The economy is a shambles.

Unemployment hovers around 10 percent by government estimates and gas prices are rising faster than the altimeter in the soon-to-be-retired space shuttle.

The states and the federal government are facing enough red ink to drown the world, as revenues sag and spending continues to increase as neither political party wants to be the one to cut off the tap of borrowed money.

The NFL and the NBA both face potential lockouts. The NBA has done it once, in 1999, and suffered heavily for it. The NFL has more to lose as the owners continue negotiations with the NFL Players Association to prevent a lockout that would be harmful to the league that makes $9 billion per year.

Dark clouds, yes. Sack-cloth dark, yes. Finding a silver lining in this morass is as difficult as trying to find a vegan at a barbecue festival.

But there is one positive development out of these ashes. Maybe all of this chaos will finally put a torpedo below the waterline into the horror of public financing of stadiums and arenas. We just can’t afford it.

The party is over.

For too long, mega-rich owners threatened, like kids holding their breath, to move their teams out if they didn’t get the gold-plated, revenue-generating monster stadiums of their dreams. Like the spoiled “princesses” of the awful MTV reality show, “My Super Sweet 16,” they want the best. And they want it now, courtesy of money harvested from you by your government.

Arthur Blank, whose Atlanta Falcons play in the Georgia Dome built in 1989, wants a new stadium and wants taxpayers to foot the bill with bonds. Never mind he once owned the massive home improvement chain, Home Depot and is a reputed billionaire. He just can’t be bothered to use his own money to build a stadium for his own team. Same with Minnesota Vikings owner Zygi Wilf, who is using the collapse of the Metrodome’s inflatable roof in a once-in-a-decade snow storm this past season to agitate for a new stadium. He’s a billionaire, too.

Rome built the Coliseum in 79 A.D. and it was used for gladiatorial contests until 435 A.D. In contrast, 22 out of the NFL’s 32 teams had a new stadium built in the past 20 years.

Guess they don’t make them like they used to. Or at least they don’t make them with enough luxury suites to bring in more cash for the team owner.

For years, owners told the people and their government that a new stadium generates new revenue thanks to fans — smitten with all of the bells and whistles bought with tax dollars — who visit the area around the stadium and spend money. But one doesn’t have to be a rocket scientist to realize that the average person isn’t going to make a special, extra trip to a stadium just because of a new LED ribbon board or new stand selling $10 beer —or some new revenue-generating luxury suites for plutocrats.

Even if it’s a new stadium in a new city, the economic activity just declines in the old city and migrates to the new one.

In the end, with sky-high ticket prices, personal “seat licenses,” parking fees and the rest, the only way the average fan can attend a game is to save up and go once a year, if they’re lucky.

Even if they’re footing the bill the other 364 days out of the year.

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Steve Wilson is sports editor of The Vicksburg Post. You can follow him on Twitter at vpsportseditor. He can be reached at 601-636-4545, ext. 142 or at swilson@vicksburgpost.com.