Have you ever wanted a shiny toy so badly that you make a bad decision... a decision you know is bad even as you're making it? It would be as if I went out and adopted a dog while living in my studio apartment... or it would be like trusting Chicago politicians as they put you (the taxpayer) on the hook for any Olympics cost overruns.
That's the situation we find ourselves in as the IOC nears a decision on who will host the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Last week, after years of promising that taxpayers would not bear a financial risk if Chicago is awarded the Olympic games, Mayor Daley caved to pressure from the IOC and gave his word that Chicago would backstop any potential Olympic losses.
Perhaps if Chicago were an efficient city government with a track record of good government, that might not be such a disconcerting guarantee, but Chicago is what Chicago is. If we win the bid, I can just see the next seven plus years of headlines announcing corruption in the Olympic preparations, cost over runs, revised budgets, etc.
All of that said, I still try to tell myself that the infrastructure improvements will be worth the hassle and the deceit. Chicago is the city that works, after all. Still, when it comes down to it, if I'm honest, I want the Olympics in Chicago because I love sports and having the Olympics on my front porch would be totally awesome. Plus, I'd have an extra week of vacation by the time 2016 rolled around.
Go Chicago!
