I didn't want to do it, I didn't want to cover the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium. Mainly because anyone that watches any of the sports channels or any of the NBC network has seen plenty of Jerry Jones and the Palace in Dallas (as some call it).

This $1.15 billion (yes, with a B) stadium is the definition of opulence, as it boasts a high-end steakhouse, tex-mex food, and something called a Cowboyrito. If you are thirsty, you can drop 12 bucks on a Patron margarita in the club lounge, or you could try a frozen Cowboyrita for 14 bucks (Cowboyrita? Seriously?).

I found it very interesting reading the Bloomberg article covering the stadium, especially when they estimated that it will cost $200 per person to go to a game. Yes, that is an average and it takes the high-end tickets into account, but I would be interested to see how much it costs for other teams. We the fans can't afford to go to these palaces and enjoy a game thanks to the ticket prices. I would love to see a game in Dallas Stadium, the new Yankee Stadium, or Citi Field in New York -- but I have a mortgage to pay.

So, a week ago, I decided to tackle the NFL's blackout policy, basically arguing that the current economic situation warrants the lifting of this archaic rule. That said, the topic has been in the collective conscience this week, what with the NFL kicking off on Thursday.

What is interesting is that several teams (including the Arizona Cardinals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and my Cincinnati Bengals) have been granted a 24-hour extension to get these games sold out. Typically, a team needs to be a couple of thousand tickets away from a sell out in order to get such an extension. I wonder first if this extension may have been made to placate the teams more than to allow the fans another day to get the games sold out.

This post is part of our feature on Money Losers of 2008. See all 20.

It's hard to dispute the fact that 2008 has been a lousy year for singer/actress, Jessica Simpson. She entered the year with her new beau, Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys, and was immediately blamed for his troubling performance on the field. The release of her feature movie, Blonde Ambition, went straight to DVD without even blinking. Her debut into the country music realm has all but fallen flat. The kindest professional critique of her maiden country album, Do You Know, referred to that effort as "solid yet simple." The reviews go steeply downward from there.

In defense of the minx with the jinx, I think Jessica Simpson has been mistreated a bit. I mean, blaming her for the flat performance of Romo's Cowboys just isn't fair. But then again, we Packer fans know that those Cowboys are just loaded with handy excuses. It's just a powerful shame that they had to make Jessica Simpson one. Perhaps it's due to the shock of no longer finding Brett Favre at Lambeau Field.

As far as Jessica Simpson's acting career, I thought we had settled that issue with The Dukes of Hazard. As a matter of fact, I thought we settled it with her Pizza Hut commercial. You know, that's the commercial where they made her come out and say "Hi, Yaw" as if it was something she would normally say. Worst of all, they used the cut where her telltale neck tick makes her whole head jerk to the side. I suppose I need to reissue my "Jessica is not an actress" memo to Hollywood.