tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post345788604435799422..comments2023-12-30T17:22:47.650-06:00Comments on Tales from Aisle 424 - A Cubs Blog: If Illinois Gives the Cubs $200 Million, I'm MovingSixRowBrewCohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15384682912021974745noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-29698576146437059982010-11-14T08:58:56.444-06:002010-11-14T08:58:56.444-06:00I'm not sure what kind of coupon they would fl...I'm not sure what kind of coupon they would float. ISFA bonds are different from general obligation bonds, being differently collateralized, and even under these depressing circumstances chances are the the coupon would not be very large. Conditions can and will change in a heartbeat, of course, and any plans they have today could be dashed by events well beyond their control.<br /><br />Anyone who buys that this "doesn't cost the state anything" because of planned ticket price increases should be banned from commenting publicly on the topic. How gullible are we supposed to be?gaius mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-3434275592282524992010-11-13T13:00:58.832-06:002010-11-13T13:00:58.832-06:00To borrow a phrase from MB21: New shit up - Maste...To borrow a phrase from MB21: New shit up - <a href="http://424tales.blogspot.com/2010/11/master-of-house.html" rel="nofollow">Master of the House</a>Aisle 424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-4081170180586385572010-11-13T12:51:57.486-06:002010-11-13T12:51:57.486-06:00Just for fun I'm going to estimate that the to...Just for fun I'm going to estimate that the total amount to retire 300 million worth of 35 year bonds is 600 million total (which seems low to me). If Rickett's raises ticket prices enough to cover that over 35 years that means that he would pocket 4.4 billion over current ticket income(125 mil per year avg) over that same time frame - and the state ties up 300 million for 35 years to assist with that.<br /><br />Ignoring the state funding aspect, the fans would be much better off paying an extra $10 per seat surcharge over the next ten years.<br /><br />Let's say 9 million would be required next year to finance this plan. Privately done, that would add up to about $3 per ticket. In order to raise the same amount of money by relying on the amusement tax it would require raising ticket prices over $24 per seat.<br /><br />pwhalenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-7839922037298087772010-11-13T10:30:26.011-06:002010-11-13T10:30:26.011-06:00GM, you might know this. I would assume Illinois ...GM, you might know this. I would assume Illinois bonds at this point have been relegated to near junk-bond status. What sort of annual interest would they have to pay out on this (assume the full 300 million mentioned in the bill)?<br /><br />Also, if anyone hasn't heard it, you need to listen to the Tiom Ricketts interview from WIND yestersday. Yellon has it linked through a fanpost or shot or whatever.<br /><br />Basically, Tom explains that this doesn't cost the city anything, because without improvements he won't be able to raise ticket prices (how sad) so the amount generated through the amusement tax would remin the same. But, if this is approved, the state still gets the same money, and (here's the good part in Tom's opinion) - He WILL be able to riase ticket prices (hooray!).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-67392909768104578172010-11-13T08:46:13.250-06:002010-11-13T08:46:13.250-06:00here's the thing that really pisses me off. ri...here's the thing that really pisses me off. ricketts has been blessed with great fortune. in times like these he should act like a leader. he should have the moral compass to understand that people are hurting and it is not the time nor place to ask taxpayers to shell out money for his family toy. <br /><br />it doesn't matter what reinsdorf or mccaskey did before him. he and his family are owed nothing because they have great fortune to buy a toy. it's just the opposite he and his family owe society. they need to be leaders. they have the connections and the business sense to make the kind of money they have. come up with a plan to raise $200 million. sell naming rights. sell stock in the team. but don't ask for corporate welfare. don't take money away from causes that can't get this kind of media attention. <br /><br />the whole thing is shameful.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-68798830965123384822010-11-13T07:45:09.343-06:002010-11-13T07:45:09.343-06:00Tim, I get your point about ricketts only doing wh...Tim, I get your point about ricketts only doing what all others have done, but I will say this: <br /><br />If we know it's wrong under these circumstances, shouldn't ricketts? And if ricketts knows it's wrong, why is he doing it?<br /><br />I don't find it easy at all to exculpate him on fiduciary ground. There is a clear moral point here. And he has no fiduciary duty whatsoever to be greasing palms, which of course its what he's doing because this is Illinois.<br /><br />I'm afraid ricketts is just another warped amoral bastard product of our unhinged society. We live in a banana republic, friends, when this kind of behavior is not only proposed but expected and then seen to completion.gaius mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-89652673551291681772010-11-13T06:40:50.861-06:002010-11-13T06:40:50.861-06:00It would be funny if it weren't so sad and inf...<em>It would be funny if it weren't so sad and infuriating. There are clearly lots of people who haven't the faintest idea how bad the state and municipal budget situation is.</em><br /><br />I'm not from Illinois and don't live there so I was unaware just how bad the situation was. However, in this economic climate, it doesn't take a genius to understand that all the states are hurting. At that point it's fairly simple. Do you spend money you don't have? I can't. Can you? Why can the state do it?mb21http://www.anothercubsblog.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-91414531460928604292010-11-13T06:34:28.414-06:002010-11-13T06:34:28.414-06:00ccd, I think you might be onto something with Tomm...ccd, I think you might be onto something with Tommy getting cutoff by his daddy. Perhaps that's why payroll is decreasing just one year after he bought the team. I have a feeling in 20 years we're going to miss the Tribune. How fucked up is that?mb21http://www.anothercubsblog.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-22989918514307245272010-11-13T06:32:44.552-06:002010-11-13T06:32:44.552-06:00GM, you're letting Ricketts get off too easy b...GM, you're letting Ricketts get off too easy by fucking the handle of the ax. <br /><br />As for burning it to the ground, I'm all for it. I always have been. It seems to me if you're going to ask for money from the state it should be to build a new ballpark. The White Sox got $200 million in tax money when they built a new ballpark. The Cubs are seeking $200 million to modernize as best as possible a shitty ballpark that is a hundred years old. When it's all done, it's going to be the same ballpark that features the second most uncomfortable seating in baseball. Well done.mb21http://www.anothercubsblog.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-88507703439948874462010-11-13T00:01:02.507-06:002010-11-13T00:01:02.507-06:00It really goes back to how shoddily the state has ...It really goes back to how shoddily the state has been run, because if they hadn't been hornswaggled by Reinsdorf and the McCaskeys for all the millions their teams got, Ricketts probably wouldn't have the balls to even propose this. But why shouldn't he try? I would too given the past behavior of the government.<br /><br />When it is all said and done, the $200 or $300 million really wouldn't even put a dent in the state's financial problems, so why not make the best financial deal for himself?<br /><br />The problems I have are:<br /><br />1) The state will probably fucking do it, and as I mentioned and GM reiterated, that is just wrong on a number of levels.<br /><br />2) The Ricketts making a big show about how much they care and how families are so important to them, but at the end of the day they are driven by the dollar as much as any other corporate entity and that duplicity pisses me off.Aisle 424http://424tales.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-47818278714168310892010-11-13T00:00:23.469-06:002010-11-13T00:00:23.469-06:00I'm dead serious when I say I'd rather the...I'm dead serious when I say I'd rather the park burned to the damned ground than the state take this on, man. Illinois is fiscal roadkill, and there's ricketts out there raping the carcass before God and everyone. <br /><br />You wonder how this society has ended up in such a hellacious mess? The utter lack of ethics or morals among its so-called leadership has everything to do with it.gaius mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-25700366997205974782010-11-12T23:54:28.993-06:002010-11-12T23:54:28.993-06:00They should ccd - and rickets' firm can take t...They should ccd - and rickets' firm can take the underwriting juice from that IPO! Win-win!gaius mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-81177981147325123932010-11-12T23:51:06.540-06:002010-11-12T23:51:06.540-06:00gm, i agree with you on the immoral part. that'...gm, i agree with you on the immoral part. that's why i have very little doubt that it will happen. ricketts already has cullerton sponsoring the bill. he probably can bring through the votes. <br /><br />it's maddening when you think that the states flagship public university is owed $1 BILLION.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-30170991691614905012010-11-12T23:40:50.374-06:002010-11-12T23:40:50.374-06:00It would be funny if it weren't so sad and inf...It would be funny if it weren't so sad and infuriating. There are clearly lots of people who haven't the faintest idea how bad the state and municipal budget situation is.<br /><br /> People, the state could fire every employee on its payroll and it would still run a large deficit. It is unimaginable how wide the gap is between spending and tax collections. The idea of adding $300mm to the tally for a ballpark when U of I is owed $1000mm, there's $5000mm of unpaid bills laying around and tens of thousands of state employees will be fired next year is beyond silly. It is immoral.gaius mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-26086140183493071172010-11-12T23:36:50.242-06:002010-11-12T23:36:50.242-06:00...al is certain the cubs will win a ws under rick......al is certain the cubs will win a ws under ricketts. so they have that going for them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-43200923840256803052010-11-12T23:35:46.606-06:002010-11-12T23:35:46.606-06:00the sister will take control of the team within th...the sister will take control of the team within the next decade. tom is a bumbling idiot that makes michael mccaskey look like a brilliant sportsman. old man joe will figure that out in the next few years as attendance drops and less and less people give a fuck about the cubs. he'll have to find a less prominent role for tommy like vag had to for mikey. <br /><br />family ownership can be bad when the family is a bunch of spoiled rich kids.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-42722635892285158972010-11-12T23:30:17.890-06:002010-11-12T23:30:17.890-06:00Oh crap. If that pattern holds, the Cubs won't...Oh crap. If that pattern holds, the Cubs won't be winning a championship for a long time. Tom is a pretty young guy.Aisle 424http://424tales.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-31074873469266197882010-11-12T23:28:23.539-06:002010-11-12T23:28:23.539-06:00Seems to me like they’re doing the right thing, no...<i>Seems to me like they’re doing the right thing, not raising any additional taxes AND spending quite a bit of their own money.--ALVIN YELLON</i>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-88651048559410782292010-11-12T23:23:14.908-06:002010-11-12T23:23:14.908-06:00ricketts has become the bill wirtz of this franchi...ricketts has become the bill wirtz of this franchise. he's driving away fans.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-83077536052600733982010-11-12T23:17:12.573-06:002010-11-12T23:17:12.573-06:00LOL and yellon is for it. I'm shocked! If you&...LOL and yellon is for it. I'm shocked! If you're for this you've either been co-opted by the little charade that inhabits clark and Addison out beyond your ability to reason or you need to think about it a little harder. It's the moral equivalent of being for a defense contractor getting paid $64,000 for each toilet seat it sells to the army - except the contractor keeps the seat and the army is bankrupt.gaius mariusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-40893728769602435202010-11-12T23:13:43.339-06:002010-11-12T23:13:43.339-06:00here's an idea for ricketts...pay for the stad...here's an idea for ricketts...pay for the stadium upgrades with some more of daddy's money. or did daddy cut tommy boy off?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-81591380031564779862010-11-12T23:11:58.630-06:002010-11-12T23:11:58.630-06:00if the state gives tom ricketts a penny it's t...if the state gives tom ricketts a penny it's too much.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-11566251768160265382010-11-12T23:11:20.040-06:002010-11-12T23:11:20.040-06:00i'd love to go with you kris. this whole thing...i'd love to go with you kris. this whole thing is a sham. these corporate assholes like ricketts think that the system should just hand them money for their hobby, while working people can't even get paid by the state for work they have already done. this is a sham.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-86127609441925012942010-11-12T23:00:32.964-06:002010-11-12T23:00:32.964-06:00Hey WPBC,
Can I bring you down to Springfield with...Hey WPBC,<br />Can I bring you down to Springfield with me the next time I need to go beg for my money?Krishttp://www.twitter.com/speechgrlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250683060520895629.post-83275663690899786032010-11-12T22:38:37.340-06:002010-11-12T22:38:37.340-06:00mb, i just don't understand guys like ricketts...mb, i just don't understand guys like ricketts. this mother fucker can spend $800 million of daddy's money on a hobby and he can follow that up by ripping off state and local governments for $400 million tp spend on his hobby. <br /><br />must be nice to be a member of the lucky sperm club.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com