GOP Announces Convention Theme “We Built This” In Stadium Built With 62% Government Funds

www.thedailydolt.com...

Apparently rejecting a more controversial “You Didn’t Really Get Raped, Pregnant Lady” theme for its 2012 convention, the GOP has announced that its Tuesday night session will be themed “We Built This!” The sentiment serves as both a celebration of American entrepreneurship and an attack on President Obama’s previous comments to business owners.
...
However, the stadium where the GOP will be announcing “We Built This!” was financed primarily by the government. The Tampa Bay Times Forum arena, which houses the Tampa Bay Lightning, was built in 1996 as the “Ice Palace” with 62% government funds. The total budget for the project was $139 million, of which public money accounted for $86 million and team money accounted for $53 million.

Well...there ya go...talk about shooting yourself in the foot.

I just don't understand why some people think it is bad to get help, or why it is bad to say that government can do good things...like build roads, the postal system, and the create the internet. Or why it's bad to say that without some of these government funded programs, most businesses wouldn't be successful.

I have a business, I heavily rely on the internet, the highway system, and the postal service. Without those...I would not be able to conduct my day to day business.

The fact is, that everyone has been helped out by government programs...whether you want to admit it or not...it's true.

No the government didn't provide anything. They take our hard earned money and use it to do things. We still built it, not them.

They are really taking that out of context quote and running for their lives with it. It making them look pretty stupid IMO

Originally posted by WP4YT
No the government didn't provide anything. They take our hard earned money and use it to do things. We still built it, not them.

Sorry, but you didn't build the roads, or any other government funded program.

And I willingly pay my taxes so I can live in a better society...funny how you think the money is taken from you, but then still try to take credit for what is done with it

You can't build a highway system by yourself...a town can't build it by itself...a city can't...not even a state can...it takes the federal government to be able to build something of that magnitude.

So no, you by yourself didn't do anything..."us" collectively couldn't do it either without the help of a central government.

This is the thinking I don't understand...you won't even admit to basic facts...why is that???

The government took money from me in the form of taxes and gave it to a private construction money to build a stadium in Florida. And I'm supposed to thank the government for this!?!?

Click here for more information.

reply to post by OutKast Searcher


Um, stadiums and arenas get built all the time with no government funding. It's usually in places where there is enough public demand and private investors will see a return on their money.

reply to post by jjkenobi


With that reasoning, since you pay taxes, you are responsible for all the wars, innocent deaths, drone stikes, monitering of citizens and everything else we hate the government for doing. You are responsible for all that.

Originally posted by jjkenobi
The government took money from me in the form of taxes and gave it to a private construction money to build a stadium in Florida. And I'm supposed to thank the government for this!?!?

I don't know...do you do business in that stadium? Do you own a sports team? Do you own a concession in that stadium? Do you own a cleaning company that is contracted there? Do you own a television company that broadcast events there? Do you own a security company that provides security there? Do you hold conventions there? Do you own any business near there that benefits from the increased amount of potential customers there?

If any of those are true, and many more that I didn't list, then yes...you should thank the government for helping to build your business.

If not, then maybe you have enjoyed an event from there...attended or watched on TV a sporting event, seen a concert there, or maybe you will be watching the Republican National Convention there. If any of those are true, then yes...maybe you should thank the government for providing a venue where you can attend or watch events that interest you.

If none of those are true...then I'm sure there is another government funded project we can find that you particpate in and then you can thank them for that.

Originally posted by jjkenobi
reply to post by OutKast Searcher

 

Um, stadiums and arenas get built all the time with no government funding. It's usually in places where there is enough public demand and private investors will see a return on their money.

Well, I don't have the statistics or facts to know if that is true or not (do you?).

But in this case that really doesn't matter...the specific stadium WAS built with government funds...so the GOP looks a bit hypocritical with their them of "we built this".

"we built this"....oh, the irony. That is what Obama was saying! We built this....we (as in a nation) collectively.

Perhaps the Republicans should rethink their convention theme and call it "I built this"

Originally posted by jjkenobi
The government took money from me in the form of taxes and gave it to a private construction money to build a stadium in Florida. And I'm supposed to thank the government for this!?!?

The government where I am decided to sink 151 million in to a minor-league sports team. I'm sorry, I should rephrase that. The government took out 151 million in loans to build a stadium and then raised taxes to cover it when the return didn't work out as planned.

The government built that (mess).

reply to post by jjkenobi


Can you please provide proof of this? Every stadium and arena I have ever heard of being built, was built with a significant amount of public funding.

Here's the entire quote in case anyone wants to think for themselves or form their own opinion...

Look, if you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own. You didn't get there on your own. I'm always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart. There are a lot of smart people out there. It must be because I worked harder than everybody else. Let me tell you something -- there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.

If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you've got a business -- you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.

The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together. There are some things, just like fighting fires, we don't do on our own. I mean, imagine if everybody had their own fire service. That would be a hard way to organize fighting fires.

So we say to ourselves, ever since the founding of this country, you know what, there are some things we do better together. That's how we funded the GI Bill. That's how we created the middle class. That's how we built the Golden Gate Bridge or the Hoover Dam. That's how we invented the Internet. That's how we sent a man to the moon. We rise or fall together as one nation and as one people, and that's the reason I'm running for President -- because I still believe in that idea. You're not on your own, we're in this together.

Originally posted by LeatherNLace
"we built this"....oh, the irony. That is what Obama was saying! We built this....we (as in a nation) collectively.

Perhaps the Republicans should rethink their convention theme and call it "I built this"

yes, it is quite ironic that they don't understand that this is exactly what Obama was saying.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
Well...there ya go...talk about shooting yourself in the foot.

You missed the cherry on top of the sundae .... the theme is 'we built this' and there is a hurricane set to come through during the convention. I can just see the pictures now ... GOP signs saying 'we built this' all over the place ... in a building with no power and with structural damage from the storm. Seriously .. who the heck decided to have a major convention in Florida at the height of hurricane season? I understand it's a swing state and all ... but ....

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher

Originally posted by WP4YT
No the government didn't provide anything. They take our hard earned money and use it to do things. We still built it, not them.

Sorry, but you didn't build the roads, or any other government funded program.

And I willingly pay my taxes so I can live in a better society...funny how you think the money is taken from you, but then still try to take credit for what is done with it

Yes because I worked hard for that money. The government didn't. And I would have rather given my money to a private company whom I could hold them to their word to build roads, than to the government who usually just wastes most of it.

And I fail to see how it applies. My business doesn't use the roads, it's all online. And the government didn't invent the internet - remember, Al Gore did.

reply to post by WP4YT

Yes because I worked hard for that money. The government didn't. And I would have rather given my money to a private company whom I could hold them to their word to build roads, than to the government who usually just wastes most of it.

The highway system is a waste of money???

That is an odd position to take...but I guess whatever it takes to not admit you are wrong.

And I fail to see how it applies. My business doesn't use the roads, it's all online. And the government didn't invent the internet

Um, yes...the government did infact fund the research that resulted in the internet.

So yest...government helped build your business...you should thank them.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher

Yes because I worked hard for that money. The government didn't. And I would have rather given my money to a private company whom I could hold them to their word to build roads, than to the government who usually just wastes most of it.

The highway system is a waste of money???

That is an odd position to take...but I guess whatever it takes to not admit you are wrong.

No it's not, but no doubt the government wasted countless millions of dollars while making it. They are known for not being overly efficient. Just look at the city of Detroit, they are still paying $60,000+ a year for a horseshoer/blacksmith, even though they haven't had any horses for 40 years. Government is known for wasting and wasting money. And why not? It's not their money to spend, so why should politicians care how they spend it?

Private companies are a better solution, because you know they will not waste money they are spending on projects, since it's their money.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher

And I fail to see how it applies. My business doesn't use the roads, it's all online. And the government didn't invent the internet

Um, yes...the government did infact fund the research that resulted in the internet.

So yest...government helped build your business...you should thank them.

It's really impossible to say one way or the other. There were so many early prototypes of the internet from many different sources, such as private companies and universities to name a few.

reply to post by OutKast Searcher


What Obama said is truly disgusting, but the disgusting part was not the "you didn't build that" part, so not sure why that's what they ran with. Technically, they are the government, so they are correct, they did build it.