Fly Like an Eagle

It’s a natural thing for children (and young adults) to look up to athletes, movie stars, musicians, and other celebrities who excel at a certain talent. Kids used to look up to doctors, lawyers, teachers, firemen, and police officers. They used to aspire to be just like mommy and daddy. It seems, unfortunately, that those days are long gone. Sure, there are still a small percentage of kids that dream about being a fireman, lawyer, or doctor but, with the millions of dollars being paid to athletes these days, being a professional athlete is the way to go. For all the attention, glamor, and multimillion-dollar contracts, there are thousands of kids that don’t make it big. Or, more so, that do not have the opportunity to make it big because certain resources are not available to them or they don’t have the means.

Athletes have always, and will continue to be put on a proverbial pedestal by society and, thus, by our children. For every athlete that makes it ‘big’, there is a little kid with his or her poster on his wall, his jersey on his back, and his signature shoes on his feet. LeBron James and Kobe Bryant are spending a great deal of time designing their next model of the “LB Line” or the “Zoom Kobe Hyperdunk” but are they giving back to their communities or trying to make a different in one of those very fan’s lives?

At the height of Micheal Jordan’s career, everyone wanted to “Be Like Mike.” Kids went out and bought his Air Jordans, they ran out and bought his jersey, and whatever they could buy to dress like Mike or dunk like his “airness”. Fans religiously studied his stats and took pride in knowing how many points he scored in his last game. But did we see M.J. in the community helping those kids get to relish in some of the same opportunities and successes he did? Did or does Michael Jordan even have a foundation or give to any specific charities so that he can be a well-rounded role model and a model citizen in the community?

These questions are probably difficult for even the most devout M.J. fans to answer. In short the answer to these questions is yes; Michael Jordan has not only gone down in history as one of the greatest basketball players of all time but is also a great humanitarian in many respects. Jordan recently hosted the eight annual Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational (MJCI) at the Ocean Club in the Bahamas. Since its inception in 2000, this event has been a huge success, raising almost $5 million for charities such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the Butch Kerzner Summit Foundation, and the James R. Jordan Foundation. Jordan founded the James R. Jordan Boys and Girls Club and Family Life Center, named for his father, in 1994. This establishment serves as a community center for citizens of all ages in Chicago, Illinois. In addition to this celebrity gold tournament and community center, Jordan gives back to the community through his active involvement in several charitable organization. For example he donates time and money to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, UNCF/College Fund, Special Olympics, and a variety of other charitable organizations that support children and families.

However, Jordan failed in creating his own charitable foundation. Jordan had to shut down his foundation in 1996, when it was revealed in the media, that little of what it raised reached charitable causes and that his contributions were minimal.

Professional athletes form a special group of prospective charitable givers. Many come into their money very quickly: one day they are living in ‘the projects’ striving to find food to keep them healthy enough to play, and, in a split second, they are signing contracts that put them in the national, and even international, forefront. Furthermore, because Michael Jordan is at the top of the top when it comes to famous athletes, does that hold him to higher standards of charitable giving? Just because he is flawless on the court does he need to be the same all-star in the “giving back” arena?

Posted by Stephanie Cantor

Rumors

Lindsay Lohan. You know who she is. You have seen her face on the cover of magazines, in films, on the news. You know about her change from Disney star to party girl, her family issues, her stints in rehab, her DUIs, and her girlfriend. Even though she had made it clear she wants to be left alone, we are still fascinated with watching her life unfold. Why does she have so much control over our attention and how has this obsession affected society negatively?

Lindsay Lohan was a child star that worked her way into our hearts starting with The Parent Trap. Girls like me, who were around her age and younger, followed her as she grew up, starring in several Disney Channel Original Movies such as Life Size and Get a Clue. Lindsay was our Miley. We followed her every move as came out with more feature films, dabbled in singing, and as gal-pal Hilary Duff stole her boy-toy Aaron Carter. And then we watched her slip, slowly at first, but then with speed, into a world where there 

are dresses with no panties, not enough food, and too much alcohol. She has been in a series of minor car accidents that occurred August 2004, October 2005, November 2006, May 2007, and July 2007. She was found driving under the influence on two occasions and possessing cocaine. Reports rose of her being unprofessional on movie sets and that she was suffering from exhaustion. She has been hospitalized multiple times and has spent time in rehabilitation centers because of her eating disorder and alcohol and drug problems. As all of this happened we were still watching, and she was influencing us, affecting the type of people that we wanted to be and the values that we held. Lindsay made us want to be skinny, tan, and popular. She showed us that you could get away with underage drinking and that you’re parents weren’t the boss of you. We trusted her and she led us astray.

It is easy to blame Lohan for issues such as low self-esteem, catty behavior, eating disorders, and stress, that plague so many teen girls today. But can the problems that affect a segment of society really be pinned down on one person? I also have to wonder if all her struggles are her fault, and if she has only had a negative influence. There are many places to lay blame for some of her problems. She came from a broken home and her father spent time in jail. She entered show business at a young age, removing a large amount of normalcy from her life. Lohan has done positive things, such as portraying a teen getting sucked in to a world of cliques Mean Girls, which cleverly brought to light the difficulties that face middle and high school girls. She has also supported charities such as ONE campaign and Angelwear. Her recent relationship with Samantha Ronson has mainstreamed a gay relationship without classifying her sexuality. Overall Lohan’s life has been a bit rocky, but according to her April 23, 2009 interview with Ellen DeGeneres she has shown that she is back on her feet and ready to move on with her life. She is producing a television show and is starting to shoot a new film in October. I don’t know if I believe everything she says about her personal life, but I will keep on watching to see what happens next.

Posted by Julia

Money

Celebrities have money and lots of it. And hey, there is nothing wrong spending it; it’s good for the economy, it keeps America booming. But when does a lot of spending become too much spending? Celebrities love to go big and do it right when it comes to homes, cars, vacations, clothes, jewelry, kids, and pets. More often then not they don’t know when to stop. Their obsession with material goods hurts the environment and reinforces the idea that material wealth means happiness.

We have all seen Jay Leno’s ridiculous car collection and Bill Gate’s tricked out house. But crazy spending doesn’t stop there. Does Aaron Spelling really need two Olympic size pools? Or does Nick Cage need three islands? Angela and Brad just spent over 100 million on a yacht so large it has its own helicopter pad. Ex-CEO of Tyco, Dennis Kozlowski, is known for having spent $6000 on a shower curtain (of money that wasn’t his. Don’t worry he’s in jail now.) and Jessica Simpson spent $75,000 on bed sheets. (And you thought Bed, Bath, and Beyond was a bit overpriced) Usher spent $7,500 on a birthday cake and Sean Combs spent $3 million on his own birthday party. (If only someone gave me $7,500 for my birthday) Brangelina is buying a $137 yacht that has a helicopter pad, pool, and full gym. They made sure to include environmentally friendly televisions, because that will make up for the amount of gas needed to run that cruise ship. According to Forbes, Brittany Spears spends about $241,020 a month. That’s five times what an average American family spends in a year. I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. Celebrities spend ludicrous amounts of money and ridiculous things.

Celebrities deserve the money they make and are allowed to spend as they please, but maybe they should think twice about before they purchase their third yacht that they don’t use. When they try and out-do each other with their bling and crazy parties and it makes us want those same things. Whether we like it our not celebrities are all role models, as we watch them their behavior rubs off on us, and their materialism makes the accumulation of goods more important to us. Yes, maybe it is our fault we are too easily led astray, but it can’t hurt if the stars put their money towards better things like saving the environment, donating to charities, or feeding a small country.  

Posted by Julia

More Than Just a "Piano Man"

Can we ever get enough of Billy Joel? He is such a talented musician, piano player and just keeps on going and going. The energy he provides for his career is also carried over to charity work and giving back to the community. Joel’s music career started in the 1970s and it was, an impressive eight years later that he was already putting his money to good use. In 1978, Joel started Charity Begins at Home. This organization raises money, through concerts performed by Joel, and allocates the funds to various charitable agencies in the tri-state area. Some groups that have been funded include domestic violence, cystic fibrosis and emotional disabilities. The organization just celebrated its thirtieth anniversary and Joel, even after all those years, still shows a devotion to his cause. So while initially this may have seen like a publicity deal, you know a new artist on the rise looking to get his name out there by doing something good, thirty years later, the facts are clear that Joel is in it for all the right reasons – helping others, rather than to get his name out there and be portrayed as a “do good-er.”Besides his own charity, Joel is a supporter of many other renowned charities including Soles4Souls, the Rainforest Foundation Fund, Farm Aid and MusiCares. In 2002, Joel was named MusiCares Person of the Year, in recognition of his work as a musician and humanitarian.

Joel’s most recent giving back began last week in New York City. Joel put up for auction an autographed baby grand piano in which all proceeds would go to music students in New York City. The proceeds will help to provide music theory classes, ear training and individual lessons at the Julliard School. Bids are being accepted up until May 6th. Click here if you are interested in placing a bid, and receiving a piano of the piano man.

Doing my research on Billy Joel, I must say I learned a lot. Joel is famous for his work as a musician, from "Uptown Girl" to "We Didn’t Start the Fire." Who knew he was such a humanitarian and devoted so much of his time and profits to charities? This says a lot about him. Again we see that Joel does charity work for all of the right reasons. The fact that his name isn’t all over the tabloids shows that he is not looking for publicity or to look good in the eyes of his fans. Just like an average American citizen, who doesn’t have songs topping the charts or making million dollars off albums, Joel donates to charities helping others and making the world a better place.

Posted by Stephanie Cantor

Dirty Work

Although it may seem cynical, it feels necessary to understand the motivations behind professional athletes’ involvement with certain charities, foundations, community events, and other acts of giving back. It is better to see these athletes having some involvement with those less fortunate. But should they bother doing so if their intentions are selfish or ill founded? Furthermore, why do we rarely hear about the good things our role models are doing in their communities and we continue to hear and read about their success on the court, field, pool, gym, or whatever arena in which they do what they do best? Media is partially to blame. We constantly talk about the “top 10 plays of the week” or, on the flip side, we are bombarded with stories and details about our role models letting us down—drug use, the never-ending steroid saga, and other serious crimes—but we never hear about Cal Ripken’s unmatched contributions in the community. If athletes received the same level of fame and exposure for their charitable contributions as they did for their competitive contributions, would they be more inclined to give more? When we actually dig into this notion of athletes and their social responsibilities, it raises so many questions about why and how they choose to accept this social responsibility of community and charitable involvement.

Nonprofit organization like Athletes for Hope, are constantly praised for helping athletes give back. But are companies like these creating more opportunities for athletes and celebrities to give back to their communities or are they, in essence, enabling these athletes to find easier ways to increase their public image and gain recognition for acts that, in actuality, should be done more frequently and without a need for praise or public acknowledgment? Athletes for Hope(AFH) plainly states in their official brochure they present to potential athlete members: “Everyday, many professional athletes make a difference by tackling a variety of national issues; such as cancer and health, education, youth development, poverty and equality. AFH seeks to increase public recognition of these efforts and highlight the important role that professional athletes play in their communities.” Is it really that simple? A professional athlete, because they are our childrens’ role models and are in constant public eye, should be able to show up at any event deemed “charitable” in one way or another, and AFH will put out press releases, media alerts, and will have professional photographers on-site to capture the moment and distribute to the Associated Press? In other words, if an athlete does the minimum service to earn a noteworthy public story, it will actually, in turn, make him even more money? That seems to be the point here. Or the pitch to the athlete, at least. In obvious business plans, the athlete is the product. The product needs to be marketed and sold so that it earns its optimal revenue and success. If an athlete is making millions of dollars for success at his given talent, now he must make millions as a marketing brand or icon too, right? So, in simple terms, the athlete attends one event, one time. AFH (or whomever; sorry that AFH happens to be the target for such scrutiny in this case because, after all, their intentions are, in fact, very admirable and well founded) promotes the appearance, sells the “good-humanitarian” piece to the media, and, in essence, builds the brand of that athlete by bettering their image in society.

AFH does not necessarily leave a good taste about the intentions that inevitably lead the select few athletes who do give back to do so. It seems to be an ongoing battle with no clear end in sight. The infamous Catch 22 of society’s role on encouraging today’s athletes to want to get more involved in their communities versus the social responsibility they have to fulfill and should want to, in one way or another, despite its potential business or personal benefits.

Posted by Stephanie Cantor

How Could You Be So Heartless?

They were never in on the red carpet, never starred in a movie or a music video, but Jeff Skilling and Ken Lay had talent and fame. From the late 90s to their downfall in 2001 these two men were the gods of the business world. They were on the cover of magazines, not US Weekly, but Forbes and Times. In their heyday they were accumulating more wealth for themselves then most A list celebrities and as well as gaining wealth for their employees, investors, and the US. Until we realized that they had entertained us all by putting on one of the most elaborate shows in recent history. Although the Enron scandal occurred eight years ago the repercussions it had on the American people can still be felt today.

Enron began as a natural gas distributer and commodities trader. In its quest to raise stock prices they came up with creative and seemingly profitable ideas such as EnronOnline, an internet trading operation, Dabhol power project, building a power plant in India, and broadband trading. In reality these ventures all failed to turn a profit. Some of Lay and Skilling’s most creative ideas were the ones that were created to hide these failures. They used mark-to-marketing accounting system and built special purpose entities, which allowed them to move money and hide losses, and their stock prices continued to climb.

Skilling and Lay changed the attitude of Wall Street by changing the culture of their own company. They encouraged a competitive, cutthroat, money driven environment. They took extreme trips, such as a 1000-mile dirt bike venture through Mexico, emphasizing the aggressive culture. At the company they made themselves gods, the all-powerful geniuses behind the perfect company, and soon that’s how the world saw them. For example, Fortune magazine rated them “Most Innovative Company” six years in a row. Enron employees trusted in what Skilling and Lay had created and invested their money how they were encouraged – into Enron stock. Everyone at Enron saw his or her stocks increase which solidified his or her idea that Enron could and would make everyone wealthy. Outside investors and banks saw what they thought was opportunity and wanted to a part, making it easy for Enron to bring banks, lawyers, and accounting firms into their corrupt scheme. Banks provided the company with their growing need for cash; lawyers helped set up the offshore entities; and accounting firms were in on their illegal accounting practices. When the “house of cards” finally fell the power and influence that Skilling and Lay had used made sure that they were not the only ones to feel the impact. When the stock price finally plummeted Employees saw their entire retirements, their entire wealth, disappear overnight. Arthur Anderson fell as its faulty audits and document shredding practices were exposed. Citibank and J.P. Morgan’s reputations were tainted and Americans began to lose faith in the financial system.

Skilling and Lay gained glory and fame because of their seeming ingenuity. They ended up being as creative as we thought, just not as honest. They not only took away millions of dollars from the American people, but also shook our confidence and faith, that still has not been restored.

The Enron case has still not been completely closed. Litigations and appeals are still filtering through the court system and the Enron Creditors Recovery Corp has been created to keep the public informed. Books and movies such as “The Smartest Guys in the Room” are still being written and produced because people are still fascinated by how this tragedy occurred, how two people were able to whip so many into a frenzy of greed and dishonesty, and how people lost themselves in it.