Heroes and Role Models

It looks like Tiger is finally back, and yet I've heard some people grumbling-still- about how he doesn't deserve to win anymore "because of what he did to his wife".  Seriously?  What does that have to do with golf?  Tiger Woods deserves to win because more than anyone else on the circuit, he is dedicated to mastering, and maintaining the mastery of, his sport.  Too many people today care about the perceived private lives of sports figures.  We put sports stars up on pedestals only to vilify them when they can't live up to our more than human standards.  Just because an athlete can slam dunk over a car, run a kickoff back for a touchdown, or has more homeruns this season than any other player doesn't mean that person is a good role model for you or your children.  YES, SPORTS ARE FULL OF INSPIRING STORIES OF INDIVIDUALS OVERCOMING TREMENDOUS HARDSHIP TO EXCEL IN THEIR CHOSEN FIELD- and those situations are great to point out to kids.  They're great examples of never giving up, of trying your best.  They're examples of sportsmanship, and all the other wonderful things we can learn from sports.  But those situations are not often the situations that grab our attention.  The American sportsviewing public is drawn to the flashy players, to the huge contracts. What we don't often realize is most of those players are just the people you would never want as a role model.  Those players have shown amazing talent from a very young age, and have been "special" because of it.  Rules have always been just a little bit different for them.  People have always catered to them and their wishes.  They don't know the word "no".  Then, when they are barely old enough to balance a checkbook, they are offered millions of dollars to do something they have done for free all their lives, and at the same time, they are thrust into the national spotlight.  Without the correct guidance, many of these players make poor choices- money mismanagement is the least of these; murder has been the worst.  Drugs,sexual assault, and  numerous other run ins with the law fall in between. 
And we, the fans, become upset.  NOT because this kid with so much potential has started down a road to destruction, but because our OWN kid look up to him.  But don't we bear the brunt of that blame?  Shouldn't we, as parents, as teachers, as role models ourselves, be teaching our children that there are more important qualities in a person than their ability to score a point or the amount for which they signed their last contract?  Shouldn't we be pointing our children to more worthy role models, to members of the community who are changing society for the good?  Do we not set the next generation of young athletes up for failure when we point to our current athletes as role models?
Sit your children down and ask them who their heroes are.  If they name an athlete, you might have some work to do...