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If Major League Baseball (MLB) wants to ban steroids, it is
completely entitled to do so. It's a private league. Its owners
and players can agree or not on contracts that aim at banning
drugs. Now, just like the National Hockey League and some other
professional leagues in North America, MLB is the only league that
can offer baseball players multi-million dollars contracts. One of
the consequences of that superiority is that many of the players
will then agree to rules that they would normally not agree to in
the first place. But hey, nothing ties them to MLB if they are not
happy.
This is the case with
steroids. We can assume, with what we've seen in the past few
years, that if pro-sports had permitted the use of drugs many
athletes would not have hidden the truth about their consumption
and we could then see what talent mixed with science can achieve
in terms of performance. This is not going to happen soon though;
the government is putting a lot of pressure on MLB "to clean up
its act" and "Congress wants to impose uniform drug-testing and
punishment standards on all sports leagues."(1)
Private companies and associations should be able to define what
rules will govern them without any intervention from politicians.
A private association has no obligation to accept me if I don't
agree to their rules, just as I should not be forced to join any
associations I don't think are fit for me. This logic should also
prevail when it comes to the sale and use of steroids. If a group
of people, let's say Bodybuilders and Co., think
performance-enhancing drugs are OK, they should be left alone if
they don't force anybody to follow their path. Sadly, this is not
how things are done. Today, the debate about steroid use is widely
dominated by morally superior do-gooders who believe it's not
right for an athlete to use products that help him or her perform
better.
Deciding to use or not to
use steroids is exactly the same thing as asking yourself if you
should go to the movies or stay home, eat a cheeseburger or a
salad, have a beer or a glass of sparkling water. It is a matter
of personal choice, a matter of preference. People look at the
possible risks and at the possible benefits of taking drugs and
then make a decision. For some the cost is too high. The risks
involved may not be worth the price. Ken Caminiti, a former
baseball superstar, admitted having taken steroids during his 1996
MVP (Most Valuable Player) season. He died in 2004. Even if his
death is shrouded in mystery (some say heart attack, some say
overdose), many are citing his case as a clear example of what
happens when people use performance-enhancing drugs.
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