The Power of Sports on a City a Community

[Cajunsmike]

New Orleans is a city rich in culture and history. Granted the city has faults but I love spending time there soaking in the culture, history, and architecture.

I lived there for 20 years and agree that the cultural aspects of the city are hard for other urban areas to match. However, when it comes to raising a family, Acadiana has it beat hands down. Visiting it is great but although I enjoyed my time there, I am happy I no longer reside there. That aside, I do recognize that the New Orleans area contributes more to the economy of the state than most people from outside of the area appreciate. What most people don't understand is that not all of the economic contribution comes from Orleans Parish. It comes from Jefferson and St. Tammany where a large portion of the middle class resides. In fact, those areas dwarf Orleans Parish.

[CajunT]

_ STONE THE BALSPHEMER!!! LOL! We need the Saints from Shreveport to Lake Charles from Lafayette to New Orleans. I don't understand how folks don't get that. Also for you NOLA haters know that 75% of the states revenue from taxes came from NOLA but that was before Katrina. I'm not sure what it is today. Even if it is less you could come to the understanding that investing in NOLA is a good bet for the entire state not to mention it is the right thing to do.

With a rocking sports program at UL, Lafayette would be extremely attractive to college kids. Even without that kids I know go to avoid living in Baton Rouge for four years. On that I think we will all agree. _

"Also for you NOLA haters know that 75% of the states revenue from taxes came from NOLA but that was before Katrina."

You have a source for your opinion or statement? I find this number hard to believe considering 50% of the population lives below the poverty line. I also find it hard to believe since a large number of taxes generated in New Orleans, stay in New Orleans like local hotel taxes. Also remember this, the Saints 80 million dollar deal was great for New Orleans, but higher education faces over a 80 million dollar deficit right now. I don't think other areas in this state agree that it was a great deal for the state right now. And, in all other NFL markets, the franchise has a deal with the city, not the state.

I agree his comments were unfair in painting all of New Orleans with such a broad brush. But when it comes to the ratio of tax dollars sent to Baton Rouge and returned in funding projects, the Acadiana area gets far less then most areas in the state, including New Orleans.

[rhineaux]

_ Not talking about the people that work in the industry or technology or hell even mistakes of the past. What I was referring to was the way in which the oil industry operates. The oil industry breaks the law on a daily basis, the corporations are profit mongers, the communities that depend on them are always hurt when the bottom line comes into question. I did a study once in college and found out that for every job lost in the La. Oil Industry seven other jobs are lost in other La. industries. Louisiana is too dependent on a dirty business and everyone knows it. But hey were Louisiana and thats our modus operandi, god made dirt and dirt dont hurt, as long as it pays well. _

Where did you publish your research? I wouldn't mind reading it.

[RCAJUN90]

_ "Also for you NOLA haters know that 75% of the states revenue from taxes came from NOLA but that was before Katrina."

You have a source for your opinion or statement? I find this number hard to believe considering 50% of the population lives below the poverty line. I also find it hard to believe since a large number of taxes generated in New Orleans, stay in New Orleans like local hotel taxes. Also remember this, the Saints 80 million dollar deal was great for New Orleans, but higher education faces over a 80 million dollar deficit right now. I don't think other areas in this state agree that it was a great deal for the state right now. And, in all other NFL markets, the franchise has a deal with the city, not the state.

I agree his comments were unfair in painting all of New Orleans with such a broad brush. But when it comes to the ratio of tax dollars sent to Baton Rouge and returned in funding projects, the Acadiana area gets far less then most areas in the state, including New Orleans. _

T that is a rough figure that has been thrown around here on local news. Don't take the 75% as fact it is only about what I remember hearing. It is not unthinkable when you think about New Orleans being a top 10 American tourist destination. Think about the money spent on hotel rooms, food and sale taxes. Now how much of those tax dollars get thrown back to New Orleans I never heard but I would imagine it is a lot.

Personally I think one of the things that keeps Louisiana in dumps is all the division in the state. New Orleans is an important part of this state and investing in it is an investment in all of the state.

[CajunFreak]

_ Name another industry that price fixes on a routine basis only to generate "windfall" profits. I cant. _

Man you have no clue... I guess the oil industry is setting the current price of oil & n. gas this low just out of the kindness of their heart!

Compare the prices of every resource out there to oil & n. gas over the last 50 years or so and you will see that percentage wise the oil companies or actually not nearly the bad guys you and the national media make them out to be.

People like you do not comprehend what is involved to explore, drill and produce both oil & n. gas. You think we just stick a hole in the ground and the stuff just comes pouring out. We are talking about two of the least abundant resources’ out there and people complain about $3 gas prices all the while paying $1.20 for a 20 oz. bottle of freaking water. Oh by the way water happens to be one of the most abundant resources on earth.

[Cajunsmike]

_ Man you have no clue... I guess the oil industry is setting the current price of oil & n. gas this low just out of the kindness of their heart!

Compare the prices of every resource out there to oil & n. gas over the last 50 years or so and you will see that percentage wise the oil companies or actually not nearly the bad guys you and the national media make them out to be.

People like you do not comprehend what is involved to explore, drill and produce both oil & n. gas. You think we just stick a hole in the ground and the stuff just comes pouring out. We are talking about two of the least abundant resources’ out there and people complain about $3 gas prices all the while paying $1.20 for a 20 oz. bottle of freaking water. Oh by the way water happens to be one of the most abundant resources on earth. _

I wonder if CajunHawk is still under the impression that a gusher has to occur for us to realize we have made a successful well. I wonder if he can define pore pressure, interpret seismic, estimate recoverable reserves, generate a casing design, or determine if a zone is productive from reviewing a log. Of course most of you probably don't have any idea what these things mean. However, these are things very bright people in the industry do every day after years of training. Guess what, quite a few other intelligent people can't do it either as the technical reasoning required is fairly high and many people who attempt to pursue this path can't cut it. Almost everyone who does this has studied college physics, chemistry, calculus, differential equations etc. Things I described are just some of the office tasks. Executing drills and handling production out in the field requires just as much skill and safety has to be accounted there. Point of all this is to illustrate my point that most people have no concept of what it takes to be successful in the business. Dollars involved are also beyond what most people can conceive. My current project involves replacing platforms/wells lost to hurricanes and the price tag is roughly a quarter of a billion. That is relatively cheap as water depth is less than 300 feet while a similar project in the deep waters could be well over a billion. End of rant.

[Hammer58]

_ Name another industry that price fixes on a routine basis only to generate "windfall" profits. I cant. _

Define "windfall profit". Ihear that term thrown around a lot by those oppossed to the oil & gas industry but have never seen it defined. The lefties like to throw out the total dollar figure made by the O&G industry but they never want to discuss the dollars expended to find and produce that product. I bet if we compare expenditures to income we will find many other eenterprises that generate a greater windfall in terms of expense versus income. Without having done any hard research, I think it would be a safe bet that Oprah, Tom Cruise and many of the other liberal elites (especially the windbags in the Congress) would generate a much larger "windfall profit" as a percentage of the expenditure to generate their "product".

And before you go railing against the oil & gas industry you might want to take a look around at your own life and see how many products and essential itmes in your life are made with or depend on the energy and pertochemical industry for their existence. Unless you are willing to give all of that up you are a hypocrite.

[CajunSaint]

_ Define "windfall profit". Ihear that term thrown around a lot by those oppossed to the oil & gas industry but have never seen it defined. The lefties like to throw out the total dollar figure made by the O&G industry but they never want to discuss the dollars expended to find and produce that product. I bet if we compare expenditures to income we will find many other eenterprises that generate a greater windfall in terms of expense versus income. Without having done any hard research, I think it would be a safe bet that Oprah, Tom Cruise and many of the other liberal elites (especially the windbags in the Congress) would generate a much larger "windfall profit" as a percentage of the expenditure to generate their "product".

And before you go railing against the oil & gas industry you might want to take a look around at your own life and see how many products and essential itmes in your life are made with or depend on the energy and pertochemical industry for their existence. Unless you are willing to give all of that up you are a hypocrite. _

just a question about your last assertion: why do we have to be so dependent on this resource at all? why can't we develop alternatives rather than being always held hostage by one single resource? i agree that we depend on the petrochemical industry for much of what we take for granted in our lives. but, let's be realistic, we saw this train of over-dependency on a non-renewable resource coming down the track a long time ago. why did it take so long for us to develop some sense of urgency, if we have developed one at all. not arguing; merely musing.

[VObserver]

_ just a question about your last assertion: why do we have to be so dependent on this resource at all? why can't we develop alternatives rather than being always held hostage by one single resource? i agree that we depend on the petrochemical industry for much of what we take for granted in our lives. but, let's be realistic, we saw this train of over-dependency on a non-renewable resource coming down the track a long time ago. why did it take so long for us to develop some sense of urgency, if we have developed one at all. not arguing; merely musing. _

To answer the question: It did not take long. 30 years ago there was extensive testing done on geopressure and geothermal resources for energy production right here in Louisiana. Nuclear power was introduced to generate electricity almost before the mushroom cloud dissipated over Nagasaki. Hydroelectic power was widely implemented during the Great Depression. Wind and/or water powered tubines have been providing significant sources of clean and renewable energy for over 600 years. The freaking street cars in New Orleans and subways in most major cities have used electricity since the beginning of time. [Now, that electricity has been produced by gas or coal fired plants, but that is not the fault of the technology, and the opportunity is there to use nuke or hydro.]

The problem is not the lack of available technology: the problem is the morons in government who block TVA from building the largest power station in their system because it will destroy the habitat for a fish that NO ONE had ever heard of until the stoppage [the snail darter]. Or the ones who do not allow the construction of new nuclear powerplants in the US or of new hydroelectric plants in California, but DO allow the building of a natural gas fired plant near Eunice [which uses our drinking water aquafer for freaking cooling water!!!] to send electricity to California. Or the ones who will not allow the building of a wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts, and who now want to block new wind farms in other areas because of a perceived [though not real] danger to birds.

There is also a lack of understanding in the general public that virtually ALL serious research into alternative energy is either done by or funded by Energy companies [Exxon/Mobil, Chevron Texaco, T-Boone Pickens folks, Amoco/BP], or companies that make Energy producing/using products [GE, ABB, etc].

And the public also doesn't understand that research costs must be recouped; that EVERY energy source has hidden costs, economic and environmental; or that Industry as a whole has a right to a reasonable return on investment.

Then again, the public also doesn't understand that just about the most barren environment on earth is a mature stand of virgin redwoods; while one of the most vibrant, life-filled and dynamic environments is a forest 5 years after clear cutting or major forest fire, but that's another topic.

Government talks: Industry does.

[CajunSaint]

vo, you make some good points with your historical references. i vividly remember the snail darter controversy. and i realize how long we have been aware of the power of water. my question still remains: why are we, in the year of our lord, 2009, still so overly dependent on a resource that we will eventually go to war for, if we have'nt already? i realize that the petro corps. are all into alternatives. but do you really think they're in a big rush to develop a source that will supplant oil? gradually, over a period of time, yes. but now? i don't think so. unless it looks like someone will beat them to the punch. fusion? anyway, good dialogue. you and hammer have me thinking. just when i have the mets, nuggets, and college softball on the tube.