We are Being Robbed Again!

Oh my gosh I’m really mad! I’m not a swearing man, if I were this blog would probably read something like this: ^%#& 8ukj*&^8 7(&^!@$ #%#$ #^# &#& %#$# ~@ #&!~*&&@ &@^&% ^% 9&*! !*^&& ^ *@%#$!!% @$ &^%@. But I don’t swear, so let me put it in English.

The setting is beautiful Indianapolis, Indiana. Try to visualize a group of self serving, taxpayer robbing business men sitting in a meeting trying to figure out how to raise some more money. Who are these men? The Capital Improvement Board, CIB, which runs the sports stadiums in Indy.

What is their problem you ask? Well, they have a little budget deficit; it’s chump change really. 47.4 million dollars of chump change to be exact. What they say is that it cost 71 million dollars for the CIB to run for a year and they have a 47.4 million dollar deficit. That means they only have 23.6 million to work with.

Here’s the plan. They’re gonna get the Pacers and the Colts to each pay 5 million dollars. The CIB is going to cut 10 million out of their budget. Now the deficit is down to 27.4 million dollars. They have a solution to pay for that too, but first let me point out a couple flaws in their math.

First, as I understand it, the CIB has a budget of 120-130 million dollars annually; let’s be conservative and call it a measly 120 million. They need 71 million to operate, 120-71=49 million. Where’d the 49 million dollars go, I wonder? If they can afford to 10 million out of a 120 million dollar budget, that’s over 8%. Where have they been squandering that money over past years? Am I the only one seeing fat pockets?

And what is the bailout money for? The poor Pacers are apparently losing money. Yeah, that’s right. They’re worth over a hundred million dollars, they get the entire take from ticket sales, a percentage of all merchandise sold worldwide, and they don’t pay one dime of maintenance, staffing, nor upkeep of their arena. Yeah, it really sounds like those poor Pacers need the money.

Don’t let anyone fool you; this bailout is all about paying the Pacers OUR money. Sure, they’re kicking in five million, but they’ll be getting back roughly thirty million. That’s a whopping 600% return on their money! I’d sink millions in too for that kind of deal!

Don’t forget that the Pacers are a privately owned BUSINESS, owned by BILLIONAIRES!

Big deal right? The Colts chip in, the CIB chips in, and even the poverty stricken Pacers are going to chip in. Doesn’t come out of my pocket, right?

WRONG! In addition to the above, a new bill has been introduced, HB1604. Watch out, they’re going to try to slide it through fast. If passed, this will DOUBLE Indiana’s alcohol tax. It would increase admission to the games, increase the price of food and drink, and increase hotel and motel taxes. The combined hospitality taxes would put Indy at the top of the list. It would be the most expensive, hospitality tax wise, city in the entire country!

Remember, the taxpayers don’t see a dime of the increased admission, food, and drink money. Guess who pockets that!

I don’t drink, but this still really makes me mad. Taxpayer dollars going straight into the pockets of billionaires. We are being fleeced, robbed, hoodwinked, swindled, ripped off, held up, stuck it to, cheated, shafted, duped, deluded, conned, tricked, deceived, frauded, and taken for a ride. I think you get it.

But I have a solution. Actually I have two. First, call your representatives tomorrow (Thursday, April 2 2009) and tell them to vote against HB1604 and its blatant theft of tax money.

Second, boycott the CIB. More specifically, boycott the Indianapolis Pacers and the Indianapolis Colts. Don’t buy tickets to the games, don’t by any merchandise, and encourage everyone you know to do the same. Send a message, a very loud message. Hit these criminals in their wallets like they’ve been hitting ours.

Stand up, speak out, and be heard people!