PEAK SPORTS SALARIES

10 comments

Posted on 1st June 2012 by Tampa Gold in Economy

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 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/9303708/NBA-star-DeShawn-Stevenson-installs-cash-machine-in-his-kitchen.html

I think that we are at the precipice of peak sports salaries. We have a failing economy, everyone is broke or they do not have the discretionary cash to attend sports events like in the past. Where the teams are going to get the money to pay those exorbident salaries is a mystery to me. You need steady revenue steams to accomplish that and with the consumer at the end of his rope, that’s not gonna happen.

Deshawn Stevenson….thank you for the eye opening hubris that was professional sports. I predict that you will be broke in less than two years from today.

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For the sports star who has everything there remains one tiresome problem – how do you get hold of your millions without having to leave the house?

Basketball player DeShawn Stevenson has come up with the answer and had a cash machine installed in his own kitchen, next to the toaster.
Stevenson, 31, who has earned more than $26 million so far in a 12-year playing career in the NBA, was so proud of his latest unique accessory that he posed for a photograph with it.
The 6ft 5 ins defensive player, who sports a large tattoo of Abraham Lincoln on his neck, is currently with New York team the Brooklyn Nets.
He previously played for teams in Utah, Orlando, Washington DC and Dallas. He was arrested last year for public intoxication in Texas.
It was not clear whether his free-standing cash machine will charge Stevenson and his friends a fee each time they use it.

SANTORUM SOLD HIS INFLUENCE FOR MILLIONS

27 comments

Posted on 8th January 2012 by Administrator in Economy |Politics |Social Issues

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It appears that losing his job as Senator from PA by 18% in 2006 was the best thing that ever happened to Rick Santorum. He sold his influence to the highest bidder. He declared during the debate that he got paid by multiple special interests because he had a passion for their causes. LOL. This guy was on the Board of Directors of a massive healthcare company. The Board of Directors of companies in America do nothing. They are chosen lackeys that do whatever the CEO tells them to do. They meet twice per year for one or two days. That is a fact. Santorum got paid $395,000 per year for this? NO. He got paid $395,000 to use his influence in Washington DC. He sold his soul for mammon. He is nothing but a whore, selling his influence to the highest bidder.

Post-Senate career has seen Santorum’s income soar

By ANDREW MIGA, Associated Press

Associated Press January 7, 2012 07:14 AM

Losing his Senate seat might have been the best thing that ever happened to Rick Santorum’s bank account.

In 2006, the Republican presidential hopeful earned about $200,000 from his Senate salary and book royalties. From January 2010 to August 2011, he earned at least $1.3 million as he cashed in on his 16 years in Congress by working as a corporate consultant, political pundit and board member.

The financial disclosure report Santorum filed last August shows how his income has changed. Many voters are taking their first hard look at the former congressman and two-term senator from Pennsylvania following his near-win in the Iowa caucuses.

Santorum’s resume contrasts with campaign rhetoric that casts him as an outsider who would shake up Washington. It also appears at odds with the image that Santorum stresses as a candidate with hardscrabble roots in blue-collar Pennsylvania and as the grandson of an Italian immigrant coal miner.

Much of the money Santorum earned in recent years was for his work as a board member for a large health care company and consulting for a Pennsylvania energy company and a Washington lobbying firm.

Santorum earned a $165,200 Senate salary and $32,245 in book royalties, according to his 2006 disclosure report.

At one time the No. 3 GOP leader in the Senate, Santorum was of comparatively modest means during his two terms. He has followed the same revolving-door path that many former members of Congress pursue when they move to the public sector, trading on his knowledge and political connections as a congressional insider with groups that advocate for corporations and other interests. He was not a registered lobbyist but served as a corporate consultant.

“It’s a well-worn path of former members of Congress using their former position in Congress to cash in,” said Melanie Sloan, director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. “It’s ironic that he portrays himself in his campaign as a Washington outsider. He’s a quintessential insider. He’s an incredibly rich, highly paid consultant.”

A Santorum campaign spokesman did not return messages Friday seeking comment.

Santorum’s service on the board of a hospital conglomerate provided much of his income in recent years.

Santorum reported receiving $395,414 in director fees and stock options from Universal Health Services Inc., a hospital management company. He left the board last year as he launched his presidential bid. Santorum listed between $100,001 and $250,000 in Universal Health stock.

Santorum’s consulting work earned him six-figure fees in recent years, his disclosure form showed.

Consol Energy, based in Pennsylvania, paid Santorum $142,500 for his consulting services.

Santorum reported that the American Continental Group, a Washington lobbying group, paid him $65,000 in consulting fees. The firm’s lengthy client list includes Microsoft Corp., Comcast Corp. and the American Gaming Association.

“The senator did general consulting and provided his advice and opinion on which way the Senate may go, based on his record in the Senate and his history in leadership,” said David Urban, president of American Continental Group. “He’s very smart tactically.”

Santorum left the firm last June when he formally began running for president.

Santorum also reported earning $125,000 for consulting work for The Clapham Group, a Virginia-based consulting firm that works with faith-based groups, among others. Clients include the American Bible Society and The Poverty Forum, according to its website.

Santorum’s earnings included payments from a conservative think tank and media outlets.

The Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington paid Santorum $217,385 as a senior fellow.

News Corp. in New York paid Santorum $239,153 for his appearances on Fox News Channel. Salem Radio paid Santorum $83,999 for his work as a radio talk show host. Santorum was guest host for “Bill Bennett’s Morning in America” radio show. The Philadelphia Inquirer paid Santorum $23,000 for columns he wrote for the paper.

Santorum’s income after he left the Senate helped him increase his investments and savings for his family. The disclosures don’t show specific amounts invested, but instead offer a range of values of investments.

The most recent form shows a series of new investment accounts, including college savings funds for five of his seven children with investments valued between $25,000 and $375,000; individual retirement accounts with investments ranging between $173,000 and $720,000; and a brokerage account with investments valued in the range of $10,000 to $150,000.

When he left the Senate, he reported retirement accounts with investments valued between $21,000 and $140,000.

His disclosure also shows more than $52,000 in cash in checking accounts.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2012/01/07/national/w004457S95.DTL#ixzz1isXxcGAC