I was a mediocre athlete in high school. My greatest claim to fame was playing alongside a guy by the name of Mark Smith. He was drafted into the NFL. He never made much of a name for himself in the football that I ever heard, but I do remember him being a nice guy and very big. I’m just glad I wasn’t an opposing player! Somehow I managed football to get my letter. However, I believe they gave it to me because they felt sorry for me more than my athletic prowess. I think I got more splinters than minutes played. Both my sons were athletes and much more talented than I ever was. Something that we shared though was the fact that showboating would never have been tolerated. It would have been considered in bad taste. Sure, we did our share of trash-talking. But we also did our jobs as best we could and that was it. Even the outstanding players like Mark played with humility. I will watch a baseball or football game, but I’m not close to the fan that I used to be. I enjoy seeing a player make an athletic move. A diving catch or great tackle are why I will watch. However, I don’t care for the arrogant displays players often make afterward. “Great, you did what they pay you millions of dollars to do. But your team is losing 33 to 9 and so you might want to remember this is a team sport and act like you’ve been there before.” it really is a display of individualism, and I know that if the other team were to offer you five dollars more you’d switch your allegiance. Players like Micky Mantel and Dick Butkus no longer exist in my opinion. They were great players, but more of what I would call franchise players. Their names are associated with the team they played for as much as we think of their individual accomplishments. Today, players seem to be driven by the almighty dollar more than the outcome of the game or making political statements. That’s why a hot dog costs you five dollars and a beer will cost you close to ten. The million-dollar salaries of those overpaid sides of beef are being passed along to you. And God forbid that anyone should give you free tickets to a game. If you are a family of four; by the time you factor in parking and snacks, you’ve dropped fifty dollars. Should your kids talk you into any souvenirs, you might need to see a loan officer. So do me a favor, don’t give me any free tickets if you like me at all. People who don’t link the rising costs of just about everything to the increase in wages are denying the basic principles of economics. It’s a vicious circle… wages go up, then prices go up, and wages need to go up again. With labor being 70 percent of the cost of doing business. Businesses are doing exactly what sports franchise owners are doing. They are passing on to the consumer the cost of being in the game. So the next time you spend money and think about how expensive everything is getting, remember that!
