Taxpayer-funded Hometown Heroes & the NFL
Ya know those “Hometown Heroes” spots during your NFL sports games where the game stops and some local guy or girl trots out on the field in uniform to wild applause from the crowd? Well, I hope you enjoy them because New Jersey.com says that you’re paying the NFL for them;
The Department of Defense and the Jersey Guard paid the Jets a total of $377,000 from 2011 to 2014 for the salutes and other advertising, according to federal contracts. Overall, the Defense Department has paid 14 NFL teams $5.4 million during that time, of which $5.3 million was paid by the National Guard to 11 teams under similar contracts.
U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who routinely posts examples of what he calls wasteful spending, called out the Jets’ agreement as wasteful and disingenuous.
“Those of us go to sporting events and see them honoring the heroes,” Flake said in an interview. “You get a good feeling in your heart. Then to find out they’re doing it because they’re compensated for it, it leaves you underwhelmed. It seems a little unseemly.”
Yeah, in fact it’s a lot like prostitution – taxpayers giving up our money to feel good for a little while. We get the impression that the NFL is doing this for altruistic reasons, for patriotic reasons, only to find out that we’re paying them to do it.
Category: Military issues
I enjoy my angry existance in this world and such stories just demonstrates … IT IS NOT ME!
I am always correct … Everyone else is all jacked-up!
Out!
I couldnt say it better so I’ll just give this a first endorsement.
Couldn’t have said it better Master Chief. Another good day gone bad. Screw the NFL.
I KNEW I wasn’t alone in my anger!! The DoD spends money out the wazoo on crap like this as well as NASCAR sponsorships, hell, last time I looked, the US Army even sponsored a Professional Bass fishing Team, and we repeatedly hear about how this budget has been cut, no more money for training and maintenance,…
This explains so much.
The DoD hired All Points Logistics to manage the footballs for the AFC Championship Game.
Gidruck deflated the balls.
THAT’S why Brady wouldn’t turn over his text messages……
You beat me to it.
The NFL is pulling an APL.
Fortunately, not every team bought into this idea. I am royally pissed off that ANY team took that money. Now, I can see it as the Guard/reserves/whatever, using it for advertising purposes, but it should have been billed like that and NOT as some altruistic overture by the team(s).
Baltimore seems to be the worst of the bunch, taking in some $800K. Go figure.
Okay, hold on. The Jersey source had a link within it to a chart that shows where the money went. There are 32 NFL teams and 18 of them didn’t get a dime. Here’s the breakdown by take. If your team isn’t listed, it got no taxpayer money:
Falcons: $1,049,500.00;Ravens: $884,500.00; Bills: $679,000.00; Colts: $620,000.00; Vikings: $605,000.00; Packers: $600,000.00; Chiefs: $250,000.00; Bengals: 161,460.00; Jets: $115,000.00; Cowboys: $62,500.00; Rams: $60,000.00; Steelers: $36,000.00 Browns: $22,500.00; Dolphins: $20,000.00.
Damn, my team is on that list.
Damn it!! Mine too.
SONOFABITCH, mine’s on there as well! :anger:
I don’t watch millionaires paid by billionaires play a game in a stadium that taxpayers were fleeced in order to build. (OC says snootily).
So even tho the Vikings are listed I can only garner a slightly less pissed-off-ness.
OC
CORRECTION: The Jets received $377,500 not $115,000. (2011: 50Gs; 2012: $97,500; 2013 and 2014: 115Gs each year.)
The Redskins did not make the cut.
Odd, being that they do not have any money.
Well, at least they are doing something right.
I’m so glad my Carolina Panthers aren’t on the list. We made them an official Purple Heart Team and they wore stickers on their helmets honoring Purple Heart Recipients. I am relieved.
Go Cardinals!
Thanks for doing something right at least, Raider Nation…
Monday Night Rehabilitation is self funded. FUKK YEAH, SCROTE!
I have been referring to the NFL as the National Felons League, clearly it’s the National Financial League as they make a bundle on every piece of merchandising and advertising minute available.
Nice to know there is perhaps a lack of sincerity in selling this product as military family in the same vein it’s a clear lack of sincerity selling it as a “family” friendly product…wife beaters tend to make poor family values salespeople…and the NFL has a boatload of wife beaters.
A league that cheats at every level from offering bounties to injure quarterbacks to deflating footballs and rehiring those who kill dogs for sport and talk about hall of famers who are also would be rapists should be struggling to improve its image but here in the land of make believe that has become the US our citizens are fine with spending their hard earned dollars supporting this spectacle as sport. I won’t even get into how the massive dollar amounts involved have corrupted their college farm team system where everyone gets rich except the college athletes who mostly get fucked out of a real education and any actual cash benefits all in the name of retaining some level of purity as defined by the NCAA an organization so fucking corrupt that the Mafia models its activities after the NCAA…
VOV: it’s not so hard to imagine all this in a nation that had a rapist and serial sexual predator as its president and would not remove him from office.
Almost makes you wonder if the NFL isn’t another wing of the Democrat party like the mainstream media.
VOV: I recall reading many years ago a reprinted story that vilified college sports as sports factories that paid lip service to the term “scholar athlete” when the players were anything but scholars. What made this particular story noteworthy was that it was published about 100 years ago.
Coaches and colleges are paid better now, certainly the athletes compensation hasn’t changed in 100 years…
College Presidents as well, look at the number of them that draw SEVEN digit salaries!
The men in my family will be relieved that the Broncos are not on the list. They only screwed taxpayers through the usual means of stadium subsidies and the like.
Glad to see the Bucs aren’t on the list. I wonder if the NHL has a similar arrangement. I hope not; the Tampa Bay Lightning do this every home game. They seem to be a classy organization and I’d hate to think they’re being paid for it.
NASCAR has a tradition at the fall Phoenix race, which is generally right around Veteran’s Day. They simply ask all veterans to stand up just before the National Anthem. The crowd generally goes wild with cheers. Total cost to the taxpayer? Nothing. The NFL just might want to try something like that.
A lot of the local events such as county fairs and the like do the same.
A lot more genuine and sincere to boot.
Looking at that display makes one wonder what military they are talking about. Was there no way to work in a “U,” an “S,” and maybe an “A?”
Next up, the Fantasy Football League will be bestowing honors to the Stolen Valor culprits. Seems appropriate.
This expenditure of our Tax Money is bullshit.
Right up there with the NFL being designated a NOT for PROFIT entity. Bullshit.
Right up there when states and communities assist building these huge billion dollar stadiums. Bullshit.
Pigs in the trough….and we’re feeding millionaires.
But it does keep the masses pre-occupied and distracted from all the other shit government does.
I wonder how much the NFL gets paid to dress its players in all of that pink stuff for “Brest Cancer Awareness”? Honestly, does anyone in America know a female over the age of 10 that does NOT know about Breast cancer? Pink on a football player is worse than embarrassing.
I remember when certain people here flipped their shit about nascar mil advertisements. Not shocked about the lack of outrage with the national felon league.
As many billions as the NFL makes each year, it is bullshit.
We’re kicking troops out because we “can’t afford them” but we’ll pay for this. Same as sponsoring a NASCAR team, Army sports teams, glee club, etc.
Let alone, that total amount of money is a pittance to single teams, even one player on some teams. Yet, “we” have to pay for it.
Last year I mentioned how “useless” the selective service is now that women are combat troop capable. (Frankly, now males having to register is discrimination.) But, the response was “well, that’s not a whole lot of money.”
This is a perfect example of something minute that could be cut, along with a thousand other “minute” budget costs that if added up, would be substantial savings. Bean counters in the Pentagon will cut training, equipment, MWR, Tuition Assistance, personnel, yet will leave this little garbage around because “its not that much”.