FREE ESSAY ON MERITOCRACY

MERITOCRACY

Meritocracy
The Downfall of Sports
A meritocracy is an environment in which individuals are rewarded for their ability to
produce. An example of a meritocracy is the sports world at large. In the sports world,
athletes are chosen based on their raw talent and ability to score points and win games.
Nothing else is taken into account before each player signs a multi million dollar
contract. Things like, being a college drop out, having a criminal record and being a
poor role model is overlooked if the athletes can score points for the team. This one
sided selection process, is the epitome of a meritocractic society. The owners of the
teams are merely looking for someone who can get the job done, no questions asked.
Initially, sports was not a meritocracy. The public demanded professional sports teams to
have a certain image. The image of the average ball player , was a clean cut all American
and a great guy. Even if the player didn't possess the best character traits, he was
perceived as a great guy. For example, Babe Ruth was the all American orphan who lived
the American Dream, going from rags to riches. In reality, Babe Ruth was a womanizer and
a drunk. The professional sportsman was put up on a pedestal and was honored by all. Even
if he didn't fit that image, the public at least wanted to believe that he did. This
concern for a certain image showed that sports was not a meritocractic society since the
public wanted something else, other than performance. 
Later, sports became a meritocracy. Vince Lombardi's famous quote, winning isn't
everything, it's the only thing embodied the complete transition of sports, from our
national pastime to the ugly meritocractic society that it is today. The public was no
longer interested in the image, all they wanted was to win and have players who could
accomplish their tasks. Selection, from then on, was solely based on who could get the
job done. The image was no longer the highlight, and it wasn't important to society.
Now, we are paying the price for the meritocractic society of sports. Athletes like
Latrell Sprewell, who was almost sent to prison for assaulting his coach in practice, is
now a hero on the New York Knicks. Children are flocking to see him play and are trying
to emulate is every action. Pete Rose is another example of a player who was held high
for his great ability but was also a compulsive gambler. He was punished for his
misbehavior at the time, but now the fans want to reinstate him in baseball. Society's
lack of concern for misconduct is evidence to the fact that the meritocractic society of
sports has severely impacted our morals and value system. There is more emphasis on which
sneakers a sports figure wears rather than what kind of person he is. It has now reached
the breaking point. The meritocracy of sports is causing the downfall of values in our
society and the degeneration of our youth. Our society no longer cares about ethics and
morals, society only wants to win, whatever the costs may be.
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