The House That Loot Built

In the midst of a season-long celebration of storied Yankee Stadium -- arguably the most famous sporting venue in America outside of the Playboy Mansion -- let me ask this:

If Yankee Stadium is baseball's holy cathedral, then how come they're tearing it down?

Would the Roman Catholic Church build a new Sistine Chapel with luxury boxes?

(Oddly enough, I am reminded of Duane Thomas's seminal line before Super Bowl VI: "If it's the ultimate [game], then how come they are playing it again next year?")

Now, I was never a big fan of Yankee Stadium. Yes, the ballpark itself is marvelous, but the Yankees play there and Yankees backers congregate there. And, frankly, the splendor and majesty of Yankee Stadium is somewhat diminished when standing in a Yankee Stadium restroom next to a multitasking New York sports fan who insists on using a urinal and a cellphone simultaneously.

(I've never bought into the oft-stated notion that the New York sports fan is the most sophisticated in the world. Have you listened to New York sports radio? What, suddenly Joe from Saddle River is Gore Vidal Jr.?)

Anyway, The House That Ruth Built is in foreclosure.

Well, it's not exactly in foreclosure, but the 85-year-old facility doesn't generate enough millions. Sure, Yankee Stadium is a cash cow, but the new Yankee Stadium will be a cash cattle call. It will open in 2009, next to the old Yankee Stadium in the heart of the Bronx.

Once again, a community that needs better housing, better schools and better hospitals is being given a better stadium, partly subsidized by the community.

(For instance, the parking garages at the new Yankee Stadium are being financed by the public because, you know, the public needs a place to park, preferably at $25 a space.)

Honestly, do we need more stadiums? No.

Do we need more Starbucks? No.