NBC sports chief believes USOC hurting Chicago's bid for 2016 O...

Jim OBrien in Wicker Park wrote:

(And Huskie, if you want to participate in an intelligent discussion, please dispense with the namecalling. Thanks.)

Jim, I apologize if you were offended, but if you don't want to participate in the discussion then don't. I didn't call anyone a name. I stated my opinion that I thought they were not intelligent, based on my argument that the anti-Olympic movement only cares where the ISP is of the person posting is at. An argument that you've reiterated at the beginning of your post. I don't trust the opinion of anyone who believes that living within the city limits or outside the city limits makes another persons opinion any more or less valuable. There are a lot of those types on the Tribune message boards. Let's do a little thought experiment though. Imagine that we put up a wall around the city of Chicago and don't let anyone in or out. All the sales tax dollars that city racks up on suburban dwellers who come into the city on a daily basis are all dried up. Since over two thirds of the workforce lives outside of the city limits, all of the corporations that exist in Chicago would move out to the suburbs. There goes the corporate tax base. Oh, and then all of the supporting businesses (restaurants and hotels) that exist because of the corporations all close up because there's nothing left to support. As you can see, this turns into quite a death spiral for the city of Chicago. What you have right now is a pretty sweet deal. You get lots of people coming in from outside the city and funding your government, and you don't even have to let them vote. But if the city doesn't act within the best interests of all residents of the metropolitan area, then the city goes straight down the drain. If you cannot understand the symbiotic relationship between the city and suburbs, how can we expect you to understand the nuances of funding an Olympic Games.

All of the money that you think exists to update infrastructure in the city of Chicago does not truly exist. It only shows up if Chicago 2016 succeeds in their bid. Otherwise, it goes somewhere else. Not wanting the Olympics here is like cutting off your nose to spite your face.

Posts seemed to have changed the article to a for/against the olympics. The real controversy is olympics brodcasting. With all the networks and channels nowadays, it is time to spread the coverage which has to provide better viewing. I rarely tune in the olympics anymore due to NBCs' over commercialism and lousy selection of events which are usually shown in a "highlights" moment of some "star" they're promoting.

Do you all realize how much of your tax dollars will be stolen from you by the political people in Chicago and Crook county? You ain't seen nothing yet folks. This will bring the Daley machine into the truly big time national money.I am surprised that with the crime rate in the city and the under staffed police department they would consider the games here unless pay for play is happening???

NIUHuskie said:
TIF's happen everywhere. Chicago has no monopoly on the use of TIF's. You can argue that TIF's are bad until you're blue in the face, but they encourage development in areas that would most likely not happen otherwise.
The parking meters keep getting brought up, and I agree, that seemed like a bad deal. But stop applying it to everything else going on in the city. Besides, it's early and no one can tell how successful leasing out the meters will be.
The Skyway has been brought up a few times too, and yet I'm not sure why. The Skyway is running very well..have you driven it lately? Smooth pavement, few backups, it's not a bad drive. The tolls are a little high, but they always have been, even before the Skyway was leased out.
Clearly, NIU, you don't understand TIFs. I realize that people outside of Chicago deal with them. That doesn't make them a good idea. The intent of TIFs is help blighted areas, and in some cases it does. But the LaSalle TIF district, which generated incredible amounts of money, is in the Loop. Are you telling me that's a blighted area? No one in city, county, or state government can even account for all the TIFs and TIF money. I promise you Mayor Daley and Chicago Aldermen are using the vast majority of TIF money for projects that have nothing to do with improving urban blight.
Saying "wait and see" on the parking meter fiasco shows how weak, ill-informed, and illogical your arguments are, Hedgehog. Independent review has already shown that the mayor could have gotten SIGNIFICANTLY more money for the lease based on the meters' value. None of that, however, takes away the fleecing of people who simply want to park their car in the city. Parking meters are merely intended to create movement of shoppers in business districts so that people shop and leave so more people can shop. As it stands now, people just aren't shopping because they don't want to pay huge parking fees. Now that's wise public policy.
The Skyway operated pretty well before it was leased. The point is, Mayor Daley is pillaging city assets for short term gain, including funding the Olympics. That, quite simply, is bad public policy.

Jim OBrien in Wicker Park wrote:

Hedgehog, Fullerton and NIUHuskie,
You are from Hammond, Lake Zurich and Aurora, respectively. All three of you are pro-Games. All the posters from the city proper are against.
No, it's not even close to a the namecalling. Thanks.)

I LOVE WHEN PEOPLE THINK THE URL = WHERE THEY LIVE. How many times do we have to clear this up it does not!! So much space is wasted on that.

I am a life long Chicago resident with short stints in other places around not only the US but the globe which made me realize that Chicago as an all around large urban area is one of the best around. No it is not perfect especially if you don't like cities in general but overall it is beautiful and a perfect place for 2016!

Chicago can not afford to host the Olympics - we can't afford to damage the jewel of the lakefront, the bird sanctuary, the public parks, etc. And the corruption is already starting just look at some of the recent moves by Tim Mitchell and the Chicago Park District. No to the Olympics as much as I would love to see them; I know that it would bankrupt us.

Rick wrote:

It's interesting that the people posting claiming that Chicagoans want the games are from the suburbs (as shown by their ISP). I live in the city. I do not know a single person in the city who wants the games. I have seen polls that show Chicagoans 2-1 against the games.
I've been hoping for anything to sabotage the Chicago bid. I though Blago or Burris could do it. Blago's chief of staff who recently plead guilty allegedly has been giving info to the feds beyond Blago. Of course, he used to be a right hand man for Daley. Let's hope the IOC or one of our great Illinois politicians, including Daley, can bring down the bid.
Here's the thing: If Daley put forth the effort to improve schools, infrastructure, and transit in the same measure he has for the games, we wouldn't need the games.
There are posters all over the city showing an image of an athlete with the tag line "Imagine." I think most Chicagoans imagine a clean city government that provides good schools and services and cares as much about those things as they do about the Olympics.
It would be nice to see the business community get as excited about good schools as they seem to be about the Olympics. Having good employees over the long haul is much more important than the silly Olympics.

EHHHH!! WRONG AGAIN RICK. The last post I entered made me from Boise, Idaho. While I wouldn't mind visiting I haven't been there, yet.

The 2016 Olympics should be awarded to Rio de Janeiro. The Olympics are supposed to be a world competition, that also benefits the host city. South America has NEVER hosted the games, and its high time that they be allowed to do so. The US has had multiple games in the last few decades.

Fullerton, my bad. Sorry about that.

Huskie, I don't think your opinion doesn't matter because you live outside the city. And yes I understand the symbiotic city/burb relationship.

The state's coffers are at risk, but the city's more so. If we are "awarded" the Games and construction begins, there comes a point of no return (2012?) where we can't undo the process.

{Denver was awarded and then rejected the '76 Winter Games after voter uproar when costs rose 300%. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Winter_Olym... .)

So now it's 2014 are costs are running out of control al a Millennium Park. Cost overruns have far exceeded city/state/insurance set asides. We can't change our minds then. At that point my property taxes skyrocket (if they haven't already) but yours don't and the justification for the tax hike is the infrastructure we'll be left with after the athletes depart.

Boils down to the benefits (tourism, international stature, infrastructure, the ability to attend the Olympics in person), all of which I understand, versus the cost, which feels open-ended to me. If there was some mechanism to cap the cost, I'd be on board.

Finally, when someone is as desperate as Daley is to win the Games that he'll say or do anything, we should all be nervous.

I live more than 200 miles from Chicago. What skin do I have in this game? The $250,000,000 that the state has promised should the games run a deficit. This pledge was made by the same corrupt Illinois politicians that can't balance the state budget. A state budget that is spiraling the once great State of Illinois towards bankruptcy. I haven't conducted a scientific survey, but I have spoken to very few people in my area that want Chicago to be awarded the games. If the residents of all of Illinois potentially are on the hook for cost overruns, then the views of ALL Illinois residents should be heard.

This is good news, no? Maybe we will be saved from the money-pit that is the Olympics?

Even better, maybe the dictator Daley will be indicted and jailed!

Is the guy posting as NIU Huskie a Daley cronie with a lot of time on his hands or what???

NIUHuskie wrote:

<quoted text>
You and your miserable friends do not constitute "the vast majority of the people here in Chicago". The vast majority of people in Chicago DO want the games but are concerned about how it will be paid for.

Even though every poll has had an over 70% disapproval rating? I take it NIU doesn't make you take math as part of your entrance exan.

Mr. Ebersol, Chicago citizen/taxpayers not want the Olympics should topple this idiotic plan from the mind of the city's chief of corruption, Daley.

oops,

Mr. Ebersol, Chicago citizen/taxpayers not wanting the Olympics should topple this idiotic plan from the mind of the city's chief of corruption, Daley.

WACKER 17 wrote:

Is the guy posting as NIU Huskie a Daley cronie with a lot of time on his hands or what???

Ah that standard response whenever anyone says something that supports Chicago. Oh you must work for Daley. Why is supporting the Olympics mean only supporting Daley and not Chicago? This thing will be great for the city.

Dan wrote:

<quoted text>
Even though every poll has had an over 70% disapproval rating? I take it NIU doesn't make you take math as part of your entrance exan.

Every official poll I've seen has the majority in support. Where do you get your 70% disapproval rating? Just because some have concerns about pulling it off does not mean they don't want it. And your poll must be as accurate as mine that shows 82% of my friends support the games. Probably because most of us take advantage of the great things the city has to offer instead of just complaining about it.

FROM YESTERDAY'S SUN-TIMES LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/commentary/lette...

Learn about impact of Games

Regarding "Daley warns Olympic critics" [story, July 9] and "Only 'darts' pin down full data on Olympics," [editorial, July 9]:

Here are some of the other issues the public needs to understand about the Games:

•• The impact that hosting the Games will have on the public's use of the parks as construction takes place over the next nine years. Parks from Waveland to the harbors to Grant Park to Meigs Field/Northerly Island to Washington Park to Douglas Park will be construction zones. Where are the citizens/residents of Chicago supposed to go for recreation during the construction phase and during the 2016 Games?

•• The "security" plan for the Games in the bid book, which is pretty vague, but would allow for the creation of a police state.

•• Last April, I paid $300 to have two color copies of the bid printed. While it is online, the large files made it functionally impossible to read online. Lots of color pictures and teeny-tiny print. When I checked in April, the only public library that had a printed copy was the Harold Washington main branch. Chicago 2016, Pat Ryan, Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, Mayor Daley and the well-heeled supporters of the 2016 bid should fund the printing to make copies available at all branch libraries. That way the public can ask informed questions about the Games at the Chicago 2016 community meetings.

My experience with Meigs Field has taught me not to trust Daley.

Rachel Goodstein, past president,

Friends of Meigs Field (2002-04)

Go Chicago!

The Hedgehog wrote:

<quoted text>
Your "vast majority" is actually the vocal minority. And most of the community groups that are against it, are almost certainly going to change their tune if and when they get their slice of the pie (which is their true motivation).
<quoted text>
Even if no tax dollars go towards payment, area taxpayers will still pick up a large part of the tab. BUT, I believe it will be more than offset by the revenues that will be generated by the additional income and tax dollars earned in the construction, hotel, restaurant and entertainment industries. Long term benefits will be in housing, much needed infrastructure upgrades, and increased tourism from the exposure the Olympics will give to Chicago. And last but not least, The experience my now 4 and 8 year old daughters will have attending the games makes it worth while for me as a parent.

Your BELIEF in the revenue from the Olympics is like believing in The Great Pumpkin. Check out London and Vancouver and Montreal etc etc. Sadly when closely inspected the Olympics are a traveling real estate scam using what is labeled amateur athletics (NBA stars playing, what a joke!) to generate revenue for an organization, the IOC, that pays taxes no where on the planet.

And Chicago taxpayers have already started paying for the Olympics, we just bought Michael Reese hospital.