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OpinionSUNDAY NIGHT-Take me out to the ball gameIt bothered me that, while the people of the state said ìnoî to spending tax money on a new baseball stadium, the legislators spent time and money to come up with a package during the recent session anyway. ìNoî seems to be a difficult word to understand. And donít kid yourself, we will spend plenty of tax dollars on any stadium that gets built. Now, as if thatís not enough for the Twins, theyíre crying because they want a retractable roof, another $80-$100 million. I just find all this hullabaloo over baseball deplorable when people are walking the streets with no place to call home. The truth is, I havenít attended many Twins games. It really gets to be quite an expense: tickets, parking, stress of driving into Minneapolis, having to take out a loan to make a trip to the concession stand, etc. And I havenít watched much of them on TV. To me, there is nothing more boring than watching the sport of baseball on TV. The Twins and professional baseball are fine, but theyíre not the only game around. If you want to see some exciting baseball, you should get out to the high school fields. Our teams may not always win, neither do the Twins. The air is fresh, the price is right. The small, but enthusiastic crowd in the bleachers cheers on the kids and thereís pride in seeing the boys grow and mature in their sport. The same is true about girls softball. In fact, if youíve got some spare time in the afternoon or evening, high school sports are a fine way to enjoy the outdoors and community fellowship. When was the last time you witnessed the thrill of victory in a close 100-yard dash? And the kids? Well, they get pumped up when folks actually come out to see them play. Win or lose, this is hometown sports, the best kind, and you donít have to pass legislation to make it happen. Play ball! ©ECM Post Review |