Source: Shaq's TwitterA reader emailed the following:
Dear Same U,
In a time of people trying to be more health conscious, why would an athlete come out with a 23.5 oz soda? Does he [Shaq] have no social responsibility?
--Health Concerned
Dear Health Concerned,
As always, thanks for reading Same Uniqueness and participating in Ask Same U.
To answer your question, of course any public figure whether they are an athlete, a politician, or even a CEO of a corporation has a social responsibility to the general public. What is social responsibility exactly? Entrepreneur.com defines it as "acting with concern and sensitivity, aware of the impact of your actions on others, particularly the disadvantaged."
Therefore, with that said, don't we all have a "social responsibility" to others in everything we do? At the same time, we're all human; and unfortunately, we allow our humanity to override our sensitivity. Money means more than lives. Ignorance goes unchecked by other intentions.
It's very contradictory that an athlete would promote a sugary drink considering what we hear all the times on the news about obesity and diabetes. But at the end of the day, the real concern is what matters most to most people-- caring about others or caring about their own money? No judgement, but we all the saying about about evil and the love of money.
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