Observations, again

With apologies to Janis.

Lord won’t you buy me a new quarterback
my friends all have Bradys’ leading their pack
we work hard in the off-season, but can’t get on track
Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a new quarterback.

They started the NFL draft this weekend. Hundreds of young men became rich with a phone call. Ditto for their agents. Mommas all over the country realized the fulfilled promise of their big Herculean boy buying them a new house.

And on draft day, God saw that it was good for almost every player drafted early. Crazy thing this God does, getting involved in the selection of potential star players for 32 companies built around 16 weeks of 4-quarter games often decided by the tick of a second or the measurement of an inch.

To listen to the newly commissioned millionaire football players, God is the primary cause for their unique spot in life.

“I just wanna first give the glory to God for bringing me to this place in life,” said just about every dang one of the first-round draft picks.

OK, that’s not an exact quote, but it’s close. And this is not to challenge faith or any belief that God has allowed someone to run a 4.6 second 40-yard dash with legs that support a 6-foot, 6-inch frame capable of causing bones to shatter and millions of dollars in endorsements to flow like milk and honey. Seeing your bank account grow by millions of dollars in just a few seconds can be as moving as a religious experience, but does God get all the credit?

They say for every first-round draft pick there are thousands of young men whose NFL draft dreams never materialize. Do you ever wonder what those young men are saying on their first day as a host at Red Lobster?

“I just wanna first give the glory to God for bringing me to this place in life.” Probably not.

But maybe God is a purist fan of the gridiron game, and as such he insists on the game not being diluted by folks whose only talent is the ability to pray and have faith for a better life. That makes sense. You can almost hear God saying, “He sure does a lot for the church and has brought hundreds to our camp, but his vertical leap sucks.”

They say there are millions upon millions of possible life-supporting planets in the trillions upon trillions upon trillions of star systems in the ever-expanding universe. Is it possible that just a few million of those planets have a civilization supporting a similar process to inject the younger of the species into the high-profile madness of a violent sport? And is it possible that God is keeping tabs on the sports business of all those planets? Sure. God is God.

God is certainly all-powerful, but you’d think he’d have a favorite. The New Orleans Saints come to mind.

Sam the sports channel expert: “We can’t figure it out, Bill, but all the top round picks have been passed over and released to the New Orleans Saints.”

Bill the former coach: “It’s crazier than that Sam. We’ve just learned that all the other NFL teams have fired their star players and hired former winners of hot dog eating contests.”

Sam: “This doesn’t make sense!”

Bill: “It does if God is involved.”

THE NEW GUY
The Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce recently hired Paul Harvel as the new chamber president. One of the more frequent questions posed to The City Wire is: “Is this a good hire?”

Yes and If.

Harvel has a gazillion years of chamber experience. The Fort Smith chamber staff has been decimated by more than five years of horrific management. To say the chamber staff has suffered in the past few years from a lack of solid leadership is to say that the Arkansas River rolls east.

Harvel can and will return the chamber to a respected — if not the most respected — business organization in the state. His track record is solid and without equal in this area. If you’re looking for a chink in his armor, you’d save time by looking elsewhere. He has direct connections to business and political leaders at state and national levels. Harvel’s phone calls to Washington and Wall Street get answered promptly.

If it was the goal of the chamber executive committee and board to return the chamber to a functioning organization, they get an A+ for effort.

The “If” part comes when considering economic development and staff recruitment.

Harvel’s success in creating solid organizations largely hinges upon his ability to pull together a solid staff. If the chamber board does not give him full support — money to hire experience and support in expelling existing non-performers — in pulling together a crack staff, then the game changes. Harvel will need a quality staff to restore the organization and to conduct progressive economic development. He is good and has much experience, but he alone does not have the force of character to make such things happen.

The word on the street is that Harvel, who is 65-plus years old, was hired with his promise that he’d hire a solid No. 2 person to take over in a few years so the chamber would have, for the first time in a long time, continuity of leadership.
Therefore, the “If” portion of the answer is Harvel is a good hire if he and the board find a good person for the succession plan.

MARSHALS MUSEUM
Building or monument design that elicits strong emotion usually results in long-term success. Which is why we should be encouraged by the design unveiled for the U.S. Marshals Museum to be built in Fort Smith.

But before we consider the design, let’s clarify one point.

The $50 million the museum board needs for the project is not the cost of the building. That cost is likely to be between $30 million and $40 million. Also, that money is not coming entirely from the Fort Smith region. This is a national museum. Individuals, corporations and governments around the country will contribute to the cause.

But, AND NOW HEAR THIS, the economic benefits of the museum will indeed benefit the Fort Smith Region. So, consider this for a trade: We (local, regional and state dollars) pay less than 25% for the museum but receive 100% of the economic benefit. If that’s not a good deal for all us, then the laws of economics are upside down.

As to the design, the emotional response never found home in the middle ground. Folks either loved it or hated it; which is exactly the reaction any good architect seeks.

To bring the Marshals Museum to Fort Smith is important. But to do that with design that stretches the imagination and pushes emotional buttons greatly magnifies the importance of the museum with respect to improving the cultural and economic future of the region.

Folks who look at the museum and argue about the Marshals star-design influence miss the point. Call me crass and superficial, but I look at the design and see nothing but dollar signs.