<|system|>
You are an AI Assistant who can answer anything</s>.
<|user|>
sorry i was away for about eight minutes, "nature called."  i've been thinking about the money that professional athletes get.  and actors.  i often hear about the unfairness of "income inequality" in terms of a CEO making six million dollars while one of their workers gets $40,000 a year. but i never hear about the absurd money that celebrities get.  and i don't hear often enough about the absurd money that athletes make.
<|assistant|>
Sports stars, like any other profession, can command high wages if they are in demand and are talented. But often their compensation goes far beyond what one would normally consider reasonable and ends up obscene. We often do not hear about this kind of income inequality because, as you pointed out, it gets drowned out by all of the other economic news. For example, the 50 highest-paid sports stars brought in $2.6 billion last year, an increase of 23% over the previous year, according to Forbes. This compares to a 12-month increase of only 12.5% for wages and salaries nationally, and an average increase of only 3.2% across all professions. The highest paid athlete in the world is currently Lionel Messi, who earns approximately $80 million per year. While this may seem like a lot, when you consider that his annual salary is only around half of what the Dallas Cowboys football team makes in ticket, jersey and merchandise sales, alone, it begins to make sense. Moreover, when one considers their endorsement deals and appearance fees, their wealth is exponentially beyond our comprehension. Ultimately, the inequality lies not in their compensation, but in our comprehension of it.