Hall of Blah, Blah, Blah
Well, it looks like the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame is going to get another hundred grand in taxpayer money from the General Improvement Fund for -- well, whatever the heck it wants. This is not a public agency. The appropriation doesn't even restrict the expenditure to development of the outfit's museum displays under eternal development in the Alltel Arena, a potentially worthwhile tourism purpose — but one that could be funded by this cultural committee handing out grants from real estate transfer tax proceeds, the ones they don't want the homeless to get for housing. This bill just hands over a hundred grand to a group that exists mostly to honor aging ex-Razorbacks with an annual cocktail reception. The outfit now has a foundation to raise money privately, but that mustn't be going too well, thus the taxpayers are forced into the breach. Sen. Salmon of NLR filed the bill, and, just now on the phone, didn't exactly overwhelm me with reasoning to justify such an appropriation. She got asked to put it in. The museum would be in her town. It's "Arkansas." Blah. Blah. Blah. Maybe the House will amend it at least to restrict the money's use to capital expenditures to erect the museum. Ideally it'd stomp the sucker flat. But I'm dreaming now. I'm coming next time with this Newspaper Hall of Fame — a hundred grand from your pocket to mine to throw an annual party honoring tired old journalists, present company included.