I'm not going to join the sanctimonious hype surrounding Ryan Braun and Alex Rodriguez' supposed drug use. Braun took the plea deal. And, he comes across as a bum. Alex is being spit upon before anything actually comes down. Turn the guy into public enemy number one and do with him what you will.
The phony "war on drugs" mentality has taken over baseball. This weekend, there will be no new players inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. This is because the baseball writers are so freaked out about PED's, they won't vote for the "steroid era" players. Never mind the racist past of "baseball," or the despicable behavior of Hall of Famers like Ty Cobb.
"Baseball" (whatever that term means) is applauding the Players Unions for not defending the supposed users. I think that stinks. The owners and the media have enough power to deem anyone suspected of drug use as guilty. The union is supposed to be on the workers' side. C'mon man, whatever happened to due process?
The public seems not to care so much. In fact, I bet a lot of fans really miss the homers more than they are celebrating the rash of no-hitters.
Consider this: If you were a poor boy in the Dominican Republic, and had a chance to escape from a life of cutting sugar cane, would you do what you had to do to have a chance?
Hi Joan,
ReplyDeleteSo nice to see that you are recovering enough to post a good old Joan Chandler style rant. The "war on drugs" makes me so angry. I just think of all the lives that are ruined by jail sentences for drugs less dangerous than alcohol or smoking. Lives that are sent down the path of hopelessness and successive prison terms because repeated crimes often become an inevitability. The prisons that have become nothing more than profit centers for obscene private corporations. All the drug money-laundering that goes on at major, "legitimate" banks. The list of external "war on drugs" crimes goes on and on. It is nothing less than a disgusting travesty and a blight on our nation. The United States is a big money-changing house.
You can always get me going, Joan. Keep feeling better - Take Care, Pam