VFW Blasts Paid Patriotism in Sports
“Now Hear This”, VFW Magazine, February 2016
The Pentagon spent at least $ 6.8 million in taxpayer’s money on contracts with professional sports teams that were identified as staged patriotic events, over the last 4 years. Included were 18 NFL, 10 MLB, eight NBA six NHL and eight MLS games. Nascar,( $ 1.6 million), Indiana University, Purdue University and the University of Wisconsin also received money from the Defense Department.
NFL teams were the biggest beneficiaries, taking in millions. The Atlanta Falcons alone received $879,000.
Members of Congress who investigated this situation sponsored a bill calling for the teams to offer “an equivalent amount of funding in the form of a donation to a charitable organization that supports members of the armed forces, veterans and their families.”
Iraq War vet Will Bardenwerper spoke for many veterans when he wrote in a Washington Post editorial: “It is time to stop the perfunctory display of honor at our professional sporting events”