Pro Athletes

As I have mentioned in the section entitled "Sports Salaries', I have a bit of a problem with them making so much money for doing so little. A personally think that if they really think they "deserve" millions of dollars to play a game, then they are a bit full of themselves. Now that I have said that, here is the other side of the coin. The wage they are paid is directly due to the market in which they are in. The out-of-control price that is paid to good athletes is not caused by themselves, but comes fromthe public involvement. Of course they are going to try and get as much as is possible for themselves. I would. Being a good role model for the millions of young kids who adore them is another way. That, in itself, might be worth their extreme salaries. I think it goes without saying that if these kids did not have idols in sports, then many more of them would be taking drugs, hurting people, causing mischief of all sorts, and mostly going astray. When they hear their pro idol say that he does not do drugs, does not steal, has high moral values, believes in God, and is all around a very decent person, then it will obviously  affect them in a positive manner. The pressure put on them, especially the very well-know ones, to be good role models is HUGE! If even one of them falters, millions of children and young people will see alot of their dreams go down with them. It DOES affect them that much! That's a lot of pressure. Many young ones just want someone to look up to. Someone they want to grow up to be like. What fits that mold better than anything; a professional athlete!

Of course, all over the world, are military people, who tune in to a huge amount of pro sports games of all kinds. Top of the list is basketball and football. It's a great break for them, and a chance to yell a little for their team, and have some fun. In some places, that's all they will have. I  was one of them for years, doing the same thing; waiting for the game to come on. So, they do have a big place in our society, being viewed by countless millions every week.

They are also under pressure to perform every game. They need to continue to play at a very high level, or else someone will come along and take their spotlight away. That means millions lost. Contracts and commercials lost. They must stay in the elite of their sport. Companies won't brand their name if they are not at the top of their sport. So do they earn their money? Aside from the money, and all that can get you, I don't think it's an easy life. But, some of of would gladly change places with them.

So here comes the respect part. If they are a top athlete, and work hard at their skill, they will get respect. It may not always come from the public, but respect from other players. But respect works both ways. I just read an article that was quoting Stephen Curry. I had lost respect for him when he was talking badly about the President, and doing his protest thing. I thought it was handled wrongly. But what he did in the article was to make it much clearer what he was really protesting. He also went on to say that everyone should respect and admire the people in the military, and that his protest had nothing to do with that. Well, he gained back alot of those respect points from me. Not that he cares at all what I think, nor do I care what he thinks of me, but if you multiply me times five million like me, then yes, he has a problem. Sometimes it's more of a misunderstanding or even a misquote that leads to these things.

Do pro athletes earn their money? Well, that's up to you to decide yourself. It's an easy decision for me. If they talk in a disrespectful way about their country, their flag, or their rights, then, no matter how great they think they are, they won't ever be on my "watch" list.