Why do we admire them?
Published 10:22 am Thursday, July 21, 2016
Whether you read the sports page on a regular basis or not. Whether you know who Christopher Correa is, the story is repeated, unfortunately, on a regular basis.
Correa, the former scouting director for the St. Louis Cardinals, was sentenced this week for hacking the Houston Astros’ player personnel database. Now he will spend the next four years in a federal prison.
Ray Rice is the running back who played for the Baltimore Ravens. A lot of people might not remember that. But many, many remember the video where he punched his then fiancée, now his wife, unconscious in an elevator. He was indicted for third-degree aggravated assault.
Then there was the heinous case of Michael Vick who was part of a vicious dog-fighting ring where he personally hanged or drown dogs. Vick spent time in Leavenworth.
Sports figures all of them, have massive followings. But why? Sports figures are supposed to show the virtue of sportsmanship at the highest level. They are supposed to be examples for all. Certainly for young people. What pitiful examples they have made.
But so are the adults who still watch these men and others like them.
What kind of example are they giving to their children.
If such egregious behavior were boycotted — and financially — it could change the game for better. And it should. Right now.