I’ve enjoyed sports since childhood. My mom deserves much of that credit since she was steadfast that team sports would be good for my development even if I wasn’t the most willing participant, and she made sure I went to every practice or game knowing they were out of the way. For someone who never felt comfortable driving a car, and never got a driver’s license, my mom was very strong. She could have given up at any time, but she made it her priority to give me a childhood similar to most other mid-to-upper middle-class boys. My pipe dreams in order were to be a race car driver, play pro basketball and play pro football, as a result.
Sports have always been a part of my life. But despite my lifetime involvement in sports, I find it off-putting when people support compensation for professional athletes, but ridicule that of corporate executives. Those two professions share a common objective – to beat the competition. And that requires employing the best talent as possible. Unlike normal folks, like you and me, who are (or were) typically an at will employee, professional athletes and corporate executives are not. They agree to employment contracts that govern their tenure, performance and compensation, among other terms. If a contract, for example, undervalues their market value, time or effort, they reject it. Whereas a higher paid professional athlete is responsible for kicking, hitting or throwing a ball, a corporate executive is responsible for the livelihood of the company, its employees and, for some, its customers.
If the government (Democrats) regulate compensation for corporate executives rather than attracting and keeping the best talent possible, many companies will have to settle for the executives they can get. The better executives will seek the highest paying jobs, do something that’s fun or fulfilling or do nothing at all. You’re an idiot (sorry, short sighted) if you think executive compensation is unjust. Sports franchises that can’t sell tickets, die. Companies do as well, and all of their employees become jobless. They employ significantly more people than sports franchises. People who say that we need sports are lame. Athletes are grossly overpaid. They’re not even the best role models, collectively. We need jobs.
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