National Guard Buys Rights To Name Washington, D.C. Baseball Stadium!

[Itsthetruth]

CounterPunch
April 12, 2005

War Games and War Names
Why the National Guard Bought the Rights to RFK Stadium in Washington
By DAVE ZIRIN

Washington, DC

"It's a perfect marriage," bleated Washington, DC City Council member Vincent Orange. He was not talking about Charles and Camilla although the marriage in question is just as repellent. The unctuous Orange was celebrating the National Guard's proposed $6 million purchase of "stadium naming rights" for Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, home of Major League Baseball's Washington Nationals. According to the Washington Post this deal is all but certain. Now, in the middle of Southeast DC, the Washington Nats will come to you "Live from National Guard Field at RFK."

As recently as the early 1990s, the names of sports arenas still held pretensions of dignity, tradition, and a kind of bloated grandeur. There was Veterans Stadium, the Boston Garden, Memorial Stadium, Candlestick Park, Tiger Stadium, and the Spectrum.

Then, in the 90s, when by executive order all that was holy was officially profaned, new stadiums sprung like weeds with their "naming rights" sold to the highest bidder. The century old Tiger Stadium was abandoned to rot, for the sparkling new Comerica Park. The San Francisco Giants weren't playing at Candlestick. It was PacBell first, and now Barry Bonds will be chasing Hank Aaron's home run record in SBC Park. The Houston Astros were left with the most corporate egg on their faces, going from the Astrodome to being the home of the gloriously named Enron Field. After some unpleasantness ensued, they switched to the current Minute Maid Park, an unfortunate name when no player wants to be associated with "the juice."

We need to see this attempted name purchase for what it is: an act of aggression by a military bent on growth that's using sports as a platform to achieve its ends. If the name is changed, DC residents should approach the stadium the same way growing numbers of National Guardsmen are approaching being recalled for duty and say, "Hell No We Won't Go."

http://www.counterpunch.org/zirin04122005.html

[UTUSN]

1. So What Do They Want to Name It---"Private Never-Went RAYGUN"?

And what does THIS mean---in the context of "Help is on the way"?

"Recruitment is down more than 30%. Dissatisfaction among guard members is at an all time high. Lt. Lt. Gen. James Helmly, the commanding officer of the Army Reserve, said in January that the Guard and the Reserve are 'rapidly degenerating into a "broken" force.' "

[LisaM]

2. Where does the National Guard get $6 million extra dollars???

Is it taxpayer money? Money that should be spent helping their families while they're in Iraq?

[Reverend_Smitty]

3. Of course they want to re-name RFK stadium

he's a Kennedy and a liberal...therefore the memory of him must be erased

[tanyev]

4. And how does the National Guard have the money

to do this? Is this use of TAX DOLLARS for pathetic and ineffective propaganda?

[SaveElmer]

5. Correction...not the stadium

I believe they have this wrong. The National Guard is buying rights to the field name. It will be National Guard Field at RFK Stadium...I'll look for a link but I live in the area and that is what is being reported.

Here is a the link

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38489-2005Apr8.html

[FSogol]

6. That is correct. The $$$ are coming out

of their recruitment budget. I'll continue to call it RFK (Like I do for Washington National Airport). Should mean less money for the Guard to trick wanna-be college students into dieing over RW lies.

[Itsthetruth]

7. "National Guard Baseball Field" At RFK Stadium?

I believe other sporting events and activities are and will be conducted at RFK Stadium but perhaps someone from the area can give us information on that.

The National Guard is trying to buy right to pick a name which will be used by the Washington Nationals for their baseball field.

Here's the latest news on this.


Norton, Williams and Warner to Discuss Stadium Deal
Tuesday April 12, 2005

Washington (AP) - D.C. leaders are still hoping to reach an agreement with the National Guard on the naming rights for RFK Stadium. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton says she plans to meet with Senator John Warner on Capitol Hill this afternoon to listen to his concerns.

The senator - who chairs the Armed Services Committee - has expressed concerns about the deal, saying it's not the best way to spend the Guard's funds as it looks to increase recruitment.

Norton says she doesn't know what the outcome of the meeting will be, but notes that Warner is a good friend of the District. Mayor Anthony Williams, who hasn't yet spoken with Warner, says he's confident a deal can be worked out.

National Guard officials are also expected to attend Tuesday's meeting on Capitol Hill.

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0405/220195.html

[Itsthetruth]

8. Call It "Bush League Field"!

Bush league is a slang term meaning anything minor or second rate. In baseball it means the minor league baseball teams.

[Solly Mack]

9. No money for adequate health care and they are buying the right

to name a field?

the mind staggers...

[guntherconcept]

10. Long live the Expos!

I haven't followed baseball since the '94 strike that began the demise of the Montreal Expos. Since they couldn't move the team a few years ago as they'd planned, the owners adopted the strategy of making the team as unappealing as they possibly could to fans there. Firing a popular manager and getting rid of their best players were only opening acts to what they did the last 2 years, when they forced the Expos to play half their home games in Peurto Rico.

I would not watch another major league game if they thawed out Ted Williams head and attached it to Barry Binds steroid-laden torso.

[sbj405]

11. And they think this will some how help their dismal recruitment #s?!?!

Look at the wonders stadium rights did for MCI, CMGI, Enron, Fleet Bank, etc.

[tanyev]

12. Well, yeah.

I can assure anyone that cares that my decision whether or not to drink Minute Maid orange juice is not influenced in the slightest by the fact that there is a stadium by that name. I would hope that most people would put even more thought into a decision whether or not to join the National Guard than they do over which brand of orange juice to purchase.

[SoCalDem]

13. Wouldn't 6 million buy lots of equipment for soldiers??

what's wrong with this picture:eyes: