Every year, thousands of men and women serving in the military are killed or are severely injured. Everyday, people in the armed forces put their lives at risk to protect us. The average pay of a first year person in the army is listed at about $20,000 according to the US army. IBtimes reports that last year, Floyd Mayweather made $220,000,000 in one night for fighting Pacquiao. For fighting another human being, Floyd Mayweather made ten thousand times more money than someone in the army would have for a whole year. Athletes are paid far too much for playing a game. In the world, millions of people work for each other and work to make the world a better place. They are being unfairly overlooked meanwhile athletes are at the top of our society.

The average pay for a middle school teacher is $44,000 a year. These teachers devote their lives to raising a more educated generation of people who can help our world become a better place in the future. Many of these students grow up to be doctors who spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on education to save lives. Yet even with all of this good in our world, the most praised people in our society are those who can put a ball through a hoop. How is this fair then that someone who does so much good could be overlooked by someone who is paid outrageous amounts for doing something they love?

Mihir Bhagat, Senior Analyst says “Professional athletes are making too much money in a society where salaries and wages are traditionally based on the value of one's work. In today's society, one should be paid according to the job’s economic importance and their value to society.” This is how people in our society should be paid because the more someone contributes to society the more society functions. After all, the Patriots winning the Super Bowl isn’t the reason that today economy and society is afloat. The police officers that protect us, doctors that save us, and teachers that educate us are the reason that today our culture is functioning. Definity not because the Golden State Warriors are undefeated.

Forbes estimated, that the average NBA player makes 5 million dollars a year and plays on average five years in the NBA. That is $25,000,000 for five years of playing a game. Yet with all of this money for what I call fun, 60% of NBA players go broke within 5 years of retirement. This is because of the hyped up media and overpaid players make so much money that they spend it without a second thought on tons of cars, houses, and other useless luxuries. At the same time these players are wasting their money, families that have loved ones in the military are struggling to pay an education for their kids. I am not saying that athletes don’t serve a purpose or should be payed a small amount but I believe that athletes should be making no where near to as much as they currently are. Instead, I would like to see more money go to jobs of importance to society or to the government where it can be distributed to those that hold government jobs.

Don’t get me wrong one of my favorite things to do on a Sunday is watch my Redskins play. I also love watching sports as most people do. However, this does not mean that Aaron Rodgers should be making $100,000,000 over a five year contract span. Since athletes practice for countless hours and provide entertainment across the world, many people would argue that they deserve what they make. However, anyone in the armed forces works to provide freedom and safety, doctors provide medical care, and teachers provide education. I think these roles are definitely more important than athletes providing entertainment on a Sunday. I for one have to pay others for playing a sport because I get enjoyment out of it. However, at the professional level, athletes are the highest paid people in the world for doing something most people would probably pay to do.