What do you think of the media calling sportsmen 'heroes'?

Question

How in the name of all the powers that be is playing with a ball heroic? Do these men save lives? Do they risk their own? No. Half of them have a history of getting drunk on planes and feeling up random women. Reeeeal freakin' heroic! For that matter, I really don't think kicking a ball around justifies a seven figure income, either. People need to get their priorities right.

Answer 1

Hey, they only make that kind of money and get those accolades -- same with entertainers in movies and music -- because the public has chosen to worship them.
Should a football player be a millionaire?
Well, the sport generates millions because the public shows more interest in sports than in things of substance.
I could tell the average person about someone who really serves humanity, and they'd say, "Oh, that's great."
But if I say I can introduce them to, whoever.... Derek Jeter or Matt Damon or Beyonce, all of a sudden their eyes get real big.
And that's the very reason so many of these folk misbehave so badly.
We the people treat them like something special, so they start believing that they ARE.

When I see so many people jumping on the bandwagon to hate Barry Bonds or Paris Hilton, I always say, "YOU created this."

Answer 2

Let's see.....Give them millions of dollars to play a sport. Okay.
Then when they are losing, do they have to refund some of that money ? No, okay.
If they are such powerful people who dwarf the rest of us by comparison, then why did I get my arm broken in 3 places and not even want to go to the doctor when I was 15. Yet, if they get a blister, they can't play. About that refund ? No ? Okay.

I think the heroes are the teachers who help the kids who don't have anyone else to help them.
The policemen and women, ( no, not all of them), the firemen and women, the mothers who actually care for and take daily care of their kids.
The real fathers who go to every little thing their child does after school, even though he's tired from his job and mowing the grass, and try to teach a little one how to tie a shoe for the fifteen-thousandth time.,

These are my heroes !

I know that some of you have put your own life on hold for a few years until your little one is grown and I say God bless you, you are my heroes !

Answer 3

I totally agree with you.
It is ridiculous that athletes are considered heroes, let alone role models. Like you said, too many of them are degenerates.
A hero is someone who puts their life on the line for others. Soldiers, police, firefighters, paramedics, or just somebody who gives of themselves.
We do need to get our priorities in line with reality.
But I will still continue to watch my beloved KC Chiefs get smacked around the field.

Answer 4

Being a hero for your sport is a little lame I agree, but many athletes are personal heroes for people. I think that is cool to be a hero on a personal level, but for the media to declare someone a hero is a bit silly.

Answer 5

I think the word "hero" is tossed around way too loosely. In my opinion, heroes are myths or people who make great personal sacrifices without any personal gain, and for a noble cause.

Answer 6

I love how they are "so brave" to play with a mildly sprained ankle or a broken finger. Meanwhile I'm in Iraq with a busted arm still riding in my hmmuv working a .50 cal machine gun.

Bottom line; "the only hero's in the world are dead" MD

Answer 7

Typical media hyperbole. They gush, they fawn, and they describe everything in the universe (up to and including Adam Sandler movies and White Stripes albums) as "amazing" or "hot" or whatever else non-creative buzzwords have entered their empty little skulls.

Answer 8

There a Sports Hero, not a Reality/Superman Hero

Answer 9

Heroic in a particular game maybe, but not in all of life.

Answer 10

They are not heroes, so to speak. But I do enjoy watching them. It's better than the old gladiator days, don't you think?