Hawaii Governor Doesn't Want to Pay the NFL for Pro Bowl

Yesterday, Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie came out against another form of public payment to the NFL, and said it was stupid that the state paid the NFL $4 million to host the Pro Bowl. Wait, they paid the NFL for them to come out and play touch football in front of about 20,000 people? Stunning in the first place. And yes, stupid. The article mentions some economic impact from the 17,000 people who come to the game–though it doesn’t mention the breakdown of those not belonging to player entourages. I’m skeptical of economic impact claims about how much sporting events impact communities anyway, but surely there is no one, other than those tied to the NFL, who goes to Hawaii with the sole purpose of seeing the Pro Bowl. I could see getting away from the cold, and maybe catching the game out of boredom and to rest your elbow in the middle of a week of golf, but that’s about it.

Governor Abercrombie seems similarly unimpressed with the potential loss of not paying the NFL to play a game that makes professional wrestling seem unscripted. And he’s already got a plan to replace any lost income from men in football pants and colorful headgear no longer coming to the island. “Oh please. We’ll get more out of [same-sex] civil unions in a weekend then we’ll get out of those guys.”

[photo via Getty]