Assignment 5-1

I would like to address something that has been bothering me for quite some time: the worship and preferential treatment of professional athletes.  I do not see the reason behind quite a few people's obsession with these athletes.  I understand that through marketing, television, jerseys, hats, radio, etc professional sports are heaped on us every day, but I think some people take it too far.  On the same page are sportscasters who provide analysis or critiques of an athlete's professinoal performance as well as personal.  Many athletes are normal people from humble beginnings, but there are quite a few that do the wrong thing more often than not.  

Everyone does dumb things, but it seems as though athletes are forgiven for transgressions due to their status and the amount of money they bring in for the NFL, NBA, and MLB.  Is that the reason they are held to a different standard than the rest of us?  Why are they given a pass so many times?  It's not just athletes either; look at actors, musicians, and other well-known celebrities: they're all given a free pass.  I believe a lot of it has to do with the fact they can afford expensive attorneys, while the rest of us are forced to use public defenders or someone that advertises on the back page of the Yellow Pages.

I would love to see a more equitable process in the judicial system when comparing athletes and regular people.  I have seen so many headlines about athletes beating their wives, driving drunk, starting fights in public, and being caught with drugs, but rarely are they punished as the rest of us mortals.  I believe that entirely too much emphasis is placed on professinoal sports in this country, thus creating the idol worship evident with today's athletes.  

    

Assignment 4-1

I am amazed by how quickly televisions become outdated nowadays.  They are now similar to computers in that their perceived useful lives are decreasing drastically.  This is due in part to the proliferation of technology, which enables small companies to make cheaper sets than Sony, thus driving prices down.  That is, until Sony comes out with their newest 65” super high-definition plasma television that only weighs two pounds.  I believe that companies hold onto advanced technology and only give customers a little bit at a time.  It may sound like a conspiracy theory, but it makes perfect business sense.  Why would they release their top of the line product when the mid to low-level products will sell just as well?  Once the technology becomes affordable to smaller companies, the big dogs just have to begin production on their next prototype, allowing them to stay ahead of the curve.  I’m sure the same principles apply to automakers; they hold onto futuristic designs for a few years.

 

Much of the television companies’ strategy is borne from necessity.  Consumers always want the “next big thing”, and will do anything to keep pace with the Joneses.  If consumers did not clamor for more technology and buy up new television sets as soon as they’re released, then the turnover wouldn’t be as great.  I firmly believe us, as consumers, drive markets and affect demand for certain luxury items.  I am not an enemy of technology at all; I own two flat screen TV’s, but I do worry that the mindset of consumers who purchase TV’s they can’t afford has already carried over to other things as well.  The main concern is people who purchase a TV they don’t need on credit; those same people will probably buy a car that they can’t afford payments for and a house they can’t afford as well.  The United States may not be in such a pickle if consumers and businesses were more responsible when it comes to determining who qualifies for credit and who doesn’t.