Reply #1: Two sides to every coin

[iconoclastNYC]

Attendance and TV ratings are not the sole measure of success. You need to look at the long term increase in tourism, the economic benefits from that increaed tourism, and the taxes that comes in from the long term benefit. In this context one should view the cities expenditures as an investment and not as a one-off expense.

A of the money spent to prepare for the Olympics goes to directly to infrastructure improvements and citi beautification. These benefit of these projects have a long asting positive effect on the city and can reinvigorate economic depressed areas of the city. The plans for LIC for example are widely expected to increase the economic viability of that area.

The games are a good way get people to support tax increases or bond issue to finance long lasting and economicaly desirable infrastructure improvements.

Doping is a major problem in Major League Baseball. I hope you are spearheading an effort to get NYC to dump the Mets and the Yankees.

Security was a problem for the Thug Convention and it was handled without a hitch. NYC is under permanent orange alert and has the world's largest and best trained and equipped police force

Bribery is an issue that can be dressed with more transparency and auditing, etc, and is no reason to turn away the games.

But it's all moot because America will not get the bid. The Olympics are mainly run by "Old Europe", and W has pissed them off badly. We aren't going to get it. I except Madrid to get it. Spain is Europe's economic rising star.