Hockey & Football = Healthy Capitalism

Competitive Sports attracts fans from the full spectrum of social ideologies, from far-left communists, socialists (NDP / Liberals) to right leaning (Conservative) types.

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Pro-sports is a huge for-profit business that can thrive on its own without taxpayer subsidies. Many NHL Arena complexes have been built without taxpayer subsidies like Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver etc. In many cases much of the wages, players contract and owner profits get recycled and invested back within the same metro communities if the ownership resides there. But in some cases like Abbotsford BC a lot of the dough was extracted from that community. Some not-too-bright politicians get duped by the slick sports hucksters looking for corporate welfare. Like the City of Abbotsford who got taken for at least $15 million by the Calgary Flames to house their American Hockey League farm team the “Heat”, in the 7,000 seat taxpayer-funded arena. Competitive pro-sports fans identify with and idolize their favorite players. Those players are really business entrepreneurs who employ agents to negotiate and contract their services to the team. The players interest is to promote their brand (which is their name) to attract as high a demand as possible for their service. Why are the best big league major sports in capitalist countries? Players who grow up in communist countries dream of making the big leagues where they can earn the most money. But this is the real world where you have to produce to hold your job. Even though the players have a union, the team does not owe them a position. There are no entitlements based on potential, how good you could or used to be. Progressivism and magic crystal make believe won’t get you very far in this world. If your favorite wide receiver keeps dropping catchable balls, management will trade him for someone who can get the job done, because even the communist fans demand it and will not show up if the product on the field or the ice is inferior. This is pure and simple free market capitalism principles and the same goes for soccer etc. The top priority is to put customer bums in the seats so everybody can have a paycheck, the team can pay its bills and the owner can make a profit. Without profits, it all falls apart. Roland Seguin Langley, BC

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