First of all, for the record, I am not a paid consultant, vendor, contractor or sub contractor on anything having to do with the Olympics.

Secondly, there is no doubt that there will be those who make profits as a result of us getting the games, but the benefits for the city and country as a whole outweigh the costs, nor should we be concerned and consumed with the idea that some will profit. At the same time we must be careful to minimize any harm to anyone.

The probability of Barack Obama being re-elected in 2012 despite the economic challenges he inherited ( and which will probably not be overcome by then), means that the Olympics will be held in the last year of his Presidency.

For those who cherish the ideal of world peace, having the Olympics here in Chicago with our first African American President whose career was born and matured in this city harkens back as a complete reversal of the Berlin Olympics of 1936, which did have one great highlight: the victories of black Chicagoans Jesse Owens and Ralph Metcalfe.

Sullivan and Burnham, Pritzker and Driehaus, Ying and Yang, the Columbian Exposition and the 2016 Olympics. Make no small plans!

And by the way, due to both pre and post game tourism, of benefit to every region of our nation, you can be sure that a large portion of the funding will ultimately come from the feds in legal ways which will have long term benefits.

As effectively as I can I am spending as much of my time between now and October pushing for the games for Chicago and hoping that Mayor Daley and the 2016 Committee listen carefully to the critics and act upon their legitimate concerns. With the watchful eyes of Forrest Claypool, Toni Preckwinkle, Mike Quigley and others I am sure that the 2016 Games will be among the best.

I hope the naysayers do not win, but their strong points heeded.