PERSPECTIVE: 110,000 Fans = $7,500,000

God bless you. Yesterday in St. Louis, MO over 65,000 people crowded into the football stadium and another 45,000 squeezed into the baseball stadium to watch their favorite players either hit people or baseballs. Innocent fun and games some would say. Perhaps, but at what cost? The average cost for a ticket to a NFL game in St. Louis is over $60. A baseball game ticket averages $30. When parking, refreshments, souvenirs and gas to get to the game are figured in; a single person ends up spending close to $100 to watch football or $60 to watch baseball.

110,000 people in one city in America obviously had a spare $60-100 per family member just laying around the house (or available on a credit card) to spend on entertainment. I would venture to say that of those 110,000 people, the vast majority would cry poverty if asked to give $75 to any upstanding charity helping the poor and needy. Such is the hypocrisy of Americans when it comes to their money.

If 100,000 people were to each give $75 to help the poor and needy that would amount to $7,500,000. That amount of money would purchase approximately 5,813,955 meals for starving children anywhere in the world. That amount of money would secure almost 950 semi loads of food and other vital supplies for places like Quemado, TX or Theodore, AL. That amount of money could erect 5000 square foot buildings to house outreach programs in 100 communities. That amount of money could pay to construct 500 homes for people who lost theirs in hurricanes or other storms.

$7,500,000 is quite a bit of money. Enough to pay a decent baseball player a year's salary (nowhere near enough to pay for a "star" player though). That's enough money to pay for one's favorite politician to parade around the country for a month. That's enough money to get an average actor or actress to star in a movie or television show for a season.

Americans spend, are you ready for this, over $50,000,000,000 (that's 50 BILLION dollars) per year gambling. That works out to almost $1,500,000 per day. Soooo,
to put $7,500,000 in perspective; it is how much Americans spend gambling in FIVE DAYS. Americans spend, are you ready for this, over $66,000,000,000 (that's 66 BILLION dollars) on CARBONATED BEVERAGES every year. That works out to 1.8 million dollars per day spent mainly on soda pop. That makes $7,500,000 seem, like pennies in your pocket.

If Americans gave to local charities anywhere near as much as they spend on carbonated beverages, then groups like mine would gladly cease to exist today. But, because most people's money is flushed down the toilets of gambling, addictions and entertainment; I will be around for awhile trying to get people to wake up and see their hypocrisy when it comes to spending money.

Till next time,

God Bless you and keep you safe,

Kirk