New Rule: Americans Must Realize What Makes NFL Football So Great: Socialism

[deminks]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-maher/new-rule-football-sociali_b_815673.html

New Rule: With the Super Bowl only a week away, Americans must realize what makes NFL football so great: socialism. That's right, for all the F-15 flyovers and flag waving, football is our most successful sport because the NFL takes money from the rich teams and gives it to the poor teams... just like President Obama wants to do with his secret army of ACORN volunteers. Green Bay, Wisconsin has a population of 100,000. Yet this sleepy little town on the banks of the Fuck-if-I-know River has just as much of a chance of making it to the Super Bowl as the New York Jets - who next year need to just shut the hell up and play.

(snip)

That's why the NFL runs itself in a way that would fit nicely on Glenn Beck's chalkboard - they literally share the wealth, through salary caps and revenue sharing - TV is their biggest source of revenue, and they put all of it in a big commie pot and split it 32 ways. Because they don't want anyone to fall too far behind. That's why the team that wins the Super Bowl picks last in the next draft. Or what the Republicans would call "punishing success."

Baseball, on the other hand, is exactly like the Republicans, and I don't just mean it's incredibly boring. I mean their economic theory is every man for himself. The small market Pittsburgh Steelers go to the Super Bowl more than anybody - but the Pittsburgh Pirates? Levi Johnston has sperm that will not grow up and live long enough to see the Pirates in a World Series. Their payroll is about $40 million, and the Yankees is $206 million. They have about as much chance at getting in the playoffs as a poor black teenager from Newark has of becoming the CEO of Halliburton. That's why people stop going to Pirate games in May, because if you're not in the game, you become indifferent to the fate of the game, and maybe even get bitter - that's what's happening to the middle class in America. It's also how Marie Antoinette lost her head.

(end snip)

[old mark]

1. K&R- Football is also a socialist sport in itself. EVERYONE must work together

in their specialties to achieve and share the fruits of victory. Even the big stars get knocked on their ass and into the dirt from time to time, but when they win, the whole team moves forward. And occasionally, some of those stars even sacfifice pay so better lesser paid players may be hired and again everyone benefits.
There are NO unimportant players in football.


mark

[txlibdem]

7. Every member of the winning team gets a superbowl ring

Not just the superstars.

Damn, this is a good topic. Happy to K&R.

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. We were writing about this on DU over 5 years ago

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2226608

[rurallib]

3. With baseball you can pretty much predict who will be in the post-season

by looking at the spring salary roster.
Sort of like the rich buying congress critters.

[BeFree]

4. And...

...Most stadiums are publicly financed.
Of course the profits go to the team owners and the public has to pay big bucks to get in their stadiums, but it's all good, right?

Next time you see that huge stadium, let it remind you of the good socialism does.

[CanonRay]

5. Baseball also has revenue sharing

although not on the scale of the NFL. Just for the record. And it isn't boring, if you know what you're looking at.

[Highway61]

8. Scale?

That's like comparing a mole hill to Mount Everest. The PRIMARY source of income for ALL professional sports are TV revenues. The NFL puts these revenues into a pot and divides them evenly between ALL teams. To indicate baseball has true revenue sharing one has to be blind. Exhibit A: What happened to the Tampa Bay Rays roster this off season.

[phiddle]

6. Let's also remember...

The highly regulated behavior of virtually every participant,
The protection of the most vulnerable, i.e., passer and punter,
And the independence of the officials.
The lesson: good regulation enhances, rather than restricts the competition.
Also, "Free market" makes as much sense as "free football"!