Craig Depken reports that the folks shilling for a new stadium for the Dallas Cowboys have now resorted to the "for the children" strategy. He writes:

One [pro-stadium mailer] saying a vote for the stadium is a vote for the children of Arlington. Why? Because the Cowboys will give $500,000 per year to local youth sports programs for the next thirty years. The donations are not indexed to inflation, so assuming 3% inflation the $500,000 contribution in 2034 will be worth about $205,000.

This is spot on, but it misses a bigger point. The Cowboys stadium will cost something like $300 million dollars. If the pro-Cowboys folks are so concerned about kids then wouldn't the $300 million work out to $10 million per year for 30 years. In other words, there would be 20 times more annual funding available for kids if the stadium is not constructed. (One caveat: Texas law might limit the use of tax revenue in ways that would prohibit a "for the urchins" tax referendum.)