Even though I have never been a rabid fan of professional baseball, I try to stay up on what’s happening with the home team and over time get to know most of the movers and shakers on the other teams. How could anyone not know who Barry Bonds is?
Here’s what I know about Bonds. He’s been a helluva player his whole career. He was a superb outfielder and he hit more home runs than any other player in history. He has never been cooperative with media folks trying to cover him and his teams for their readers and viewers. He’s a ball player, not a media darling. Like many other high profile players, his name came up in the course of the national discussion about steroids in sports.
Here’s what I think I know about steroids in sports. They were used by athletes in my high school in the sixties. They have been used by athletes in almost every sport for as long as I can remember. They have been bad mouthed by many for years because of the advantage they give to their users, but they weren’t even banned by the sporting organizations that were impacted by their use. Even today, they are not illegal drugs even though they have been banned by most sporting organizations for giving their users an unfair advantage.
As far as I can tell, none of the athletes who either used them or are alleged to have used them broke any laws and further, with the exception of the Olympics and maybe professional cycling, few sporting organizations punished their competitors for using them until recent years.
So what was the basis for subpoenaing professional athletes to testify before a Grand Jury or Congress? If no laws were broken, what was the point?
They forced professional athletes to appear and either perjure themselves or trash their own professional reputations by admitting to using a product that was not banned by their sport at the time it was used. I guess if you never used steroids, you would be happy to appear and maybe lob a few veiled allegations at others you suspected were using to trash their reputations without recourse.
The Congressional hearings were a huge witch hunt to discredit baseball players who had achieved elevated success at the expense of the reputation of the sport. At a time when Professional Baseball was not policing their own players, the Congress decided to humiliate the league and incriminate the players to convey their distress over a tarnished image.
In Barry Bond’s case, he was subpoenaed to testify before a Grand Jury regarding an investigation of another person alleged to being the manufacturer and “illegal” distributor of steroid laced products. Bonds admitted to using products provided by that person, but denied knowing they contained steroids. Bonds was not the subject of the investigation but after his testimony, he was charged with fifteen felony counts of perjury.
I don’t know if Barry Bonds used steroids or not. I do know that he has been hounded for eight years for allegedly perjuring himself with his testimony in an investigation that convicted a guy for the illegal distribution of steroids that netted the guy four months in jail.
The case of the US Government VS Barry Bonds is an example of how off base our legal system is today. The federal prosecutors should take a look at Charlie Sheen if they want to rough up a celebrity who has it coming.
Barry Bonds’ reputation has been ruined already. Regardless of the outcome of his trial, his contributions to his sport will forever be marred. Is it necessary for these sour apples baseball fanatics to take out their own frustrations about their beloved game on the guy who captured the most coveted record in the sport, maybe by using performance enhancing substances and maybe not?
Whether Barry Bonds actually used steroids will never be confirmed in this trial because use of steroids is not the crime; denying that he used them apparently is.
Martha Stewart was sent to federal prison for lying and now it appears that Barry Bonds will too. I can’t see how sending either one of them to prison makes much sense when there are real criminals out there getting a free pass because these zealots want to teach a guy a lesson.
I don’t condone illegal activity for anyone, but the pursuit of this case is an injustice. I don’t want Barry Bonds to go to jail.
Posted on March 24, 2011 at 10:31 am in Political commentary | RSS feed
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No Loss for Words
The Savaging of Barry Bonds
by Steve DanaEven though I have never been a rabid fan of professional baseball, I try to stay up on what’s happening with the home team and over time get to know most of the movers and shakers on the other teams. How could anyone not know who Barry Bonds is?
Here’s what I know about Bonds. He’s been a helluva player his whole career. He was a superb outfielder and he hit more home runs than any other player in history. He has never been cooperative with media folks trying to cover him and his teams for their readers and viewers. He’s a ball player, not a media darling. Like many other high profile players, his name came up in the course of the national discussion about steroids in sports.
Here’s what I think I know about steroids in sports. They were used by athletes in my high school in the sixties. They have been used by athletes in almost every sport for as long as I can remember. They have been bad mouthed by many for years because of the advantage they give to their users, but they weren’t even banned by the sporting organizations that were impacted by their use. Even today, they are not illegal drugs even though they have been banned by most sporting organizations for giving their users an unfair advantage.
As far as I can tell, none of the athletes who either used them or are alleged to have used them broke any laws and further, with the exception of the Olympics and maybe professional cycling, few sporting organizations punished their competitors for using them until recent years.
So what was the basis for subpoenaing professional athletes to testify before a Grand Jury or Congress? If no laws were broken, what was the point?
They forced professional athletes to appear and either perjure themselves or trash their own professional reputations by admitting to using a product that was not banned by their sport at the time it was used. I guess if you never used steroids, you would be happy to appear and maybe lob a few veiled allegations at others you suspected were using to trash their reputations without recourse.
The Congressional hearings were a huge witch hunt to discredit baseball players who had achieved elevated success at the expense of the reputation of the sport. At a time when Professional Baseball was not policing their own players, the Congress decided to humiliate the league and incriminate the players to convey their distress over a tarnished image.
In Barry Bond’s case, he was subpoenaed to testify before a Grand Jury regarding an investigation of another person alleged to being the manufacturer and “illegal” distributor of steroid laced products. Bonds admitted to using products provided by that person, but denied knowing they contained steroids. Bonds was not the subject of the investigation but after his testimony, he was charged with fifteen felony counts of perjury.
I don’t know if Barry Bonds used steroids or not. I do know that he has been hounded for eight years for allegedly perjuring himself with his testimony in an investigation that convicted a guy for the illegal distribution of steroids that netted the guy four months in jail.
The case of the US Government VS Barry Bonds is an example of how off base our legal system is today. The federal prosecutors should take a look at Charlie Sheen if they want to rough up a celebrity who has it coming.
Barry Bonds’ reputation has been ruined already. Regardless of the outcome of his trial, his contributions to his sport will forever be marred. Is it necessary for these sour apples baseball fanatics to take out their own frustrations about their beloved game on the guy who captured the most coveted record in the sport, maybe by using performance enhancing substances and maybe not?
Whether Barry Bonds actually used steroids will never be confirmed in this trial because use of steroids is not the crime; denying that he used them apparently is.
Martha Stewart was sent to federal prison for lying and now it appears that Barry Bonds will too. I can’t see how sending either one of them to prison makes much sense when there are real criminals out there getting a free pass because these zealots want to teach a guy a lesson.
I don’t condone illegal activity for anyone, but the pursuit of this case is an injustice. I don’t want Barry Bonds to go to jail.
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Posted on March 24, 2011 at 10:31 am in Political commentary | RSS feed | Reply | Trackback URL