Do you know what I do every weekend? On a cool Saturday or Sunday evening I spend my day on my soft leather couch in my oversized jeans and my metallic grey sweat shirt; gulping down a can of Pepsi, forcing a large chunk of hot dog into my mouth, and of course, watching professional athletes perform their jobs. Yes, watch them exercise! Exhilarating, isn’t it?
While I cheer and shout for a wrong call is made in basketball, or football, or soccer, or tennis, and possibly lose my voice; professional athletes get paid what I would earn in about 20 years of my life in one year or a couple of months. This is just fine with me; I believe this is the future. Take basketball for example, is one season completely different from the last one? The upsets, the star-packed squads, the highlights plays are what make up a season. Usually, in my work place I try to initiate a discussion about basketball.
“Wow John,” I said, “did you see the alley-oop dunk yesterday?”
“No, but I am sure it was spectacular!”
“It was more than spectacular,” I exclaimed, “a man put a ball through the rim!”
Again and again, and oh look he did it again! Usually this is what I do while I put on a few extra pounds from eating two big Macs or my favorite, deep fried apples wrapped in bacon, yumm!! I am sure everyone would like my new look.
But apart from that, while I admire what people consider as an “art”, (I could go to a museum and see art; at least I would be getting some exercise) my intelligence quotient is greatly depreciating. And at the same time I am wasting a lot of money paying for the sports program and buying a beer or some greasy fries at a sports stadium while the professional athletes are getting paid in the millions
Doctors, have a job; they save other people lives. Business men, have a job; they help increase a country’s economical standing (although, that’s a bit skeptical for U.S.A. ). Fire fighters and police men have a job; they save lives and keep a country safe yet they get paid a meager salary. Teachers, have a job; they instill knowledge into young individuals that will in turn help a country be successful. Soldiers, well, they die for a country. Professional athletes on the other hand, they keep in shape, partake in a recreational activity for a living while getting paid a ridiculous amount of money, and the best part, they go bankrupt 2 years after retirement. I think this is really beneficially and highly instrumental in our society. Don’t you think?
What do they really do? Provide inspiration for an overweight man to dunk a basketball? Or give motivation for a lanky, scrawny boy, who possesses nimble knees and is neatly wrapped in skin; to one day throw a touchdown pass for the New York Giants? Yeah, I do not think so.
In all truth, the next time I decide to watch professional athletes of all kind perform their jobs, I would not think about the sufficient amount of salary that I am getting through providing knowledge for young children; or my brother who lives with me because he has no job; or the soldier in Afghanistan that just happens to step on a land mine. Rather, performing my job by providing Kobe Bryant some money for his shoe line would be pilot on my train of thoughts.
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