I just posted this remark on some sports page somewhere. I find that I’m doing a lot of that lately, so I’ll just repost them here for whoever stumbles on this lonely outpost.
Upon reading newsstories about the mega millions sports players are now earning and weighing the various initiatives for raising minimum wage plus the social-economic imperative for better wealth distribution in the country, I now stand corrected on my long held view that commercialized sports is a waste of time and money; the “Mega Salary†professional player is a fantastic model for wealth distribution. And I hope they make a heck of a lot more. How else can a dirt-poor kid end up making millions of dollars just for playing a game he/she learned for simple entertainment or to stay out of trouble? There are some fans who complain that players are overpaid… that’s probably because they don’t like the price of admission (which is either cable television or paying scalper prices for seats). But sports fans, there are alternatives. Like, paying a living wage to the security guards, maids, janitors (et cetera) who are often the parents of many of these former dirt-poor kids. If these parents could afford better housing and better education for their kids perhaps there would be fewer mega-rich players and more affluent citizens… at least they’d be better educated and wouldn’t have to burn up their lives for this sort of visceral entertainment. And as for the fights… let them fight. Besides, these guys don’t give two hoots about what gentrified suburbia thinks millions of dollars ought to behave. If you don’t like the fights… don’t tune in.