My son asked me who was putting out the 15$ shoe and we discussed "Starbury".

No mention of the surly towel headed stat whore on court activity.

My 12 year old daughter asked me a few questions and I answered that that this is a player who is not a bad person off the court at all, has publically commited $500,000 to the Katrina effort, and is looking to do somthing to help his public image buy selling a "stylish" sneaker at a cheap price which helps low income families afford. I mentioned that its been in the press and generally seen as a good thing he is doing.

She asked how many pairs have been sold. I told her I read about 3 million so far. She asked if he makes any money from sales. I said maybe $1 a pair.

She remarked: "How is it a good thing if he makes money on struggling families?"

It was dinner time and I grabbed the "Newmans Own" salad dressing and thought the similar thing. Then I had her read the label "that all proceeds (Profits) are donated to charity." Paul don't need the money I told her. He was using his fame to sell the product.

she asked me how much Marbury makes. I said in his career he will have earned before taxes and agent fees about 100 million.
She asked if he needs the money? I said I doubt it. Again, I said he was not a bad guy.

Her thoughts are that he is taking advantage of these people if he pockets the money.

We discussed why inexpensive sneakers are important to these families and that expensive sneakers are problematic to some.

We agreed that inexpensive "starburys" are a good thing, but would really prefer that he donate the money, or set up a foundation. While he might in fact do such a thing, it would go a long way in solidifying the opinion that "Starburys" are a good thing.

Steph, Make a public stateement that you have a foundation and all profits form "Starbury" endorsements go to help children!

So basically what you are saying is that your daughter is a communist.

He is making money off of them and that is a good thing. He is also selling cheaper sneakers which is also a good thing. It's not charity but there is nothing wrong with any of this. This is one I don't get. I can understand having a problem with him saying it's charity. Because it's not. But I'm totally fine with him saying this is good for poor people. BECAUSE IT IS.

How is it a bad thing to make money while helping people?

I personally think the whole thing is a sham, the shoes are really bad, and its all just a marketing ploy to sell inferior quility product, targeting the poor.

However that aside, it is not generally wrong to profit from helping people. As a matter of fact that is what a good economic system should do, make it so that one can profit from doing everybody a service.

Thanks for sharing that story Nalod. Kids see things in a unique way.