Do athletes deserve special treatment?

In America athletes are given the advantage in society For example they are given special treatment in education in high school in which they are accepted into college with low gpas and sat scores http://www.fastweb.com/student-life/articles/347-ncaas-clearinghouse-rules---whos-looking-out-for-the-student-athlete and they can do nothing wrong because they are the star athlete of the school
In some colleges athletes are also given easy classes to accommodate for their low gpas http://californiawatch.org/dailyreport/stanford-athletes-had-access-list-easy-classes-9098 and are protected by the college http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-11-22/sports/30427879_1_paterno-wall-street-journal-football-players
They are given money while at the college and receive gifts to go to the specific college and from agents.
Finally, in society athletes are almost above the law compared to the average man for example Floyd Mayweather JR who beat his wife and is supposed to go to jail for 90 days, but will not because he gives revenue to Las Vegas by fighting.
Some give the excuse that they need the advantage because they come from low income homes and their future job will be playing a sport, however I ask you fakku do they deserve the special treatment that they receive?

I don't think they do.

Why, you ask?

Equality. People have been spouting shit about "treating everyone as equals" for as long as I can remember. But it seems atheletes can get off scot-free with anything, to an extent. Where's the equality in that? Sure, they're physically fit and may have little to no income, but that's what getting a job is for Physically fit? Work on a building site.

There really is no excuse to being given an advantage, just because of some sob-story. If they were really that hard up, they'd do something about it.

Edit: Adding more information.

I ask because I was discussing with one of my friends who is going to college for soccer about the treatment athletes receive and he thinks that athletes deserve the treatment because that is the only thing he is good at.

He thinks that just because he's good at it?

Okay then, I'm quite good at playing video games. By that logic, I should be given a weekly budget to buy and play as many games as I want, as well as a free gaming computer complete with accessories, every other gaming platform available such as a DS, and a luxury chair to play them in.

Does that sound fair to you?

In Korea, the best gamers get special treatment.

The ability to toss a ball around is a rare and special talent, and should be nurtured. *nods*

Athletes bring both fame and money to a school (or in some cases, the corporate/state sponsor). You can argue that this shouldn't be the case, but it _is_ the case.

They might not deserve special treatment, but if you treat your athletes shoddily, they might just move somewhere else and bring all that fame and money with them.

To put it another way: 2 companies are offering me the same job. One has a higher salary and would treat me like a king. The other treats me like a common joe. Everything else is equal. Which company do you think I will work for? Do I "deserve" the higher salary and to be treated like a king? No, but I'd be stupid to turn it down.



Americans do not hold video gamers in high respect. They do not being in fame and money.

In Korea, on the other hand, top-tier starcraft _do_ bring in fame and money. Result: they get corporate sponsoship and have women hanging off their arms.

So, yeah, if a society holds X with respect, then someone who is good at X will be given special treatment. X can be anything, not just sports or video games.

Do scholars get paid or special treatment for doing their job as students?No. They get a chance for a loan or scholarship with no other privilege.Now tell me why an athelete who has no real net benefit to society other than providing a vector for marketing and enjoyment should receive any more treatment to an upcoming member of the real world who actually has the chance to make a significant difference. Where exactly does brutalic physical activities take you anyway?A field in which your role is determined not by your actual character or ethic but your ability to run and break anything in your way.

Special treatment for athletes is not a new idea, and it is definitely not just American athletes that receive it. In most countries, Olympic hopefuls are given almost anything as long as they continue to excel. Countries, schools and businesses are willing to pay in order to tie their image to world-class athletes, because the world loves to have heroes in the spotlight.

Whether it is right, or wrong, an athletes time of fame is relatively short and usually ends in a life of obscurity (other than the occasional autograph) They usually sacrifice learning other job skills in their quest for fame and fortune, and end up living rather simple lives. If they are smart, they save their money and live well later, when their popularity fades. Mostly, this is not the case.

Do they deserve it? I would have to say yes. Few people show such a drive for personal improvement and ability to succeed, as an athlete does. They see their goal and push themselves to attain it, at almost any cost (and most fail). If they can make this pay off for them, then they have earned the right to enjoy it.

ok lets think of it like this everyone says your good at something you instantly get in you have to do the minor leagues then the back up teams then you have to play on the main team and be good enough to stay on that team when hundreds of others are also talented


but lets face the obvious reason people enjoy sports if your sports team sucks you dont get ticket sales unless your the maple leafs were not nearly as many people are gonna wanna watch you play video games

plus take fighting sports they beat the shit out of eachother for a living i think that means you get a little superiority.

as well everyone says america is all about equality thats bullshit if you want equality go back 30 years and join soviet russia or go to fucking north korea were everyone except the army gets payed the same and are equally treated as shit simple reasoning is i believe its perfectly fair you work hard in your trade you get the reward

doctor has to go to school for years
soccer player has to build his boy for years and MAINTAIN it

basicly get your doctorate and dont fuck up 2 often your good as a doctor

get out of shape as a sports player your career is over

Fuck no, just like what Gravity Cat said, equality.
If athletes get those kind of advantages, all the people in the world will become an athlete since they are literally invincible.
Athletes may get salaries much more that normal salarymen, but that does not mean they are above the law.

lets face it equality if a bunch of crap to make people feel better it doesnt work it doesnt happen

and not everyone can be an athlete what about people with asthma and stuff and different diseases what about the effort and drive needed to put in those years of trainingÉ

It's only a figure of speech, I know that already, life's a bitch.
My point is, it's not fucking fair to have athletes to be favoured, even presidents can be wrong.

Certainly not. The reason they get so much money and attention here in the U.S. is simple: People pay for entertainment. When people pay, others invest. When they invest, the amount of money grows. The attention came because people enjoy that competition (and the betting that goes along with it). There are other reasons, such as a sense of community and an easy conversational point, but I would say that's the most important thing.

No. At the very least, they shouldn't be treated as role models by young people. I think entertainers as a whole have become too highly valued in recent years.

does Iowa deserve more attention than other states in the presidential race? no, Iowa is just lucky that the campaigns value it more. Does this mean they should treat Iowa normally? no, they would lose to other campaigns.

The same principle applies: Colleges value Athletes more than normal Scholars. The Athletes don't deserve it, but it's understandable why the colleges do it

Meh
-Iowa does not deserve more attention.
-They should not treat Iowa normally.
-Campaigns value it more
Explain.
Oh and on another note, Iowa doesn't matter unless the representative has a chance at winning it. This is simply because as Iowa has it written in their state constitution they WILL be the first caucus, taking the emphatic winners win example, the concluding party that seems on top will gain much needed momentum as voters tend not to go for deadlock psychologically.

They only get special treatment because a lot of people will spend money for their games. The system was set up by the consumers, it would be asinine for them to complain.

why should they be role models is a doctor a better one?

no it isn't both have to work incredibly hard both get amazing pay i think athletes are great role models

Athletes are some of the most entitled pieces of crap out of any group of people.

Do most of the athletes deserve their treatment and paychecks? Hell no. Most of them aren't even that great at what they do and still feel they are better than anyone else.

Does it make good business sense to treat athletes well? That's an entirely different argument.

Essentially, the sole reason that athletes get such treatment is that their 'talent' has entertainment value which can be sold for a profit.

And stop with the crap that most of them come from poor families. That statistic is such utter bs.