I just fell down an annotation hole on the last volume of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Century. I wanted to read about Mary Poppins (spoiler alert). It escalated quickly down hill from there.
Edit: if you ever want an annotation for the League, there is guy named Jess Nevins that does a great page by page of them
I'm pretty open about my negative feelings when it comes to using public money to build stadiums for pro-sports.
I've felt bad for the Atlanta area, their civic leaders are in the process of building 3 stadiums (1 for the Braves and 2 for Arthur Blank). But that was local ATL money, not state funds. Then last week I discovered that the state legislature was trying to pass a sales tax exemption on certain NFL tickets and commited $40 million in state funds to build the Falcons a parking deck.
I'm pretty open about my negative feelings when it comes to using public money to build stadiums for pro-sports.
I've felt bad for the Atlanta area, their civic leaders are in the process of building 3 stadiums (1 for the Braves and 2 for Arthur Blank). But that was local ATL money, not state funds. Then last week I discovered that the state legislature was trying to pass a sales tax exemption on certain NFL tickets and commited $40 million in state funds to build the Falcons a parking deck.
When it comes to Atlanta sports, if you build it, they won't come. For the Braves anyway. I have no idea about the other two sports.
And didn't they move the baseball stadium to the burbs, making it more difficult to reach via public transportation?
Should be some kind of incentive system in there for stuff like that.
- The amount of public funding you can be eligible to receive is dependent on your performance in the post-season. Yes, you have to MAKE the playoffs before you're awarded any public funds.
- Poor performance in the regular season obligates a franchise to pay back a portion of any public monies received toward school art and music programs.
- If public funds are awarded to your franchise, a number of tickets for every home game - along with food vouchers - are to be set aside for poor and underprivileged families to attend.
- A verifiable local ID (Driver license) grants you 25% off ticket price of any home game.
I'm pretty open about my negative feelings when it comes to using public money to build stadiums for pro-sports.
I've felt bad for the Atlanta area, their civic leaders are in the process of building 3 stadiums (1 for the Braves and 2 for Arthur Blank). But that was local ATL money, not state funds. Then last week I discovered that the state legislature was trying to pass a sales tax exemption on certain NFL tickets and commited $40 million in state funds to build the Falcons a parking deck.
When it comes to Atlanta sports, if you build it, they won't come. For the Braves anyway. I have no idea about the other two sports.
And didn't they move the baseball stadium to the burbs, making it more difficult to reach via public transportation?
Not really they moved it 12 miles north, closer to their fanbase. Traffic is going to be a nightmare, but it's ATL, traffic is always a nightmare. The 4000 faithful will still make the trip across town.
I thought the move was very smart for the Braves, but stupid for Cobb county. The development around the stadium looks like it will be neat, but Cobb CO. got hosed by their commissioners.
On a bright note the city will have a ton of venues in the nearby area ( the Ted is going to GA State University, plus all the college stadiums, Phillips arena, and the new pro stadiums), and the largest airport in the world. It can make a bid to host the Olympics again...
Please note, I'm only half joking. There are only 3 cities in the US that wouldn't have to make huge stadium investments: LA (currently in the process of a major upgrade using private funds), NYC, and Atlanta.
I read Nemo Roses of Berlin. This maybe the least literary LEoG. There are really only 2 references you should know Metroplis (movie) and The Great Dictator (movie). It was a little odd to have so much of the comic to draw inspiration from 2 movies.
There are 2 other literary references that have more to do with the first 2 Nemo books than Roses. One of the main antagonists to Nemo is Aeyesh (from She by HL Rider); I think she is also used in in the Black Dossier. The other is the Robur books by Jules Verne; Robur becomes an important figure to the Nemo family.
I read Nemo Roses of Berlin. This maybe the least literary LEoG. There are really only 2 references you should know Metroplis (movie) and The Great Dictator (movie). It was a little odd to have so much of the comic to draw inspiration from 2 movies.
There are 2 other literary references that have more to do with the first 2 Nemo books than Roses. One of the main antagonists to Nemo is Aeyesh (from She by HL Rider); I think she is also used in in the Black Dossier. The other is the Robur books by Jules Verne; Robur becomes an important figure to the Nemo family.
I have all the volumes, but I have yet to read the second and third Nemo books. And yes, I'm pretty sure She is referenced in Black Dossier.
Interesting that the references are fewer and farther betweeen, but it makes sense that Robur plays large, as from what I know of the character, not having read those books, he seems very similar to Nemo, though with grander plans of destruction and conquest than Nemo, who was more of a revolutionary.
To be honest, I got a bit burned out on LoEG. I'm sure I'll get around to catching up on the series, but I'm not in a big rush to do so.
I'm pretty open about my negative feelings when it comes to using public money to build stadiums for pro-sports.
I've felt bad for the Atlanta area, their civic leaders are in the process of building 3 stadiums (1 for the Braves and 2 for Arthur Blank). But that was local ATL money, not state funds. Then last week I discovered that the state legislature was trying to pass a sales tax exemption on certain NFL tickets and commited $40 million in state funds to build the Falcons a parking deck.
In St. Louis, the city still has to pay 12 million a year and the county 6 million a year thru 2021 for a football stadium that no longer has a football team.
The whole public funding process for football stadiums is a sham (I cannot speak to baseball). You are getting 8 football games a year ( possibly a couple more with playoff games) and maybe two or three concerts a year. That is it. For millions of better spent elsewhere money.
I read Nemo Roses of Berlin. This maybe the least literary LEoG. There are really only 2 references you should know Metroplis (movie) and The Great Dictator (movie). It was a little odd to have so much of the comic to draw inspiration from 2 movies.
There are 2 other literary references that have more to do with the first 2 Nemo books than Roses. One of the main antagonists to Nemo is Aeyesh (from She by HL Rider); I think she is also used in in the Black Dossier. The other is the Robur books by Jules Verne; Robur becomes an important figure to the Nemo family.
I have all the volumes, but I have yet to read the second and third Nemo books. And yes, I'm pretty sure She is referenced in Black Dossier.
Interesting that the references are fewer and farther betweeen, but it makes sense that Robur plays large, as from what I know of the character, not having read those books, he seems very similar to Nemo, though with grander plans of destruction and conquest than Nemo, who was more of a revolutionary.
To be honest, I got a bit burned out on LoEG. I'm sure I'll get around to catching up on the series, but I'm not in a big rush to do so.
The first Nemo book took me forever to read; the second one took 2 night. It would have taken less time, but there are some conversations in German.
I read Nemo Roses of Berlin. This maybe the least literary LEoG. There are really only 2 references you should know Metroplis (movie) and The Great Dictator (movie). It was a little odd to have so much of the comic to draw inspiration from 2 movies.
There are 2 other literary references that have more to do with the first 2 Nemo books than Roses. One of the main antagonists to Nemo is Aeyesh (from She by HL Rider); I think she is also used in in the Black Dossier. The other is the Robur books by Jules Verne; Robur becomes an important figure to the Nemo family.
I have all the volumes, but I have yet to read the second and third Nemo books. And yes, I'm pretty sure She is referenced in Black Dossier.
Interesting that the references are fewer and farther betweeen, but it makes sense that Robur plays large, as from what I know of the character, not having read those books, he seems very similar to Nemo, though with grander plans of destruction and conquest than Nemo, who was more of a revolutionary.
To be honest, I got a bit burned out on LoEG. I'm sure I'll get around to catching up on the series, but I'm not in a big rush to do so.
The first Nemo book took me forever to read; the second one took 2 night. It would have taken less time, but there are some conversations in German.
Ooh, I've forgotten most of my German vocabulary (I took three semesters in college), but I've been trying to get it back now that my son's taking German and is sending me links to new German music.
Howler Brothers released their spring collection. I'm a fan of the new Gaucho Snapshirts. The Hibiscus shirt looks great and the other ones I have are super comfortable.
On a bright note the city will have a ton of venues in the nearby area ( the Ted is going to GA State University, plus all the college stadiums, Phillips arena, and the new pro stadiums), and the largest airport in the world. It can make a bid to host the Olympics again...
Please note, I'm only half joking. There are only 3 cities in the US that wouldn't have to make huge stadium investments: LA (currently in the process of a major upgrade using private funds), NYC, and Atlanta.
Should be some kind of incentive system in there for stuff like that.
- The amount of public funding you can be eligible to receive is dependent on your performance in the post-season. Yes, you have to MAKE the playoffs before you're awarded any public funds.
- Poor performance in the regular season obligates a franchise to pay back a portion of any public monies received toward school art and music programs.
- If public funds are awarded to your franchise, a number of tickets for every home game - along with food vouchers - are to be set aside for poor and underprivileged families to attend.
- A verifiable local ID (Driver license) grants you 25% off ticket price of any home game.
Stuff like that.
I like the idea of some kind of benchmarking, but I think that there are other metrics. I also think that while incentives are OK, tax-exempt status is a non-starter (I'm looking at you NFL)
As an Illinoisan, that pretty much screws all of the major sports teams except the Blackhawks. The lovable losers may not perform well, but they have a remarkably loyal fanbase that likes to attend games.
Generally the goal is to boost consumer sales, including hotel/motel and food/beverage reciepts. Incentive-izing local attendance over out of out of town attendance is somewhat counter to the intent and in the case of state dollar support, it's also effectively more harmful toward the balance of the state as the local businesses enjoy cheaper attendance and any economic boost to their business that might as a side effect to the venue.
I do like the set asides but I question this when compared to other areas - are government operated museums also required to provide set asides for under-privileged? I personally think that is a far more important resource to make accessible.
Our local small scale venue has taken things a bit of a different direction. They make all of their concession stands available to local non-profits. They provide one staff member to manage the stand. The stand is otherwise completely staffed by volunteers from the non-profit. A percentage of the revenue generated by that stand goes directly to the non-profit in question.
One of my problems is that SunTrust bought the naming rights to the field. The Braves are making xmilllion per year (it's been publicly reported not wanting to look it up right now) and the county gets -0-. The commissioners didn't even try to get a portion of that money. Not a cent. I would be so pissed if were a Cobb Co. resident, knowing I was on the hook for 300+ million dollars.
One of my problems is that SunTrust bought the naming rights to the field. The Braves are making xmilllion per year (it's been publicly reported not wanting to look it up right now) and the county gets -0-. The commissioners didn't even try to get a portion of that money. Not a cent. I would be so pissed if were a Cobb Co. resident, knowing I was on the hook for 300+ million dollars.
The PNC Arena where the Hurricanes play had quite a lot of public funding, but they share the building with NC State, my alma mater, which uses it for basketball. There are lots of concerts and events held there too, and the state and the city gets revenue sharing. The city also makes money on the local hotel tax. I don't remember all the numbers, but it was a relatively equitable deal over the long run as those things go.
Minnesota takes the cake when it comes to stadiums.
From Wikipedia about the Vikings new US Bank Stadium:
The State of Minnesota's portion of the cost of the stadium was to be funded by revenue from a proposed new charitable gambling source, which was dubbed electronic pulltabs. When the stadium funding bill was passed in the legislature and signed by the governor on May 14, 2012, the new revenue from the games was estimated to be $34 million for 2013, and rising each year thereafter.
Six months later, the first budget estimate from the Minnesota Office of Management and Budget was released, revising the projected revenue from the electronic pulltab games. This first revision cut the estimated revenue from the game for 2013 by 51%, to $16 million (versus the legislation's estimate of $34 million).
In March 2013, the Minnesota Office of Management and Budget released another updated budget forecast for fiscal years 2013 to 2017. Included in this forecast was another revision in the projected revenue from charitable gambling sources, from the previous estimate of $16 million, down to $1.7 million, a further 90% reduction in the estimate for 2013 revenue. This total was a 95% reduction from what was estimated in the stadium bill passed in May 2012.
How is it I can go for being super excited about having 1 kickstarter to #7 in 2 weeks. #@Torchsong problems
It took me a while, but I learned to enjoy the little victories in life. A really good burger, finally inking a decent curve on something, grasping whatever it is Grant Morrison is writing about, my runaway cat coming back...stuff like that.
It's not quite the Buddhist/Taoist "Living Simple" concept, but it's just appreciating all the small stuff...
How is it I can go for being super excited about having 1 kickstarter to #7 in 2 weeks. #@Torchsong problems
It's not quite the Buddhist/Taoist "Living Simple" concept, but it's just appreciating all the small stuff...
Ecclesiastes 9:7-9 Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun.
Well the first ticket to the big dance has been punched by Austin Peay University...Which means once more NCAA Tourney fans will be serenaded with "Let's go Peay...Let's go Peay!!!"
Comments
Edit: if you ever want an annotation for the League, there is guy named Jess Nevins that does a great page by page of them
I've felt bad for the Atlanta area, their civic leaders are in the process of building 3 stadiums (1 for the Braves and 2 for Arthur Blank). But that was local ATL money, not state funds.
Then last week I discovered that the state legislature was trying to pass a sales tax exemption on certain NFL tickets and commited $40 million in state funds to build the Falcons a parking deck.
And didn't they move the baseball stadium to the burbs, making it more difficult to reach via public transportation?
- The amount of public funding you can be eligible to receive is dependent on your performance in the post-season. Yes, you have to MAKE the playoffs before you're awarded any public funds.
- Poor performance in the regular season obligates a franchise to pay back a portion of any public monies received toward school art and music programs.
- If public funds are awarded to your franchise, a number of tickets for every home game - along with food vouchers - are to be set aside for poor and underprivileged families to attend.
- A verifiable local ID (Driver license) grants you 25% off ticket price of any home game.
Stuff like that.
I thought the move was very smart for the Braves, but stupid for Cobb county. The development around the stadium looks like it will be neat, but Cobb CO. got hosed by their commissioners.
Please note, I'm only half joking. There are only 3 cities in the US that wouldn't have to make huge stadium investments: LA (currently in the process of a major upgrade using private funds), NYC, and Atlanta.
This maybe the least literary LEoG. There are really only 2 references you should know Metroplis (movie) and The Great Dictator (movie). It was a little odd to have so much of the comic to draw inspiration from 2 movies.
There are 2 other literary references that have more to do with the first 2 Nemo books than Roses. One of the main antagonists to Nemo is Aeyesh (from She by HL Rider); I think she is also used in in the Black Dossier. The other is the Robur books by Jules Verne; Robur becomes an important figure to the Nemo family.
Interesting that the references are fewer and farther betweeen, but it makes sense that Robur plays large, as from what I know of the character, not having read those books, he seems very similar to Nemo, though with grander plans of destruction and conquest than Nemo, who was more of a revolutionary.
To be honest, I got a bit burned out on LoEG. I'm sure I'll get around to catching up on the series, but I'm not in a big rush to do so.
The whole public funding process for football stadiums is a sham (I cannot speak to baseball). You are getting 8 football games a year ( possibly a couple more with playoff games) and maybe two or three concerts a year. That is it. For millions of better spent elsewhere money.
As an Illinoisan, that pretty much screws all of the major sports teams except the Blackhawks. The lovable losers may not perform well, but they have a remarkably loyal fanbase that likes to attend games.
Generally the goal is to boost consumer sales, including hotel/motel and food/beverage reciepts. Incentive-izing local attendance over out of out of town attendance is somewhat counter to the intent and in the case of state dollar support, it's also effectively more harmful toward the balance of the state as the local businesses enjoy cheaper attendance and any economic boost to their business that might as a side effect to the venue.
I do like the set asides but I question this when compared to other areas - are government operated museums also required to provide set asides for under-privileged? I personally think that is a far more important resource to make accessible.
Our local small scale venue has taken things a bit of a different direction. They make all of their concession stands available to local non-profits. They provide one staff member to manage the stand. The stand is otherwise completely staffed by volunteers from the non-profit. A percentage of the revenue generated by that stand goes directly to the non-profit in question.
#@Torchsong problems
From Wikipedia about the Vikings new US Bank Stadium:
It's not quite the Buddhist/Taoist "Living Simple" concept, but it's just appreciating all the small stuff...
Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun.
And yes...it's pronounced Pee.
Two thumbs up.