It is a crime but their pay is relative to the time they will be able to perform however the amount paid is relative to what they earn for the owners which is out of the park. The cities build the areas and the owners rent it for almost nothing compared to what they earn.Don't forget it was the pay these performers were getting that generated the pay increases for CEO's who said I am worth more than an athletes and so began the million dollar salaries of CEO's.

That's what we get when we live in a world that values money more than people.

"I'm alright Jack" I've got mine and you haven't made it, you must be lazy or stupid.....

We live in a society that values short term financial profit over things that are irrelevant to (or at least not directly bearing upon) money, such as character, integrity, reliability, truthfulness, kindness, diligence and wisdom. The pay of star athletes and performers reflects the money they generate which is usually proportional to their popularity and sometimes even to their proficiency. As such, it is arguably appropriate within that system.

Then there's the less formal currency of power, which gives politicians less money (officially anyway) than athletes and actors, but a great deal of power and prestige. And there's plutocracy, which combines power AND money, often to people who haven't earned either.

If we as a society don't think this is in balance then the solution is to have some sort of conversation about modifying unbridled capitalism and altering the parameters of authority we grant to our leaders. One way to do that is to decide as a society what is a human right and what is an earned privilege. For example, if access to quality health care is a human right then we can decide as a society to pool our resources to make sure everyone gets it. As a wealthy nation the only thing preventing it is will and greed.

Even then, I doubt that nurses or doctors would receive the level of adulation that politicians or actors or athletes do, as what they do is not performance art, it is largely out of sight and out of mind except when you personally need it. Also it's harder to understand, even when you need it.

So: do I find it amazing? No. Do I find it sad? Not exactly. Unfortunate and tragic, is more like it. I'm almost surely going to die in a country that is unrecognizable to me, compared to the country I was born into.

No, I don't find it sad. I think it is good. It is how the world works. Actors and sports stars generate a lot of money, and therefore are due a lot of money. So do successful writers and business people.