Are salaries too high for athletes?
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fbmandy55
Posts: 5,263 Member
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/8163701/sources-drew-brees-new-orleans-saints-agree-record-contract
Does it disgust anyone else that athletes are signing $100 million dollar contracts when police, firemen and military members put their lives on the line for citizens and struggle? Doesn't that speak loudly about our priorities?
Not to mention they make up for these salaries by charging $200 a ticket for a football game..
Does it disgust anyone else that athletes are signing $100 million dollar contracts when police, firemen and military members put their lives on the line for citizens and struggle? Doesn't that speak loudly about our priorities?
Not to mention they make up for these salaries by charging $200 a ticket for a football game..
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its supply and demand. how many people in the world can play QB as well as Brees? 3? 4? how many people can be a fireman, police etc...? lots
they charge 200 for tix because people will pay it.0 -
its supply and demand. how many people in the world can play QB as well as Brees? 3? 4? how many people can be a fireman, police etc...? lots
they charge 200 for tix because people will pay it.
Even I tend to favor Drew Brees (Purdue Grad and I live in Purdue town).. Still, I don't think ANYONE in the world, regardless of what they do, is worth $100 million dollars.0 -
its supply and demand. how many people in the world can play QB as well as Brees? 3? 4? how many people can be a fireman, police etc...? lots
they charge 200 for tix because people will pay it.
This exactly.
I feel like its a bit ridiculous but it is what it is. I don't lose any sleep over it. Hey, if I was a superstar athlete I'd enjoy the millions too.0 -
Also, I look at the large salaries the way I look at the lucrative retirement packages of Firemen, EMTs, and Police. If you can make it that long, you deserve it. Football is incredibly taxing on the body to the point that the average career is less than 5 years but the effects of that five years can follow them for the rest of their lives.0
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its supply and demand. how many people in the world can play QB as well as Brees? 3? 4? how many people can be a fireman, police etc...? lots
they charge 200 for tix because people will pay it.
Even I tend to favor Drew Brees (Purdue Grad and I live in Purdue town).. Still, I don't think ANYONE in the world, regardless of what they do, is worth $100 million dollars.
So people like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs etc..shouldnt be worth 100 mil when they create companies that worth untold billions?
and the NFL is the most financially succesful leage in the world(all 32 teams are in the top 50 most valuable worldwide) there is too much money involved for the athletes to not make that kind of money.0 -
its supply and demand. how many people in the world can play QB as well as Brees? 3? 4? how many people can be a fireman, police etc...? lots
they charge 200 for tix because people will pay it.
Even I tend to favor Drew Brees (Purdue Grad and I live in Purdue town).. Still, I don't think ANYONE in the world, regardless of what they do, is worth $100 million dollars.
So people like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs etc..shouldnt be worth 100 mil when they create companies that worth untold billions?
and the NFL is the most financially succesful leage in the world(all 32 teams are in the top 50 most valuable worldwide) there is too much money involved for the athletes to not make that kind of money.
Steve Jobs took a $1 salary, just enough to remain on the insurance plan. Most of his money was from expense accounts for travel, etc..
The NFL is only successful because it's ripping people off. Teams are threatening to 'blackout' games to sell tickets, newer stadiums are in financial distress. They are paying these player ridiculous salaries and it hits directly in the pocket of anyone who goes to a game from the ticket to the $10 beer.
I'm all for free enterprise, I'm all about people making money. I think it just speaks loudly of the people's priorities.0 -
Steve Jobs took a $1 salary, just enough to remain on the insurance plan. Most of his money was from expense accounts for travel, etc..
The NFL is only successful because it's ripping people off. Teams are threatening to 'blackout' games to sell tickets, newer stadiums are in financial distress. They are paying these player ridiculous salaries and it hits directly in the pocket of anyone who goes to a game from the ticket to the $10 beer.
I'm all for free enterprise, I'm all about people making money. I think it just speaks loudly of the people's priorities.
steve jobs was worth around 7 BILLION dollars. thats not all from $1/year and travel expenses. thats stock and such.
and he deserved every penny of it. but you say he should be capped at 100 mil? thats ridiculous.
the NFL is not ripping anyone off. we all know how much those tickets cost. we dont have to pay for them if we dont want.0 -
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http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/8163701/sources-drew-brees-new-orleans-saints-agree-record-contract
Does it disgust anyone else that athletes are signing $100 million dollar contracts when police, firemen and military members put their lives on the line for citizens and struggle? Doesn't that speak loudly about our priorities?
Not to mention they make up for these salaries by charging $200 a ticket for a football game..
Why focus on the athletes? (If the athletes are getting that much, how much do the owners and organization pull in?)
I would actually have an issue if they were paid, say $30,000 a year and the NFL, for example, was still pulling in the kind of money it does. The players are the major reason they can draw in so much money, so yeah I think they deserve it. Would I like to make that kind of money? Of course? Does it suck that most people won't have the opportunity to make that much? Sure. But I do not begrudge anyone's success or fortunes simply because I don't have it or people I hold in high regard don't have it.
To me it is not a question of whether someone is worth it or not, but whether or not it is fair. Hey, on the flip side, I think that corporations that bring in billions of dollars should pay its low level workers more. This is why I don't mind unions. I understand that there are downsides to unions, but I would rather live in a US with unions than without one, even with their faults. Just a review of history shows why they were needed in the first place.
Oh, and I am not a sports fan. I don't know any professional athletes. And I don't belong to a union.
As citizens of our country and state, we can demand higher pay for our policeofficers, firefighters, etc. However, who is going to elect that their taxes be increased? I can imagine the outrage now if a politician wants to increase taxes to offer better pay and benefits to service workers.0 -
I think some of them are paid too much in the sense that I don't derive any entertainment from professional sports. It's why I don't go to games
Unless there's something dishonest or otherwise unethical going on, if people make informed decisions about how they want to spend money on entertainment, that's their choice.0 -
I think what's even more disturbing is the fact that after the athletes make all that money, a large percentage end up broke when they retire. I've always wondered what the inner cities would look like if all professional athletes decided to donate 10% of their wealth to educating impoverished communities and opening businesses in those communities to help out.0
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I think what's even more disturbing is the fact that after the athletes make all that money, a large percentage end up broke when they retire. I've always wondered what the inner cities would look like if all professional athletes decided to donate 10% of their wealth to educating impoverished communities and opening businesses in those communities to help out.
Drew and Britanny Brees have donated a TON of money and time to Purdue. They are acutually pretty impressive, I will give them that.0 -
I think what's even more disturbing is the fact that after the athletes make all that money, a large percentage end up broke when they retire. I've always wondered what the inner cities would look like if all professional athletes decided to donate 10% of their wealth to educating impoverished communities and opening businesses in those communities to help out.
Drew and Britanny Brees have donated a TON of money and time to Purdue. They are acutually pretty impressive, I will give them that.
Same thing with guys like P. Manning and many more. But for everyone one of those guys, I would be willing to bet their are masses of athletes with diamond encrusted tooth brushes. My favorite was when Bryant got busted cheating on his wife (and accused of rape) and bought her that million dollar ring to smooth things over.0 -
It's of zero concern to me. That's the society we have chosen to live in. Entertainers (even ones I like) make obscene amounts of money as well. I don't think they deserve special tax cuts, and preferential treatment, but it is a system of supply and demand.
Michael Jordan made $33 or $36 million his final year with the Bulls. Given the amount of money he brought into the league and made for others through merchandise sales, concessions, etc, etc., it could be argued that he was STILL the most underpaid athlete in sports.
If athletes are receiving huge dollars, it's because there are huge dollars to be made and the owners are making even more. So, within the world that they live in, they deserve every penny.
The only problem I have is when athletes (or any other group of wealthy people for that matter) act as though they are entitled to the money or that they are somehow better than others because they have it. A huge part of anyone's fortune in this country is due to random chance. Athletes today benefit from the accident of fate of being born at a time and in a country where people are willing and able to pay huge sums of money to watch them do silly things. 150 years ago, all that physical talent would have just gotten them an extra shift in the cotton fields or in a coal mine.
The other thing that bugs me is when you hear some guy who has been playing for several years say he needs more money to "provide security for my family". Unless that means he has to hire an army of private guards, he is full of crap. What most of these guys earn in one year would be like winning the Lotto for anyone else. Just say "I want as much money as I can get, because I want it and I think I can get it". That's fine with me--I don't care. Just don't act like a hypocritical douche.
But last I looked, when an athlete signs a big money deal, he doesn't screw over a bunch of seniors, rob tens of thousands of people of their pensions, or cause an almost-world-wide-depression that destroys the futures of millions of people.
So I'm OK with that.0 -
I think what's even more disturbing is the fact that after the athletes make all that money, a large percentage end up broke when they retire. I've always wondered what the inner cities would look like if all professional athletes decided to donate 10% of their wealth to educating impoverished communities and opening businesses in those communities to help out.
Why restrict that to just athletes? Why should they be any more obligated to be better people than anyone else?0 -
It's of zero concern to me. That's the society we have chosen to live in. Entertainers (even ones I like) make obscene amounts of money as well. I don't think they deserve special tax cuts, and preferential treatment, but it is a system of supply and demand.
Michael Jordan made $33 or $36 million his final year with the Bulls. Given the amount of money he brought into the league and made for others through merchandise sales, concessions, etc, etc., it could be argued that he was STILL the most underpaid athlete in sports.
If athletes are receiving huge dollars, it's because there are huge dollars to be made and the owners are making even more. So, within the world that they live in, they deserve every penny.
The only problem I have is when athletes (or any other group of wealthy people for that matter) act as though they are entitled to the money or that they are somehow better than others because they have it. A huge part of anyone's fortune in this country is due to random chance. Athletes today benefit from the accident of fate of being born at a time and in a country where people are willing and able to pay huge sums of money to watch them do silly things. 150 years ago, all that physical talent would have just gotten them an extra shift in the cotton fields or in a coal mine.
The other thing that bugs me is when you hear some guy who has been playing for several years say he needs more money to "provide security for my family". Unless that means he has to hire an army of private guards, he is full of crap. What most of these guys earn in one year would be like winning the Lotto for anyone else. Just say "I want as much money as I can get, because I want it and I think I can get it". That's fine with me--I don't care. Just don't act like a hypocritical douche.
But last I looked, when an athlete signs a big money deal, he doesn't screw over a bunch of seniors, rob tens of thousands of people of their pensions, or cause an almost-world-wide-depression that destroys the futures of millions of people.
So I'm OK with that.
I totally agree!0 -
I think what's even more disturbing is the fact that after the athletes make all that money, a large percentage end up broke when they retire. I've always wondered what the inner cities would look like if all professional athletes decided to donate 10% of their wealth to educating impoverished communities and opening businesses in those communities to help out.
Why restrict that to just athletes? Why should they be any more obligated to be better people than anyone else?
I'm not restricting it, but it is a reality that many if not most athletes come from impoverished circumstances and know what those communities go through. People usually gravitate to the evil they know. People get Parkinsons, they do charity for parkinsons. Family member gets AIDS, they crusade for the cure. Cancer walks, ect.0 -
I think what's even more disturbing is the fact that after the athletes make all that money, a large percentage end up broke when they retire. I've always wondered what the inner cities would look like if all professional athletes decided to donate 10% of their wealth to educating impoverished communities and opening businesses in those communities to help out.
Why restrict that to just athletes? Why should they be any more obligated to be better people than anyone else?
I'm not restricting it, but it is a reality that many if not most athletes come from impoverished circumstances and know what those communities go through. People usually gravitate to the evil they know. People get Parkinsons, they do charity for parkinsons. Family member gets AIDS, they crusade for the cure. Cancer walks, ect.
I know what you are saying and it does represent a worthy ideal. While I don't think that athletes or successful people are entitled to special privileges, I don't expect higher levels of moral behavior from them either. I think that being fortunate with money carries an obligation to have an appreciation for your good fortune, but I don't know that it obliges someone to be a better person.
I don't know whether it's just cynicism or my own definition of "equality".0 -
I agree with Adrian. "To whom much is given, much is expected". Do SOMETHING. If you came from the barrio, do something to create more opportunities for others there. I don't expect them to be saints, but it would be nice if they wanted to give back. This doesn't just go for athletes, though.
I'm ok with them making these crazy salaries because we're the ones driving up their salaries. I don't base success or
value on salary. Just because you make more money doesn't mean you're doing something more important in this world.0 -
I think what's even more disturbing is the fact that after the athletes make all that money, a large percentage end up broke when they retire. I've always wondered what the inner cities would look like if all professional athletes decided to donate 10% of their wealth to educating impoverished communities and opening businesses in those communities to help out.
Why restrict that to just athletes? Why should they be any more obligated to be better people than anyone else?
I'm not restricting it, but it is a reality that many if not most athletes come from impoverished circumstances and know what those communities go through. People usually gravitate to the evil they know. People get Parkinsons, they do charity for parkinsons. Family member gets AIDS, they crusade for the cure. Cancer walks, ect.
I know what you are saying and it does represent a worthy ideal. While I don't think that athletes or successful people are entitled to special privileges, I don't expect higher levels of moral behavior from them either. I think that being fortunate with money carries an obligation to have an appreciation for your good fortune, but I don't know that it obliges someone to be a better person.
I don't know whether it's just cynicism or my own definition of "equality".
Maybe I'm just being naive. It's probably easy to day dream what we would do as multi-millionaires, but once the average joe gets stinking rich, who knows what they would do with it.0
