30% Say Government Should Limit Pay for Athletes and Movie Stars

Another point to be made is that limiting the salary of top celebrities will not automatically increase the salary of nurses, street cleaners etc.

So in essence this is yet another socialist argument for the reduction of inequality... when you can't tolerate people being unequal, bring them all to the same level by attacking the rich rather than uplifting the poor.

The fundamental flaw with the supposition of this thread is how it "cherry-picks" the statistics to make a point. (A technique I've witnessed before here.) By saying 30% are opposed, it deflects attention from the 70% who are not. That is like the weatherman predicting a 30% chance it will not rain as opposed to a 70% chance it might.

Further, It seems to me (especially in the cases of athletes) that their careers often have a shorter lifespan of earning potential while they are at the "top of their game" in peak physical condition, young and less prone to injury. Or in the case of actors, less popular/appealing, or in demand. ( As opposed to say a plumber or accountant whose career and income earning potential might span 20 - 30 years.)

Finally, I personally have no issues with pay based on performance/talent or what some deem exorbitant salaries. Life is not a zero-sum game.

Their success will not diminish the odds of yours.

Oh and to dodge a sniper:

Originally posted by FlyersFan
reply to post by kinda kurious

 

Just more combative personal crap.
It seems that's all you are capable of contributing.

Onoes, I'm sorry. I was under the impression you enjoyed dining on trolls as evidenced by your moniker. I suspect you've never encountered one who can bite back. Check please.

(Some might misconstrue tough questions with combativeness which seems fair game considering the recently redefined guidelines.) Vigorous debate should be expected in a conspiracy discussion forum.

Regards..........KK

Edited to fix typos, add barf.




[edit on 30-3-2009 by kinda kurious]

This survey is not about athletes and movie stars.

It is about gaging the publics' acceptance of government mandated MAXIMUM WAGE.

The targeted demographic (athletes and movie stars) was just a diversion. How many athletes and movie stars were polled?

They demonize a select few highly compensated individuals, drum up support for regulation, then have a precedent for government involvement in setting not only minimum wage for employees but also MAXIMUM wage.

Once a precedent is set, the government can use it to leverage change as they see fit. Just like hacking a computer operating system; find a vulnerability, exploit it, take control of the system. Trojan Horse policy making.

So lets revisit the poll with that in mind:
30% Say Government Should Limit Pay for (your job title here).

I bet all of these left-wing libral movie stars will just love that! Then they will really feel like a&$#@%$# for voting for that moron! And it will not end there, this is what they call SOCIALISM!

Originally posted by elston
This is largely related to jealousy.

Society dumps massive sums of money and sometimes worship to Movie stars and professional athletes... But not to the family doctor, or the fire department, or (Sometimes) the police. People who have a substantial effect on our health and safety. Misplaced priorities, IMO.

reply to post by Catfish


Quite true, but if it is occuring in that manner then isnt it indicative of human nature?

How will a centralised salary grab change anything?

Or could the change be effected more subtly and more morally through each of us telling our own children to respect the doctor more than the footballer.

Please, no more government! To limit the pay of entertainers
would be a dramatic step toward socialism--moreso even than a
national health care system. Doing thus would only serve to make
our government richer and the quality of our entertainment
poorer.

Imho, what we are really talking about in this thread, are not athlete and movie star (PRODUCTS/"TALENT") compensations but the EXCESSIVE compensations of American CEOs (WORKERS) compared with other countries:
Europe & Japan - 40-1 (CEO to worker salaries)
America ratio - 400 to 1 ( " )

I dont favor government intereference in salaries, but there seems to be something out of kilter with these ratios since American CEOs don't necessarily make comensurately better products or operate more successful companies. Infact, the last 10 years of bubble and bust indicate a lot of CEO lying has been going on.

THe issue is - are American stockholder interests being served well by inflated CEO salaries, or is there a big rip-off going on? I bet a lot of people who feel government should not interfere with salaries, nevertheless regard American CEO rewards are excessive!

If the American auto companies had not essentially failed before going to the government, we would not be having these discussions. However, I believe that in any case we would eventually come to the disparity in CEO compensations between America and the general interantional world.



[edit on 30-3-2009 by havanaja]

[edit on 30-3-2009 by havanaja]

[edit on 30-3-2009 by havanaja]

No way, you jealous folks! I bet those 30% think that wealthy people should pay more taxes (which is wrong). People forget that athletes, movie stars, and wealthy people in general work for their money just as hard as us regular folks do (they probably even work harder for their money, as their profits show). Don't be jealous!

[edit on 30-3-2009 by they see ALL]

It is our goverments responsibility to help manage and maintain the balance and security OF our society. As such, for as long as lobbyists, business owners, and the massively rich are able to buy congressmens support for legislations, then massive accumulation of money is a destabilizing factor which renders our democratic process useless. Therefore, for as long as that is the way our system is run (the rich buy votes and laws, and the poor and middle class are forced to serve them) then it IS the governments responsibility to mitigate this financial leverage.

reply to post by they see ALL


Yeah exactly.

People never see the many years of hard work that can go into making a celebrity's career. They just don't know enough and yet they go around with their moral supremacy and judgements.

It's similar to those demonising investment bankers... most bankers I know work 100 hour weeks. A socialist joe wouldn't even be capable of maintaining that amount of intellectual stamina.

It just comes down to the failed simulation effect. If people cannot understand how another person has gained wealth/ status, they demonise them and attempt to bring them down to their lower level. I don't understand how that can be classed as anything other than jelousy.

Originally posted by 44soulslayer

People never see the many years of hard work that can go into making a celebrity's career.
It's similar to those demonising investment bankers... most bankers I know work 100 hour weeks.

But that's not the point. Sure they work hard, but they're jobs produce nothing!!! If some guy spends 10 hours a day for 20 years learning how to juggle 12 tennis balls at once -- how has he benefited society.??

Originally posted by they see ALL
. People forget that athletes, movie stars, and wealthy people in general work for their money just as hard as us regular folks do (they probably even work harder for their money, as their profits show).

They're still parasites since they don't produce anything. If every movie star or athlete dropped dead right now, it wouldn't hurt the country a bit. But kill off all the engineers or farmers or truckdrivers and watch what happens.

[edit on 3/30/2009 by Make Speed Limit 45]

Originally posted by 44soulslayer
Yeah exactly.

People never see the many years of hard work that can go into making a celebrity's career. They just don't know enough and yet they go around with their moral supremacy and judgements.

Thanks for agreeing!

It's similar to those demonising investment bankers... most bankers I know work 100 hour weeks. A socialist joe wouldn't even be capable of maintaining that amount of intellectual stamina.

Ouch, that's rough. But for all of their hard work, they are, I assume because they are bankers, get paid greatly. So it's great they get awarded for their work!

It just comes down to the failed simulation effect. If people cannot understand how another person has gained wealth/ status, they demonise them and attempt to bring them down to their lower level. I don't understand how that can be classed as anything other than jelousy.

I agree.

Originally posted by Make Speed Limit 45
They're still parasites since they don't produce anything. If every movie star or athlete dropped dead right now, it wouldn't hurt the country a bit. But kill off all the engineers or farmers or truckdrivers and watch what happens.

[edit on 3/30/2009 by Make Speed Limit 45]

They produce entertainment. You think they would get paid if we didn't see them in movies/games? It's the same as producing something physical.

Originally posted by they see ALL


They produce entertainment. You think they would get paid if we didn't see them in movies/games? It's the same as producing something physical.

They produce propaganda and yes they would still get paid even if we didn't attend the movies and athletic events. Your tax dollars pay their salaries just like it pays for the stadiums.

Originally posted by Make Speed Limit 45
They produce propaganda and yes they would still get paid even if we didn't attend the movies and athletic events. Your tax dollars pay their salaries just like it pays for the stadiums.

Whoa, I didn't know all that. This is a conspiracy website, though. But I am sure a team/director wouldn't keep one if he/she was doing badly, so there are exceptions to this. I am just under the opinion that athletes/movie stars/wealthy people in general earn their money just like us regular people. I am sure, however, that once they get up the ladder it becomes easier to make that money, though. Maybe this is what people have problems with. The fact is, though, they worked hard to get to that original point, right before it might become easier to make mass amounts of money. What about people like J.K. Rowling and Dan Brown who make lots of money from books and, most likely, the movies that come from their books? Surely they worked hard making masterpieces, right? Shouldn't they receive the awards? People forget about these wealthy people, such as writers. They just go straight up to the obvious ones like the athletes and movie stars.

Hopefully this post is coherent.

start capping their salaries and watch how fast they start voting republican

Originally posted by Make Speed Limit 45

Originally posted by 44soulslayer

People never see the many years of hard work that can go into making a celebrity's career.
It's similar to those demonising investment bankers... most bankers I know work 100 hour weeks.

But that's not the point. Sure they work hard, but they're jobs produce nothing!!! If some guy spends 10 hours a day for 20 years learning how to juggle 12 tennis balls at once -- how has he benefited society.??

Society does decide who to reward and who not to reward thanks to the finely tuned market system.

If people wanted to watch some guy juggling balls, they would pay to do so.

Productivity is not the issue. Who is to state what is productive and what isnt? If we go down that route, you get central planning... aka the command economy... aka communism. Personally I wouldn't like to live under that system.

If the price of capitalism is that a few jocks get rich, then so be it. The price of communism is that we all end up poorer, and it won't be consolation to me that the actor is poorer than I am- largely because I am not jelous.

Athletes and actors enter into a pay for play contract. Say Johny Quarterback gets a contract for X million dollars over 5=6 years. He gets hurt in his second year and can't lay anymore. He's not going to see that full X million. There will be a buy out depending on how Johnny's agent got it worked out. He don't get paid anymore.

Actors get paid while people still want to watch them. Think about all those hot women in say... 80's movies. How many do you hear about now? Not many because they want to see that hot 20 something save the world or whatever. No more income In occupations that do not lend themselves to longevity people usually ask for more money.

None of that really matters anyway. What does matter is that's the going rate for Mr. Athlete or Ms. Actress. The market dictates the compensation. No one would get it if no one was willing to pay it.

And it's not anyone business but theirs how and what they get paid. I personally think those five guys that stand there and watch another guy use some kind of equipment are overpaid. and they are getting money form the government. I'm speaking about the quintessential county road employee. I know we all have seem this guy

Professional athletes and movie stars serve their purpose in our society, just as do corporate executives and many others. I do not agree that their salaries should be limited, and I most certainly do not believe that the government should ever be involved in such things in any way. Our government has too much power already, but that is for another thread. I will state that the only thing that has ever bothered me about this topic is how much those people make while true, everyday heroes like teachers are paid such shamefully low salaries.