NFL in L.A.

* Re “NFL Spurns L.A., Votes to Put New Team in Houston,” Oct. 7: Houston won the bidding contest over L.A. for a new National Football League team. The NFL was using the threat of a high L.A. bid to jack up the price Houston paid for the honor. The NFL strategy was both brilliant and successful.

The local L.A. millionaires and political leaders got sucked into this bidding contest and wasted their time, energy and money. The next time the NFL comes looking for a patsy to jack up another city’s bidding, we should tell these millionaire owners “no, thank you.”

Frankly, I feel like a winner. At least we did not put up $300 million of public money for a stadium that would further enrich a millionaire owner but probably never pay back the public money invested.

LARRY BURKS

San Pedro

* Kudos to our local politicians for staying the course with the NFL. They have been perceptive enough to realize that this musical chairs with sport franchises will be played over and over as long as the taxpayers carry the load. The NFL needs Los Angeles more than we need them. They will be back again and again. It seems as long as we have such a large TV market, we will never be lonely.

LARRY ZINI

Camarillo