Theatres are dying in this country . Big, small, experimental, traditional , it doesn't matter. Everybody is feeling the pinch. Theatres are closing . Cast sizes are being cut . Ticket prices are being raised . Runs of shows are shortening . It's really,really, really bad . Funding cycles usually last 5-7 years. This is often driven by the multistage grant process, in which money is parceled out over a number of years. Seven years ago was 2001. After September 11th, a lot of individual donors decided (and I can't blame them) that they had more important funding priorities. Now, I happen to think that theatre is the soul of any society and that how we treat the theatre, and art in general, tells us a lot about the health of the country.
This is where I should mention that the Senate stripped 50 million dollars from the House version of the bill- money that was targeted for the NEA. Heeere's Johnny:
"$50 million in funding for the National Endowment for the Arts — all
of us are for the arts," McCain said. "Tell me how that creates any
significant number of jobs? After-school snack program is probably a
good idea. Do we really want to spend $726 million on it?"
http://www.politico.com/...
Yes, folks - the arts are the after-school snacks of America. As horrible as this may seem, it's not the bad part - nor is it the subject of this diary . The NEA has been the punching bag of the right for years, so of course that particular. 06% of the request (that's 50 million out of 800 billion) must go.
Unfortunately, that was just an appetizer. We have now reached the reason I sat down to to write this diary.
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Recently, the mayor of Las Vegas announced that he hoped that some of the Recovery and Reinvestment Act money that was to go to Nevada could help open a museum about the history of organized crime (very quickly dubbed the mob museum. ) This got to Mitch McConnell , who started jumping up and down about pork - and declaring that no money from the bill should go to fund "mob museums or waterslides." (huh? waterslides? wtf?)
http://www.lasvegassun.com/...
Now, the House had already put a section in their version of the bill, declaring that:
The bill provides that no funds can be used for casinos, aquariums, zoos,
golf courses or swimming pools.
What do they have against aquariums and zoos? Not a freakin' clue, here. Apparently they don't stimulate the economy. That's strange - tell it to the good burghers of Baltimore..
http://baltimore.org/...
It wasn't good enough for our boy Mitch, though. He still had his hate-on for museums - because all museums are mob museums, right? But Mitch wanted to be the front man. He didn't actually want to get his hands dirty and craft an amendment. Not nearly as much fun as talking. So he gave the job to his trusty sidekick, Tom Coburn, who craftily called it the Non-Stimulative and Wasteful Spending Amendment. Who's going to vote for wasteful spending, anyway? Here it is:
None of the amounts appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used for any casino or other gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, golf course, swimming pool, stadium, community park, museum, theater, art center, and highway beautification project.
That's right - the screw animals, culture, recreation and Lady Bird Johnson amendment.
But Brad, you say - such a wacky thing could not have possibly passed. I mean, the Democrats have 57 votes.
Not only did Senate Amendment 309 (the Coburn Amendment) pass, it passed 73-24.
Here's a list of the Democratic Senators who voted for it:
Sen. Max Baucus [D, MT]
Sen. Evan Bayh [D, IN]
Sen. Mark Begich [D, AK]
Sen. Michael Bennet [D, CO]
Sen. Jeff Bingaman [D, NM]
Sen. Sherrod Brown [D, OH]
Sen. Robert Byrd [D, WV]
Sen. Maria Cantwell [D, WA]
Sen. Benjamin Cardin [D, MD]
Sen. Thomas Carper [D, DE]
Sen. Robert Casey [D, PA]
Sen. Kent Conrad [D, ND]
Sen. Byron Dorgan [D, ND]
Sen. Russell Feingold [D, WI]
Sen. Dianne Feinstein [D, CA]
Sen. Tim Johnson [D, SD]
Sen. Amy Klobuchar [D, MN]
Sen. Herbert Kohl [D, WI]
Sen. Blanche Lincoln [D, AR]
Sen. Claire McCaskill [D, MO]
Sen. Jeff Merkley [D, OR]
Sen. Barbara Mikulski [D, MD]
Sen. Patty Murray [D, WA]
Sen. Ben Nelson [D, NE]
Sen. Bill Nelson [D, FL]
Sen. Mark Pryor [D, AR]
Sen. Charles Schumer [D, NY]
Sen. Debbie Ann Stabenow [D, MI]
Sen. Jon Tester [D, MT]
Sen. Mark Udall [D, CO]
Sen. Tom Udall [D, NM]
Sen. Mark Warner [D, VA]
Sen. Ron Wyden [D, OR]
Here's the full breakdown.
http://www.opencongress.org/...
What surprises me is that I see some true progressives and even a DKos hero(ine) or two on that list. Shocking and sad. This was not a vote on any particular program. It wasn't a vote to add anything into this bill. Rather, it's an absolute prohibition. No money from this bill could go to any organization that meets the above criteria.
Imagine that there is some money left in the bill for the State of Illinois ( this is just a hypothetical, so bear with me.) Imagine the Art Institute of Chicago is in negotiations to bring over a show of Ancient Greek sculpture from the Tate Gallery in London. Not only couldn't any money go to them to help finance the costs of the show ( even though it would be the only stop in North America and would bring tourists from all over the country) money could not be given to construction companies to reinforce the ceiling in the Art Institute so it could safely bear the load of the sculptures. That's the sort of stimulus no one considers when they say the arts aren't worth funding.
So, ideally I would love to get al of the language stricken from the final bill (though I can understand not giving taxpayer money to casinos.) However , I'm asking folks to call these Senators , and your Congresscritters , and try to make sure that the House language is the one used in conference . At the very least , let museums, theaters and art centers be allowed access to the money from this bill. Point out the stimulative effects. After going to the theatre , folks often eat out - or walk around the neighborhood and purchase goods in local shops. Either they take public transportation , giving money to the city , or they drive , either giving money to the city by parking on the street , or, more likely, helping a small business survive by parking in a parking lot. The art itself might not be a primary generator of funds - but it has huge secondary and tertiary effects in terms of bringing money to the neighborhood. Make the argument. Save the arts in America. Please .
If you're tired of calling - here's a petition to sign:
http://capwiz.com/...
Here are some talking points to help draft an editorial to your local newspaper
http://capwiz.com/...
Please Digg this, Stumble it , Buzz it , Facebook it - whatever social network you belong to. Let's get a movement going and make sure our leaders know there are folks who consider the arts to be a crucial investment in society.
We are the ones we've been waiting for - don't let the Philistines win again.