LEAVE IT TO THE GOVERNMENT TO LOOK A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH

The business consultant Peter Drucker said that what we call management consists of making it difficult for people to get their work done. If I were to apply this to government, I could say it consists of making it difficult to conduct business. ESPN recently did an exposé on the charitable giving of the PGA Tour and noted that a watchdog group gave them a zero rating because they don’t give enough to the charities they support. The basic issue comes down to the fact that the PGA Tour gets tax-exempt status, and according to the report, they have been able to avoid $200 million in taxes over the past 20 years. The fact that the tour has raised over $2 billion for charities appears to mean nothing. Now, some of our so-called astute leaders in Congress want to take away the Tour’s tax-exempt status. Don’t they have more important things on their plate? A quote from the watchdog group:  “The lion’s share of the money is going to big prizes, cash prizes for athletes, and all the promotion around it, so it’s really pathetic, actually, every single taxpayer in this country ultimately is bearing the burden of having to pay the taxes for this wildly inefficient organization that’s giving so little to charity.” This makes no sense. The PGA Tour is a business. Their primary function is entertainment, at which they do a pretty good job. Each event is a major undertaking that supports a significant number of big and small businesses. The fact that the tour has decided to help charities is a bonus. I would also bet that the taxes paid by all the people employed by the tour to run each tournament and those paid by the athletes far exceed the annual exemption the tour receives. Didn’t Phil Mickelson say he pays 65% of his income in taxes? I don’t feel the burden and neither should the government.