Do athletes make "too much" money? Is it fair that some of the highest-paid athletes in the world become multi- millionaires without a degree or descent education? And lastly, is it fair that athletes make hundreds of thousands of dollars annually from sponsors and advertising despite the fact that those same athletes are signed to tens of millions of dollar contracts with their respective sport teams?
Without any intention of speaking negative about athletes, I will use Alex Rodriguez as an example of this very argument. Alex Rodriguez also nicknamed A-Rod, was an 18 year old kid at the time he made his Major League debut with the Seattle Mariners (did not attend college). Years into his professional baseball career, he signed the richest sports contract of ALL-TIME at 252 million dollars. After that contract expired; he signed a new contract (breaking his previous record) of 275 million dollars!! can you say WOW?? How can a person who straight from high school became a professional athlete make more money than, lets say, a doctor who by the way, went to college, attended a university and lets not forget studied for years before become a proffesional in his/her respective field?
Opinions please!!
Pedro D.
Kin 332I
TTH 9:30-10:45
6 comments:
Yes personally I believe athletes make way too much money! When you think about it America is putting a greater importance on athletes opposed to doctors, teachers, or police. Offering high exploited athletes multimillion dollar contracts while the best doctors are lucky to earn a 100,000,00 dollar paycheck. Not to mention the costs of schooling it takes to become a doctor or teacher they are really not being paid that much. As mentioned in your article athletes get college paid for and then receive huge contracts shortly after. I do not believe this is fair or right, that athletes are held so highly in our society. Whether it is morally right is a different question opposed to whether it makes sense. The industry of sport in America is much more popular and funded than our hospitals and schools. So therefore when there is so much money is sports it makes sense that the athletes participating in sports will make so much money.
Evan O'Rourke
Tu/Thu 2:00-3:15
I completely agree with you on this one, Pedro. I think it's unfair that one has to work hard for their dream job, but when it comes to playing a sport as your career all you need to succeed is your talent. I agree with Jannet that athletes are ambitious and that they just want as much money as possible because in many cases when athletes are about to get drafted and they are offered say 8 mllion for 3 years they turn down the offer and ask for 15 million. That's when I'm like WOW?! are you serious? I would give my signature for 1 million. On the other hand, I think age for an athlete also matters. For example, I think athletes are better at playing their sport at a younger age rather than an older age, the athlete's body just responds differently. That could be a reason why altheltes get drafted at such an early age with no college education and just simply their gifted talent.
Maria Melendrez
KIN 332i TTH @ 9:30-10:45
Do professional athletes really deserve all that money? In my mind, hell no. Professional athletes are making too much money in a society where salaries and wages are traditionally based on the value of one's work. In today's society, one should be paid according to the job’s economic importance and their value to society.
I'll use Professor Kauer's occupation as an example. Educating is one of the most important jobs because our future economy relies on the education of its youth, yet teachers are paid significantly less than the average professional athlete is. In fact, each basket Kobe Bryant scores earns him equivalent to the average classroom teacher’s yearly salary.
However, some may argue that while teacher’s only provide service to a single classroom, superstar athletes are entertaining fans all around the world, enticing people with a feeling of relaxation and excitement.
BUT:
The president, who makes critical decisions that affect the entire world every day, only makes $400,000 a year. While President Obama is hard at work trying to revive the economy, the unproven rookie in the NBA is earning way over that figure
Alan Nguyen: 011037063
KIN 332I T/TH 2-3:15
Of course athletes make too money, but some of them are so ambitious that they want as much money as possible. Athletes get pay to play their sport and not to give opinions,or complains.I don't know if it's fair or not for an athlete to be a millionaires without having a degree but in today's society, education doesn't matter if you are a professional athlete. They don't look if you are able to write a paper, speak well, or have knowledge about different topics. They care about one's ability, competitiveness, and other factors that deals with their sports. Athletes can make enormous amount of money in their career, but unfortunately many of them end up loosing all their money. Therefore, they will sign as many contracts as they can to ensure that they will have extra money.
Jannet Negrete
Kin 332I T/T 12:30-1:45
Great blog for discussion!
I definitely think athletes make way to much money, but sadly we support their earnings by being fans. We buy game tickets because we CHOOSE to go watch these athletes. When we hear about an amazing athlete our first instinct is that we want to physically go see this athlete. We contribute to the hype and support these athletes. It is sad to say that without these athletes, we would not have the entertainment we yearn for.
Although being an athlete is a job, I do not believe they should be receiving as much as they do. I believe that someone in the military who is trying to defend their country should be making more than someone who was born talented.
But then again we have to think to ourselves, if we were born with the "raw talent" that athletes have, would we be ok with making that much money? Would our opinions differ then?
Alyssa Salindong
KIN332I T/Th @ 2:00 pm
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