GioBlog

Dallas: Think Small, or sometimes don’t even think at all

Coming back to Dallas on an American Airlines flight from London last week, upon landing a promotional video for the city of Dallas begin playing on the 777's video screens.

I've taken this flight many times in the past, but have never seen this video before.

The video was to promote Dallas' new public relations slogan: "Live Large, Think Big."

But when the words were pasted on the video screen, I heard titters on the plane, which reflected my reaction as well.

The reason is that Dallas most definitely does NOT think big, and this is the week we've all been reminded of that.

You see, Dallas, though no actions whatsoever of the its current or former elected officials, happens to be the home of one of the most storied sports franchises in the world, the Dallas Cowboys.

A couple of years ago, when Cowboys owner Jerry Jones approached the city with his proposal for an incredible new sports palace, he was given little more than a rude brush-off by the city's loser mayor, Laura Miller.

And several years before that, when the owners of the hockey and basketball franchises approached the city, they got almost the same reaction. But that arena got built somehow anyway, and it's become the centerpiece and anchor of a new urban revitalization that is going on in a former abandoned warehouse district just barely to the north of downtown.

What Jerry wanted to build was nothing short of the most amazing sports complex in the world. It will draw not only Super Bowls, but also political conventions, basketball tournaments, probably a BCS college bowl game--in short, a true economic magnet, and an architectural wonder.

It's nothing short of amazing. It will be one of the major draws in the entire nation.

And it's under construction, right now. But in Arlington, not Dallas. And all it took was a half-cent sales tax increase, which Arlington voters strongly endorsed before Dallas officials had a chance to recognize the magnitude of their mistake.

This week, the board of the Cotton Bowl voted to move the game from the historic Cotton Bowl stadium in downtown Dallas to the new Cowboys stadium, beginning in 2010. It was the right and the only rational decision.

But it's the end of a 70-year tradition in Dallas, and it didn't have to be. It's Dallas' fault. It's Laura Miller's fault.

This week begins the era of bashing Dallas Mayor Laura Miller, and she will be joked about and bashed in Dallas well after she has moved on out of office, and well after she moves on from this life.

She really should move to a different state when she leaves office. The appreciation of the magnitude of her incompetence will only grow with time.

You want an example? While Cotton Bowl officials were announcing their decision to leave Dallas, Mayor Laura Miller was thanking homeless people for their patience.

Dallas Mayor Laura Miller thanked the several homeless people in attendance for their patience, noting that the center has been discussed and debated for the last five years.