Barry Bonds. Roger Clemens. Marion Jones. The best hitter of our generation; (arguably) the best pitcher of our generation; one of the most dominant female track and field athletes of all time... Guilty of bangin 'roids.
Forget the other bit-players implicated in the Mitchell Report (Yankees fans, your mid-90s titles now appear to require asterisks), now I have 'roid rage.
No wonder Bonds grew from a scrawny singles hitter and swift base runner to a muscle bound home run hitter; no wonder Clemens was such an overpowering pitcher well into the years when most professional athletes do their best pitching on TV commercials.
The message this sends to aspiring professional athletes--indeed, to all athletes--is "Succeed. Whatever the cost, succeed. Do whatever it takes to succeed." Similar reasoning pervades the once-hallowed halls of academia, with cheating rampant: "Even if you have to cheat, even if it ruins your body, tarnishes beyond repair your reputation, or jeopardizes your career, succeed."
In their untramelled pursuit of success, athletes like Bonds, Clemens, Jones and others reinforce these messages and sacrifice on the altar of success far more lasting characteristics like honesty, integrity and fair play.
Shame on them. And shame on us for lauding them.
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