Whenever they's a cop beatin' up a guy at a basketball exhibition, I'll be there

We may all be circling the economic drain, but the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona is doing just fine thanks to spring training facilities and the wider world of sports:

Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs said the city's emergence as a sports mecca -- with new stadiums for the Arizona Cardinals and Phoenix Coyotes, more baseball teams for spring training and now USA Basketball -- is particularly helpful during these tough economic times. Sports teams bring in tax revenue, she said. "Anything we can do to stimulate new spending in this area, in this state, during these very difficult times is a very positive thing," Scruggs said.

She said the sports teams draw visitors "and when people come to the Valley -- particularly when they're traveling from out of state -- they're staying in hotels, they're eating in restaurants and they're shopping in our stores." Meanwhile, Glendale leaders hoped to find out Wednesday that the city will host college basketball's "Final Four" sometime soon. The National Collegiate Athletic Association is planning to announce its host cities for 2012 through 2016. Glendale is one of 10 cities in the running.

If things get much worse back east they'll be updating The Grapes of Wrath. Except instead of displaced Okies getting into their jalopies and heading to California to pick fruit, it will be laid-off investment bankers getting into their station cars and heading to Glendale to sell concessions.