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The world
is so awesome.
I mean, I can blow bubbles with LeBron James
bubble gum, jump to the moon in Nike Air Jordan
shoes and I can set up huge armies of four-inch-high
sports toy figurines.
What the hell has been going on? Simply put,
sports have been evolving and so has the market
attached to them. Collectibles and endorsement
deals mean big bucks not only in athletes pockets,
but also in the overall economy.
It makes sense to have athletes pitching athletic
equipment, even though half of it sucks (think
Shaquille O'Neal and anything made by Franklin).
I guess more than half of the athletes out there
suck too, so it actually evens out rather nicely.
If only "good" players would pitch
"good" gear.
I applaud Fred McGriff. The "Crime Dog"
is a great spokesman for that stupid baseball
training video. Tiger Woods, man, if you use
Titleist golf balls, then damn it, what self-respecting
golfer wouldn't?
Unfortunately products don't seem to always
respect quality standards, and we're not just
talking about cheap shoes that fall apart; some
of the companies are downright irresponsible.
As a sociologist (read, person who thinks about
people), it causes me to question the wholesomeness
of sport.
Should athletes and athletic icons be pushing
alcohol? Dick Vitale, Al Michaels, John Elway
and Barry Sanders are just a few recent athletes
calling it cool to crack a cold one. I'm sure
6-year-old Tommy in Toledo, Ohio, doesn't get
influenced by what John Elway says on television.
Or does he?
How about Rafael Palmiero pushin' pills for
Viagra? He looked like the ultimate comeback
kind of guy only a year ago. He failed to mention
that the blue pill wasn't the only "help"
he needed.
It's almost biblical. Sure, it's great for kids
to have positive sports figures as role models
(and there really are more of these good guys
out there), but I'm not sure the idolization
we've thrown ourselves into is doing any of
us any good.
But I'll admit it. I, too, am a sick man. I'm
guilty. It was 1990, and I caught Ken Griffey
Jr. fever. Griffey turned his cap backward and
so did I. The buying spree had begun.
I bought every card and every magazine cover
with him on the cover. In the mid-'90s, sports
endorsements and memorabilia exploded and I
scrambled to get everything Griffey.
You name it and I have it. I have the cereal
boxes, the cookies, the posters, the pins, the
video games and the life-size cutouts. I even
got Griffey's Nike Swingman logo tattooed on
my right arm when I was 18.
As I've matured (supposedly) I've slowed up
and there is now such a large pile of Griffey
crap out there that I'll probably never catch
up on my collecting, nor do I want to.
Often, I lament on what the future of the exciting
world of sports endorsements for products athletes
neither use (nor probably like) holds. Will
Roger Clemens be the next big thing for Imodium
A-D? Should Shaun Alexander push infant products
since he seems to burp the baby so well? Randy
Moss probably already pledges his locks to some
hair-care company, doesn't he?
Were teachers and parents ever this big? I remember
there was a time when I was younger and sometimes
in my mind, it seemed like they really were.
I'm sure most of us have looked up and found
guidance from people we know at one time or
another. It just seems like it might be getting
harder to spot our everyday stars among the
"bright" ones.
By Sam Cameron
Jordan Zone.com
October 19, 2005
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