Who should pay $1.4 million tab for Jacksons funeral?
Picking up a $1.4 million tab has got to be difficult, especially for a funeral. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is doing the right thing in trying to end the debate over who should pick up the bill for police, traffic control and other city services used at Michael Jackson’s memorial service. He’s proclaiming that the city will pay the bill and shutting down a city Web site set up to request donations to help pay the costs. Villaraigosa said he won’t ask the Jackson family or AEG Live, the owner of the Staples Center where the event was held, to help the city recoup its expenses, according to an Associated Press story. “This is a world-class city, and we provide fire and police protection, period,” the mayor told AP. “The idea that we would charge the family for a funeral is nonsensical.” I agree. While the Jackson family, or MJ’s estate, may have the money for the extra police, a city the size of Los Angeles should have money in its budget for such events. While a pop king’s f
