In the media recently you have been hearing about Joe Torre’s book that mentions his Yankee years and the most infamous of them all – Alex Rodriguez aka A-Rod or A-Fraud as the book would portray. Also you’ve been hearing a lot about Michael Phelps, who won 8 gold medals in the 2008 Olympic Games for swimming. However, he took an infamous bong rip that stirred the restless out of hiding raging about how he is a bad role model and should be punished for the crimes he did…
So a 22 year old took a bong hit, which snap, crackled, and popped around the world. However, we all know smoking the devil’s grass isn’t going to help you swim faster. Michael Phelps also didn’t deny the fact that he did it, he accepts what he did and any punishment to come. On the flip side we have a 35 year old, A-Rod, who probably “roided” himself to become a superstar (I don’t believe steroids, HGH, testosterone, or any precursor to steroids help with eye hand coordination). However, they do help with recovery, hitting the ball harder and further, and running faster. Alex Rodriguez denies the fact that he has ever taken any performance enhancing drugs and is rewarded with a ~$20 million per year pay check. As the media portrays it…Is he the hero we are looking for?
Why does the media get all caught up into “role models” or “heroes”. And why do we as a society make sports people heroes? They are people who are big and strong (some by fake means), and others just genetic freaks (maybe with some help as well). However, they shouldn’t be held up as heroes…They can run faster than some, throw a ball further than others, and swim faster than fish, but they are people. Not Heroes. You should go to a fire department if you want to see heroes. Go to an inner city elementary school to see heroes. Go to an emergency room to see heroes.
They are just ordinary people. Of course a young guy like Michael Phelps is going to “experiment” with things he shouldn’t. We don’t learn by doing nothing. We learn from our mistakes. But just because he is an icon and in the eye of ‘everyone’ doesn’t mean he should be punished more severely or differently than other people. You see this mostly in celebrities getting a punishment reduced to hardly anything. Alex Rodriguez is choosing to do something which isn’t permitted. Of course he is “breaking the law”, but take a closer look…
There were over 89 players listed in that report, plus Jose Canseco’s claims, and add Joe Torre’s claims. That is a lot of people using performance enhancing drugs, and these are only the tip of the iceberg. The ones that “got caught” or better put, speculated to have used performance enhancing drugs. What about the others? I guarantee you there are other Balco’s out there that have drugs undetectable and other players are using. Who cares, its the new age. I say this, because most of the time people have hunches or have heard things. And the only way to get on the same playing field is to join them (Even though this may not be the right decision), it makes the game even. Unless you want to have a league separated like bodybuilding into natural and non-natural lifters, or in this case a baseball league where there are those who have used sports enhancing drugs vs. those who haven’t. I don’t people would look to highly upon that…That would kill any sport and advertisers wouldn’t be happy. Plus you wouldn’t be happy because your Sunday / Monday night entertainment wouldn’t be on anymore (Basketball, Baseball, Football). Most players make mistakes, and most haven’t used performance enhancing drugs until later in their career because of injury or ego.
Since professional athletes are portrayed as icons, heroes, and role models…why not just focus on the positive things such as their helping out a community rather than display drug busts, shootings, animal cruelty all over TV and the internet. Focus on the hardwork, dedication, and commitment they have done their whole life to get where they are now. Let them live once in a while and let them be free. Let bygones be bygones.
