Excellent. Another sport where two opposing teams hit things with sticks and try to get it into a goal or net is back in action with it's members making large amounts of income and giving very little of it to people in real need, or hunger. Oh yes, that is the way to use our resources.
As Lisa Simpson would say... Wooooohooooo.
[deleted]. There are plenty of resources for those in need, especially those in the countries that actually watch these sports. And, oh yeah, even poor people need something to do ON THEIR DAYS OFF (unimaginable luxury!); considering that most of these games are televised for free or on very basic cable - it's a great distraction. That's one of the main purposes for all art, including sports.
Besides, the instant celebrity engendered by athletes allows them to raise money for all kinds of charitable causes. My own town of Pittsburgh owes a great deal to the charitable works of professional athletes. What you are advocating is nothing more than old fashioned Marxist envy of those who manage to achieve the worldly success that has somehow passed you by. How dare you judge them just because they've found a product and managed to sell it? Envy is one of the seven deadly sins for a reason - it paralyzes the individual and gives them an "easy out" when they look at their lives.
And finally, the sports hire a disproportionate amount of minorities; based on pure skill alone. It is the ultimate meritocracy, and many a black child has had good reason to stay in school, get grades, and work hard to become a better basketball star (or promoter, agent, marketer, or any of the thousands of other jobs that revolve around professional sports in one manner or another.) More than that, while athletes often fall short as role models, many of them do a superb job of mentoring the young, advocating social justice, and displaying good sportsmanship.
Finally, as to spending our resources to help the poor in other countries, that starts with political change; but I can see by your avatar that you oppose such actions. Ergo, if you don't want to help other nations build democracies and free market economies, the only economic engines proven capable of turning deserts into gardens, then why tear down the peaceful pursuit of athletic excellence. You are as illogical as they come. Either we stay home, in which case we had better have some outlet for our competitive instincts, or we ride out to save the world, in which case you'd better change your avatar.
So take your knee-jerk counter-culture sentiments back into the ivory tower that spawned them. Come back when you have something genuinely thoughtful to offer.
CZAR