A bit of Perspective
Time Out for this Public Service Announcement
This was one of those cartoons that I just needed to get out of my system. Perhaps because I find myself in the same predicament as the guy in the third panel, perhaps because I find it so outrageous that someone is getting $42 Million just to sign a contract. The money is guaranteed. We have lost so much perspective in this modern era of sports. Players are coddled early, never told no, and pretty much spend their lives oblivious to the outside world. So this cartoon is for all of you out there who sometimes feel like we have it all backwards. That teachers and firemen and people who help people are the ones who should be given the huge salaries. This one is for those of you who feel perhaps that life isn’t fair (it isn’t) and just want to scream at the injustice of it all. This one’s for you.
Follow Me
The bitter irony is how are the owners going to pay those salaries if fans can’t afford to come?
Figure two average tickets to a game plus parking is $200 per game. That becomes a $1600 a year habit. When the decision becomes food and shelter versus a 3-hour football game, I know where most people will be watching games.
I went to the Anaheim Angels baseball game on Saturday night. Last year the stadium was packed for every Friday and Saturday night game. This time the stadium was half-empty. That tells me all I need to know about the direction of pro-sports economics.
In a macro-view of the U.S. economy, we are in trouble due to the destruction of the middle class. The lower class continues to grow as higher paying jobs are lost due to redundancy, new efficiencies, competition, outsourcing, or just plain lack of money. The upper class, controlling the vast majority of the wealth, continues to shrink as money becomes more concentrated in fewer families and organizations. Ultimately, our economy is headed to having a small upper class in control of 99% of the country’s wealth and a huge under class working subsistence jobs. At the turn of this century, the unequal distribution of wealth lead to the implosion of Argentina’s economy, the breakdown of the government, civil law and order, and even the provision of essential services such as electricity. Argentina still has not recovered. At this rate, regardless of our leadership, unless something drastic changes, we in the U.S. will soon be faced with much the same problems.
Mike
Mike,
Fantastic comment. I think you hit the nail on the head.
Thank you Drew its nice to see I am not the only one who wants to scream when I see that me and my wife hardly make a “livable” salery and a a guy who plays a game makes more then we could dream just for signing his name.
Good Morning from Omaha,
Wow a brilliant cartoon, again.
its the television money that pays those salaries. Each team is guaranteed something like $120-125 million a year from the tv networks, nbc,cbs espn. they can basically pay their salaries and cover the expenses with that .Ticket sales concessions parking local radio rights that is just the frosting on the cake.
the visiting team get 40% of the gate revenue and depending on the contract with the city the team gets a huge chunk of the rest. Heck the city might even pay the lease on the stadium for the team, just to keep a team and its recognition in the metro area.
Eventually as I have said before, if you buy a case of Coors, the official beer of the NFL, you are paying inadvertently to keep the NFL in business. Eventually they will be able to play there games at mile high which can be converted to luxury boxes for the select few, and we can watch the games ,like MMA events, on pay per view. No more over priced parking, beer, pop and food. Either you pay one way or the other.
The new yankee stadium, for which the people of NY paid almost a billion dollars for, is sitting about half empty most half empty. So much for 1 seat for $2,500 per game. Plus the yankee’s aren’t very good right now, which as a fan of the Royals, makes me Happy!!!
Enough of the rant. Our national priorities need to reconfigured with games as an extra curricular and real life as just that. We have as a society way to much time for our diversions, like sports.
Wait I said enough of the rant!!!
Better move on, this finding a job is my job for the day. remember strive for excellence, nothing but your best
Great cartoon.
You never fail to deliver, even after all these years. 🙂
Things are so different now. I still revisit the memories of going to a game with my Dad at Mile High Stadium – parking on a side street and walking a few blocks, sitting in the south stands, grabbing a hot dog and a coke, freezing our butts off and having a great time, even if the Broncos lost. Those were good times – football was football, and the average guy was able to afford a game with his kid without having to worry about his next paycheck.
Drew,
As usual, you hit it out of the park with this one. You’re perspective on sports and life is always right on. Thanks for doing what you do!
This is great Drew! Sadly it’s only one aspect that we need to consider… every time we spend a dollar we should be thinking about where it ends up. WE HAVE THE POWER though, not the rich. This is something that once we realize it as a population everything will change in our favor.
Yes, I realize it’s a big concept for everyone, but literally nothing can continue in the man-made world without the financial support of the people. Good point about Coors beer Gene. Every time we even pay too much (and we do) for grocery store items that are highly advertised on TV (and liquor store purchases … just count how many times Budweiser advertises) we are supporting those high contracts.
Buy local, buy from farmers markets, eat real food, not packaged junk food and SEND THE MESSAGE!
Hooray Drew! Nice strike for the everyman!
assumption and speculation are easy, history will tell the real story.
Save the critizisium for the result of the season. Just remeber there is quite a lot riding on these decisions. I am a Bronco Fan living in Texas. I will always be a Fan. I have embraced the past with the wins and titles. I must trust the instinct and leadership qualities of Mr. Bowlen’s decisions regarding his investment(the team)
When the talks for the new CBA really starts, watch the owners make the Stafford contract Example A1 for why we need a rookie salary cap.
But WE’RE paying their salaries… if you don’t like what they make, then don’t watch it; because you’re enabling that system to continue.
If I generated that much income for my company, I would expect to be compensated on a level that demonstrates how much income I’m bringing in for them.