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...to make the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq. The problem is that for every Pat Tillman there have been about 5000 others that ran as fast as they could to Canada so they do not have to serve their right as an American and fight. Even though our troops are putting, their lives are on the line, the United States could not get the best basketball players to go to Greece and defend the gold medal. Instead, they claimed security reasons prevented them from being interested in going. Only if more athletes could even come close to giving back what they take, then as a whole we would better off then what we are now. Athletes today have become more trouble prone then ever before. In our day of age, we have heroes, but what if your hero did something that made you so mad, would you still consider them your hero. Athletes today have become more trouble prone then ever before. During last football season Warren Sapp, then the defensive tackle of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, got a 50,000 dollar fine for shoving an official before a game. In a separate issue, John Abraham was arrested for driving while intoxicated. You cannot count how many times you hear in the news about an athlete breaking the law and causing trouble within there sport itself (Wallin 1). The Institute of Diversity and Ethics in Sports say that around 100 athletes per year, 2 per week, are accused in some type of violence towards women (Wallin 1). Athletes have not been causing more trouble on and off the field this much anytime in history. The true heroes of our country are the men and women that are fighting for their lives on a daily basis. Even though a lot of our country does not agree with why our soldiers are in Iraq, they still wake up every morning and do the job that they are there to do. You rarely here about an athlete decline the big payday to stay with the team they spent years with and that they bled and sweat with on a nightly basis. Just recently, the number of Americans that died in Iraq reached 1000 mark. Even when there is no war going on there are still people that risk their lives everyday. The people that were running into the twin towers while everyone was running out are the people I would consider as my hero, not someone can tuck away in there 10 million dollar mansion. “We’re not heroes,” San Francisco Giants shortstop Rich Aurilla said after September 11. “We’re playing a game. The real heroes are the people who are out there clearing the rubble and the people who gave their lives to save others.” The Men and Women of the police and firefighters should be the ones held up on a pedestal for the hard work they put out day in day out. A role model is a person that you should be able to look up to in a positive light, not someone that brings themselves more negative attention than positive. Athletes can be some of the worst role models a kid could have, mostly because they do not recognize that they are role models whether they like it or not. Yes, you do here about the charitable foundations and the community service, but you hear about those a lot less then you hear about them causing trouble on and off the field. Former Major League Baseball player and Hall of Fame player Kirby Puckett was charged with false imprisonment, 5th degree criminal sexual conduct, and 5th degree sexual assault, when he dragged a women into the bathroom of a restaurant (Czech1). Puckett was so well known around the country as role model, and then he did let all of them down. He is not the first and he will not be the last person to let down their devoting fans. What would you think if your favorite player cheated to get the upper hand in a game? Last season Sammy Sosa, outfielder for the Chicago Cubs, used a corked bat during a game, and then claimed that he grabbed the wrong bat after batting practice (Ward 1). I would not mind letting my kid watch some athletes to try to learn from them to get tips to become better player at their sport, but I would never let them watch my kid. Professional athletes have certain personality traits that are good for when they are on the field, but as soon as they leave these traits are ideal for getting them into trouble. Heroes have to be cool under the most demanding of situations, and athletes have no choice but to be good at that if they want to successful in their career. The problem is that if they cannot turn off the traits that help them during the game, then they can put themselves in bad situations. If they are always getting themselves into trouble then how can they be known as heroes? Athletes have four characteristics that are essential for becoming a great athlete, but they hurt them when they decide to unlace for the night. The traits are aggressiveness and competitiveness, confidence, risk taking, and a need for stimulation (Wallin 1). During the game it is good to be aggressive because then you will be able to force the action in your favor. It keeps them from backing down from any challenge no matter the stakes, and this makes it so like to get there own way. This does not help you off the field because you tend to contribute to more risky behaviors then you normally would. Athletes also have an amount of confidence that can be easily mistaken for cockiness. Confident people tend to focus on the positive and minimize any negative that might come from a situation. By minimizing the negative it makes them to keep trying for som...