authority also owns the Falcons’ reputation, integrity, and relationship and trust with the team’s fans and sponsors? (That’s a joke, folks.)
– By Kyle Wingfield
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107 comments Add your comment
Dusty
March 28th, 2012
3:20 pm
Did Amy Smith say she read BOOKMAN? And she is worried only about KYLE’s blog?
I smell something fishy here. Will we also hear from more Amys, Susies, Daisys, Willies, Bobbys and all those other nice lil folks who just happened not to like one of THOSE conservative type commentators? An AJC journalist who just can’t see the wonder of President Obama?
Goodbye, Amy. Thank you for turning in your homework assignment. Right on schedule. Here’s your lollipop.
getalife
March 28th, 2012
3:20 pm
The stadiums are socialism.
Our President is polling well.
Impressive
Tiberius - Your lightning rod of hate!
March 28th, 2012
3:22 pm
And getaclue makes my case for me yet again.
JohnnyReb
March 28th, 2012
3:26 pm
getalife
March 28th, 2012
3:20 pm
The stadiums are socialism.
Our President is polling well.
Impressive
_________________________
Tax payer involvement in a new Falcons stadium is as absurd as T-SPLOST. I know there are some Republicans who support both. That just means the Left has no monopoly on stupid.
As to Barry polling well, what rock are you living under. A fresh poll has 2/3 stating Barry is handling the gasoline/energy policy very badly. This alone may sink him in November besides all the other dumb moves.
Impressive? No, we are not impressed.
Dusty
March 28th, 2012
3:28 pm
Sheepdawg,
I gather you did not get your rabies shots.
Skip
March 28th, 2012
3:28 pm
So 2/3 have no idea how gas is priced?
Tommy Maddox
March 28th, 2012
3:37 pm
You can tell that the Left is all up in arms after their showing in Court the past couple of days.
As for the stadium, if the Falcons pay for it, then they can own it.
JohnnyReb
March 28th, 2012
3:40 pm
Skip
March 28th, 2012
3:28 pm
So 2/3 have no idea how gas is priced?
____________________________________
I have listened and read rants from the Left for the last month or so on how oil is a global commodity and that producing more in the USA will not drive the price down.
Those same folks will tell you that if we produce more Saudia Arbia will produce less, which negates any improvement. They deny the USA has more oil than Saudia Arabia and that we could outproduce them.
Now, the Left’s Champion, one Barrack Huseein Obama (the name should have been clue enough) is about to release oil from the strategic petroleum reserve. I can’t wait to hear the Left’s explanation on how producing more here won’t drive down the price but dumping from the reserve will?
I’m sure they will have an explanation that justifies it, at least to themselves.
Linda
March 28th, 2012
3:48 pm
Kyle, which “regular commenters who agree with you” committed murder & who did they murder? And who’s been cooking eggs on this blog?
Logical Dude
March 28th, 2012
3:50 pm
I guess I’m a little slow on reading how so many people are unable to comment on the topic that Kyle posts about.
Anyone want to comment on the merits of getting a new stadium? NFL? Soccer? Baseball?
I think the Dome is a great venue, and trying to pay for another stadium NOW is not something the Taxpayers should be doing, especially since we JUST PAID OFF the dome.
Does Arthur Blank have recommendations for what he wants in a stadium? (anyone know?)
If anything, he can build his own stadium, put his own name on it, and make huge amounts of money charging for off-season usage of the stadium to monster trucks and Wrestling.
Oh, he may have to compete with the Georgia Dome for the larger events, and compete with Philips Arena, Atlantic Station and Gwinnett Arena for the smaller events.
As a Taxpayer, I”d rather pay for a soccer specific stadium built for an MLS team, but that doesn’t look like it’s in the works for the next 5 years. Even though we have an international base of soccer fans, I don’t think the Georgia legislature can handle it.
Cosby
March 28th, 2012
3:55 pm
See the salary of the employees of the NFL and ask youself why do they need the Tax Payers to build their factory. also ask yourself why the NFL is non profit under the IRS code..then ask youseklf..why is this the biggest rip off to the citizens of the USA..totally criminal if you ask me! Al Capone wure whished he had discoverd such a scheme!
Kyle Wingfield
March 28th, 2012
3:58 pm
Amy Smith @ 2:16: I’m sorry you feel that way, so I’ll expound on my explanation from yesterday.
Mere misrepresentations do not bother me; plenty of people on here accuse me of all manner of things every day, and I certainly don’t ban them all. But I do have a problem with those who deliberately distort my words, add a sprinkle of cherry-picked facts, and then use the combination not just to present a counter-argument but to discredit me. These kinds of assertions require more time than I can spend simply to correct the record about what I’ve actually written. When that happens, after consulting with an editor, I will put people in moderation.
More broadly, I have found in 2.5 years of running this blog that many people only see the offensiveness they choose to see. I try to be as even-handed as possible, both in allowing comments and commenters to remain or removing them from the blog, regardless of whether they agree with me. I stand by my earlier comment that I have put as many people on the right in moderation as people on the left. Note: If these people are obvious trolls or name-jackers, I might do this without announcing it, so you may not even be aware it is happening. But it is.
Are there people on both the left and right that folks on the opposite side would like to see banned? Absolutely. My practice has been to let things go up until the point they interfere with the operation of the blog (which is why, for instance, I warned Bart about his attempted threadjacking earlier today). If anything, I probably let more people go without being banned than most bloggers on ajc.com. I would rather spend my time researching and writing posts, and responding to comments about them, than playing policeman.
Kyle Wingfield
March 28th, 2012
4:01 pm
And now, back to the topic at hand.
Linda
March 28th, 2012
4:05 pm
Skip@3:28, I have posted on this blog videos & quotes from Obama & his adm. which prove their intention to raise the price of oil/gas & posted over a dozen ways that Obama & his adm. have done exactly that. I will be glad to post them again if you would like to see, hear & read them. We are the laughing stock of the world for our energy policy.
What states are not in the Supreme Court today fighting over Obamacare are in other courts fighting over the unconstitutional violation of their 1st amendment religious rights, their rights to curtail illegal immigration, their rights to require voter ID, etc. The next wave will be the states of Utah, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Idaho, etc. fighting for their land & their mineral rights.
2/3 of the American people are smarter than the other 1/3.
DannyX
March 28th, 2012
4:08 pm
“And now, back to the topic at hand.”
Careful Linda @ 4:05, Kyle is going to threaten to ban you.
Well maybe not…
Linda
March 28th, 2012
4:11 pm
Kyle, if I threadjacked, I apologize. I was referring to another comment.
I might have mistakenly assumed that comments could deviate from the topic at hand “after hours.”
Michael H. Smith
March 28th, 2012
4:11 pm
Dear Mr. Wingfield
Please let me and others know when you allow your bloggers – especially those who like to dish it but can’t seem to take it – to write their own rules and post nice laudable comments about themselves in return, while condemning all those who took them to task in nothing more than tit for tat exchanges in the rough and tumble of politics.
How laughable.
Yes, Kyle, I meant to be just as sarcastic, as some have taken the rest of us to be their fools.
Oh yeah, and if the Marxist shoe fits… wear it, or get a better pair of shoes. Preferably made in America by those who subscribe to the philosophy labeled “Capitalism” with it’s “written Constitutional” enumerated “limiting principles” intact, just like the founding father always intended this REPUBLICAN form of government to maintain.
obumerCare without severability: Strike three.
ragnar danneskjold
March 28th, 2012
4:18 pm
Dear Kyle, don’t let the whiners get you down. Your blog is far saner and more literate that Bookman’s (and I am not slamming Bookman – kinda feel for him, trying to control 50 leftists, like herding cats.)
Logical Dude
March 28th, 2012
4:18 pm
Stadium? Anyone?
Dekalb comments
March 28th, 2012
4:23 pm
Not only do I feel Blanks is asking at the wrong time, I don’t think there is ever any justification for taxpayers to fund the construction of a stadium in which a privately-owned team plays for profit. The owners have bamboozled or blackmailed taxpayers across the country into paying for their stadiums. They seem to believe it is somehow a holy grail to have a sports team and all must pay homage to the team owners.
I have less of an issue with state and local authorities using tax incentives to attract and retain businesses such as the Falcons as long as the cost-benefit analysis is consistent with that used for other for-profit businesses. But Kia did not ask Georgia taxpayers to build them a new manufacturing plant. Nor should Blanks ask Georgia taxpayers to build him a new stadium.
@@
March 28th, 2012
4:36 pm
See Metro-sexuals or Kyle Wingfeild.
I thought Kyle lived OUTSIDE the city. It’s a well-known fact that city-dwellers are liberal…therefore, it’s liberal men, who “proudly” wear that label. I know for a fact…jay lives IN the city.
schnirt
JohnnyReb
March 28th, 2012
4:38 pm
Threadjack? Is that a mechanical device?
I could possibly entertain taxpayers subsidizing an Atlanta sports team if they could deliver. They always choke when the chips are down, with the one Braves exception.
Now, before all the sports people get upset, I’m a Georgia native whose age predates the Braves, Falcons, Hawks, and what was the name of that ice skate team? My enthusiasim is exhausted due to my disappointment being on overload. I don’t even watch them on TV anymore. Now, NASCAR, there’s a different subject!
Hillbilly D
March 28th, 2012
4:49 pm
But Kia did not ask Georgia taxpayers to build them a new manufacturing plant.
Regardless of what they did or didn’t ask for, they got $410 million in various incentives.
Dekalb comments
March 28th, 2012
4:54 pm
Ref Hillbilly D
I am not a fan of any kind of taxpayer provided incentives in the form of guarantees, tax incentives/reductions or the like to attract for-profit businesses to come to or stay in Georgia. Those decisions should be above-board decisions based on all the requirements including such things as the quality of the workforce, infrastructure, quality of life for employees, etc.
But businesses have been very adept at getting state and local governments to provide all kinds of carrots to grow the local economies. So if we are going to be in that business then I want the same cost-benefit analysis to be used for giving Kia incentives as building a stadium for Blanks.
Wade Hampton
March 28th, 2012
4:54 pm
All that Blank has to do is convince the Wingfeilds of the world that …somehow…the new stadium will “protect” him from those Mooooslims or crazy iranians.
.
Then, said Wingfeilds will buy TWO of them.
.
Jude
March 28th, 2012
4:55 pm
kyle,
I’m not buying your reasoned approach to banning offensive bloggers. Ban yourself for a day and I’ll take you seriously.
MarkV
March 28th, 2012
5:06 pm
Kyle,
Considering that the issue of blog rules and policing has occupied a fair amount of space already today, I think it would be useful if you clarified the issues a little further. What is your rule about posts unrelated to the subject of your article? Or those related only tangentially? Are they allowed at some point in time, or never? I understand that you cannot police the blog all the time, but the history shows that very frequently there are exchanges between people that have no direct relation to the subject discussed. What is your position on those?
Hillbilly D
March 28th, 2012
5:11 pm
DeKalb @ 4:54
Basically agree with you. I’m against giving taxpayer money to private businesses, in general. I believe that these companies, like KIA, pretty well know where the best place to build their facility is. They decide where they want it, then they put out feelers and go talk to a couple of jurisdictions where they have no real interest in buikling. Then they play them all like a cheap violin. The old “well Alabama will give me this” or “we have a firm commitment from SC, for this”. The different states and localities are just monkeys on a chain and they fall for it like a game of 3 card monte. In the end, the company ends up building where it was always going to build and the taxpayers are on the hook, as usual.
Dekalb comments
March 28th, 2012
5:21 pm
Hillbillly D @ 5:11
I’ll buy you the first mason jar of moonshine!!!!
I completely agree. Businesses have blackmailed state and local governments into all kinds of give-aways that ultimately cost the taxpayers. The millions given to Kia could have been used for schools, roads, etc.
My special frustration with sports teams is they parade around like prima donnas. They think somehow the presence of a sports team is akin to the reputation of a city. If the team consisted of citizens of the city duking it out with the citizens of another city, go for it. But these are professional teams with no organic ties to a city that is evidenced by their frequent relocations from one city to another based on THEIR economic interests. Why are we as tax payers so stupid as to buy into this?
Kyle Wingfield
March 28th, 2012
5:26 pm
MarkV @ 5:06: My rule of thumb is that if there’s a newer post, or if it’s “after hours” — as you say, I can’t police it all the time — I’m not going to make a stink about it. And if someone posts a single link to another story and doesn’t try to change the direction of the discussion, I’m probably not going to take down that comment, either.
In practice, there also are days/parts of days when I can’t monitor the comment threads, usually because I’m working on a print column or doing some out-of-office reporting (if it’s seemed like I’ve been more absent the past couple of months, it’s because I’ve spent a fair bit of time at the Capitol). In most cases, I’m not going to pull down a comment well after the fact.
I don’t know if that makes things clearer or not…
Hillbilly D
March 28th, 2012
5:33 pm
Kyle
My 2¢ is that I like the fact that you out people who post under multiple names. Some may not agree but that’s my feeling on the subject.
Michael H. Smith
March 28th, 2012
5:50 pm
If Kyle or this paper truly “outed people” (revealed their real names) you wouldn’t have five comments a week appear on these blogs after a month or so, Hillbilly D.
Hillbilly D
March 28th, 2012
6:15 pm
MHS
You know what I meant.
political_aspirant
March 28th, 2012
6:20 pm
Hello my name is Bucky Bedwedder and I’m from Bumbletuck Georgia. I’m thinking about running for state Congress this fall and if I do I’d sure appreaciate your support. My platform is a simple one; I’d dedicate 100% of my time to passing legislation that would madate a $10,000 fine and 60 days in jail for anyone caught saying “it is what it is” anywhere in the state of Georgia. I’ve had it up to here with these neo-philsopher wannabes and just can’t take it anymore.
Thank you for your time. Good day.
MarkV
March 28th, 2012
6:20 pm
Kyle,
Thank you. I just wanted to be sure that if, for instance, I exchange with somebody posts that are generally related to the issues discussed on the blog, but not directly about that day’s article, that we were not overstepping the boundaries. Most of the time that would happen when the article had been well discussed already. In my view such exchanges, and I mean the civil ones, are one of the attractions of the blog. It take it from your answer that this would not be a serious transgression.
Hillbilly D
March 28th, 2012
6:26 pm
State Congress?
@@
March 28th, 2012
6:36 pm
To Whom it May Concern:
I’ll be taking detours whether you like it or not. On topic comments lead to
well-worn paths. Crusher run doesn’t make ‘em any smoother.
killerj
March 28th, 2012
6:36 pm
Dam,rile,em up Kyle,by the way Arthur,may your fur coat bite you in your ass.
@@
March 28th, 2012
6:41 pm
I would rather spend my time researching and writing posts, and responding to comments about them, than playing policeman.
Kudos to Kyle.
If the chronic complainers are looking for a police state, Bookman’s is where they’ll find it.
hryder
March 28th, 2012
6:42 pm
Taxpayer funds should not be expended to directly support privately held enterprises. This includes stadiums or arenas for professional sports teams. What is really horrible is when the general public owns the sports complex and surrounding grounds with almost all parking revenues going into the coffers of the professional sports teams. VOTE OUT ALL INCUMBENT ELECTED OFFICE HOLDERS IN THE NOVEMBER ELECTION.
Lil' Barry Bailout (Unexpectedly Revised Downward)
March 28th, 2012
6:42 pm
If you have a problem with state/local governments giving financial incentives to the Falcons, Kia, Caterpillar, and so on, you must REALLY be hacked off at Obozo giving hundreds of millions to enterprises that were predicted to fail and did!
Dusty
March 28th, 2012
7:07 pm
Well, when replying to Mr. Blank I think those or us in Atlanta should speak very politely to him. Although I would not like a new taxpayer paid stadium, I do appreciate the contributions Mr. Blank has made to Atlanta. Maybe most of you already know them.
With the help of google, I found out that the Arthur Blank Family Foundation in the last sixteen years has given $250 million towards childhood health and education, the arts, parks and green spaces and initiatives that help low income families.
Now, folks, that is NOT chickenfeed!
So let us appreciate the efforts of Arthur Blank while we gently refuse taxpayer funds for a stadium at a time of little prosperity. He still contributes greatly to this city and we should not forget that.
@@
March 28th, 2012
7:15 pm
Just read comments offered up by Justice Scalia. That man has a wicked sense of humor.
SCALIA: No, no, no. To say — to say you’re — when you say you’re coerced, it means you’ve been — you’ve been given an offer you can’t refuse. Okay? You can’t refuse your money or your life. But your life or your wife’s, I could refuse one.
SCALIA: You can’t imagine a case in which it is both germane and yet coercive, is what you are saying. There is no such case as far as you know.
VERRILLI: Well, I am not prepared to — to say right here that I can — that -
SCALIA: I wouldn’t think that is a surprise question, you know?
VERRILLI: Congress has authority to act and -
SCALIA: I can’t think of one. I’m not blaming you for not thinking of one.
I Report (-: You Whine )-: mmm, mmmm, mmmmm! Just sayin...
March 28th, 2012
7:19 pm
If Kyle banned people who do nothing but whine about other bloggers, there’d be no liberals left here.
I say he goes for it.
Jack
March 28th, 2012
7:25 pm
I wish someone would ask Blank not to come down to the sidelines when the Falcons are winning a game. Looks awful.
I Report (-: You Whine )-: mmm, mmmm, mmmmm! Just sayin...
March 28th, 2012
7:57 pm
“Contrary to the wishful thinking of the professional special interest groups, reports of sponsors fleeing the ‘Rush Limbaugh Show’ are grossly exaggerated. In fact, the program retains virtually of all its long-term sponsors who continue to have great success” with the show, said Rachel Nelson, spokeswoman for Premiere.
Now it’s time to return the favor and turn the screws on Media Matters.
DefendSmallBusiness.com
Go get em, Cons!
@@
March 28th, 2012
8:06 pm
If Planned Parenthood can profit off abortions, there’s no reason people can’t profit off bone marrow donations.
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court declined the Obama administration’s request to reconsider a ruling that allows payments to individuals who donate bone marrow.
@@
March 28th, 2012
8:06 pm
Oops!
MarkV
March 28th, 2012
8:15 pm
Dusty,
RE: Your post @ March 27th, 2012,10:09 pm
Bless your heart, I do not want to discourage you from expressing opinions. All I was saying was that subjective opinions are poor subjects for discussions, which I was more interested in. If you write “Obama is a weak leader” and I answer “Obama is a strong leader,” and you write “He is not” and I write “Yes, he is,” where do we go from there? If you want to amuse yourself by exchanging barbs with people from “the other side,” more power to you, I do it myself occasionally, but let’s not confuse that with a discussion. Let me also remind you that when you now write “Then I honestly believe that someone else besides Obama would certainly do better,” I have not forgotten that you once wrote the perhaps nobody could have done better.
I am also disinterested in discussing subjects that are too complex for a blog, which people who study them all their lives disagree on, which need deep technical or legal knowledge, etc. It reminds me of the old story of a man, who was asked who in his family was the head, who made the important decisions. And he answered: “I am and I do, of course. My wife takes care of the mundane things, like what and where we will eat, what we will wear and where we go for vacations. I make the important decisions, like what should be the US policy towards China.” You seem to have almost an obsession about the national debt, but I would be willing to bet that you would not be able to answer on the spot even the most basic questions about the debt other than how big it is.
On the other hand, Kyle’s article the day before yesterday was, in my view, an appropriate subject for a discussion and criticism, because it involved questions of ethics, truthfulness and journalistic responsibility, subject we can apply our moral judgment to.
———————————————-.
Our baby bluebirds have hatched out – two out of three so far.
Night
@@
March 28th, 2012
8:53 pm
Obama has no contingency plan in the event the individual mandate is ruled unconstitutional.
Scouts motto? Be prepared.
Obama doesn’t even rank as a Boy Scout.