BonnerSprings.com

I sat watching the television Sunday afternoon at the Chiefs pathetic performance and remembered hearing what a great season Elvis Grbac was having. The team will have to test its salary cap next year to re-sign Grbac because of his impressive numbers, even though the team appears mediocre much of the time.

As the game degenerated further, my rage at athletes extended. How dare Johnny Damon make such egregious demands on the Royals. One season, actually one-half of a season, above average and suddenly the guy is worth tens of millions of dollars.

These guys play a game. They dont lead companies, they dont invent anything, they dont teach, they dont save lives. Their decisions dont effect government policy nor do they produce a consumable product. They are simply entertainers.

I wasnt really sure how I was going to express my total outrage at the fantasy world of spoiled professional sports, but then a trusty friend e-mailed me some wonderful thoughts, which helped me calm down.

This isnt original, just an e-mail pass-around, but its worth the read.

We search for the eternal answer; it is better to be a jock or a nerd?

Michael Jordan, having retired with $40 million in endorsements, makes $178,100 per day, working or not. If he sleeps seven hours a night, he makes $52,000 every night.

If he goes to a movie, itll cost him $7, but hell make $18,550 while he is there.

If he decides to have a five-minute egg, hell make $618 while boiling it. He makes $7,415 per hour more than the minimum wage.

Hell make $3,710 while watching each episode of Friends. If he wanted to save up for a new $90,000 sports car it would take him a whole 12 hours.

If someone were to hand him his salary and endorsement money, they would have to do it at the rate of $2 per second. He will probably pay around $200 for a nice round of golf, but will be reimbursed $33,390 while playing.

Assuming he puts the federal maximum of 15 percent of his income into a 401K, his contributions will hit the federal cap of $9,500 at 8:30 a.m. on Jan. 1.

If you were given a penny for every $10 he makes, youd be living on $65,000 per year.

He made about $19.60 in the time it took Maurice Greene to win the Olympic 100 meters and he makes about $15,600 during the Boston Marathon.

While the common person is dining on a $20 meal at his trendy Chicago restaurant, hell pull in about $5,600.

This year alone, hell make more than twice as much money as all of the previous U.S. presidents for all of their terms combined.

Amazing isnt it? HoweverK

If Jordan saves 100 percent of his income for the next 450 years; hell still have less than Bill Gates has today.

Game over. Nerd wins.

Pro athlete bashing aside, cheers for Jermaine Dye for winning a gold glove. What a tremendous year he has had, I hope it was the first of many.

Bronx cheers go out to the voters of the American League Rookie-of-the-Year Award. I wont even attempt to spell the name of pitcher who won it. I will simply say it would have been much easier, and more just had Mark Quinn been the winner.