The Energon Pub

I don't get it. Sports make billions of dollars every year, andthe players make obsene amounts of money, not to mention the owners.

I'm mainly talking about Professional sports. I can kinda understand loving your college or high school sports team while your there, and after you leave its paying homage to your al-ma-ma, but why are people willing to pay rediculous amounts of money to watch guys throw/shoot/hit/kick an object? Especially when our teachers are paid so little in compairison?

Are we really concerned about (home town team#1) is better than (home town team#2) so much that we allow them to make a killing and charge whatever prices they want because they can?

Not to mention the fact they disallow outside food and drink and charge $4 for a bottle of watter, and $10 for a hotdog.

Why do we as a society allow this?

Because people are stupid. That answers a surprising number of questions in this world. Really, try it:
"Why are sports so popular?"
"Why is Michael Bay allowed to make films?"
"Why can't my local bus company produce a timetable that reflects the actual time a bus will turn up and deposit me at my destination?"
"Why did Futurama get cancelled whilst The Simpsons continued?"
"Why has the economy gone down the toilet?"
So many questions, just one answer.

The same reason people spend money to go see movies, or the reason we buy toys, or why people buy comics or video games: because people enjoy it.

There's probably some sort of ego projection thing. Maybe guys see themselves as the players and it makes them more emotionally involved. Maybe it's also the "guy thing" to do, so guys do it just cuz.

Me, Grimlock! wrote:There's probably some sort of ego projection thing. Maybe guys see themselves as the players and it makes them more emotionally involved. Maybe it's also the "guy thing" to do, so guys do it just cuz.

It's not just guys, though. My mom is a huge football fan, in fact, almost all of my relatives are.

I grew up in a very sports-minded family. My father, whom I idolize, is a GIANT baseball fan...so I grew up one too. I started liking football and hockey all on my own!


And I am a girl, so it is not a males-only issue!

10 days til pitchers report to spring training!

GO CARDS!

Didn't say it was a male-only issue. I just can only speak for the guys. And I only meant the "guy thing" as a stereotype.

Seriously? It's entertainment. It's there for your enjoyment. Same as movies, plays, racing etc. Human beings have been watching others for their enjoyment for centuries.

TheMuffin wrote:Seriously? It's entertainment. It's there for your enjoyment. Same as movies, plays, racing etc. Human beings have been watching others for their enjoyment for centuries.

Centuries? Try millennia. Gladiators (The original Pro Wrestling) had been going on since 3rd century BC, and people had been doing theater since around 2000 BC.

I'm not good with dates of past events so I put centuries. Sue me.

Pyrostrata wrote:I grew up in a very sports-minded family. My father, whom I idolize, is a GIANT baseball fan...so I grew up one too. I started liking football and hockey all on my own!


And I am a girl, so it is not a males-only issue!

10 days til pitchers report to spring training!

GO CARDS!

You probably just enjoy seeing sweaty, strong and fit men moving their body parts.

I don't know I'm not that interested in sports especially not Football (It's not called soccer! )

I spent the firt 13 years of my life in a suburb of Chicago with my huge family. Guess what teams they rooted for? Yep Bears and Cubs. I remember huge parties when they were playing on the weekend. I only enjoy football when my son is the one playing but I still have that good memories spot for football parties and baseball BBQ's. It did not matter if it was 20 degrees outside they BBQed for the big baseball game.

This is what They say (They being the professional scholars and social philosophers). I attach no belief or disbelief. Just reportin' in.

Sports really started as we understand it in the 19th century, as an attempt to siphon off 'masculine aggression' into less damaging pursuits. In other words, if we have sports, instead of wars or street murders, people would channel it (either directly by participation or vicariously as audience) to that harmless enterprise, and allow happy capitalists to profit while no one really gets hurt. That's the theory. Your call if it's worked.

WHy do athletes get paid so much? Well, I deplore the priorities of our nation (pay cops and schoolteachers jack, but pay a thug who shoots himself in the leg gazillions because he can play *a game*?!), the theory here is business: They can afford to pay him that much because he brings MORE than that much in ad and viewership revenue.

And of course, there's the social aspect--as national identity breaks down (it's been collapsing, THey say, since the late 80s), people are trying to relocate communal identity through things like ethnicity (the Puerto Rican day parade here in NYC for example) or through communal events, the biggest being sports. I live on Long Island, and though my students will get into loud arguments over best movie or best rap artist or views of the President, they can all agree that they hate the Red Sox.

HK, who likes socks.

As Shadowman has put it, because people enjoy it. It entertains them. Now, that doesn't make it right, I do believe they get paid way too much, and there should be at least a salary cap in baseball, so Steinbrenner can't buy any more championships, but the bottom line is because people do allow it by buying tickets and paying for merchancise such as jerseys and caps and the like. I don't agree with this at all. When i was younger I went to professional sports events, such as Indians games and Cavaliers games, and I even have a few jerseys. However, I had thought about this a while ago, and decided why feed the fire and the egos of these people? I haven't been to a sports even in 2 years and do not intend to go anytime soon. The only 2 pieces of merchandise I have bought in the last 2 years are an Indians jersey and a NASCAR shirt. I do watch at home on television, but that's all. It is getting way out of hand. These people need to be brought back to earth by cutting off what means most to them: their money.