Friday, Feb. 04, 2011
A Community Affair
A lot of Americans like to say nasty things about socialism. And a lot of Americans like to say nice things about the NFL. But the league has perfected a sort of socialism; its revenue sharing model is a great leveler, unthinkable, say, in the soccer leagues of the more socialist nations of Europe. And the Packers are probably the most...community-oriented entity in the NFL. They are the only non-profit franchise in American sports; its fans, namely Green Bay residents, are stakeholders in the team, which is publicly owned. That sort of unique local engagement typifies Green Bay — the town is the Packers and the Packers are the town.