2) One can’t really look at the steroid issue outside of the WOD. If there’s no WOD, there likely never would have been a steroid issue.

3) While this is conjecture on my part, I tend to doubt steroid usage controversy would have reached the frenzy it has if Barry Bonds had been more accomodating to the sports media during his career. Bonds’ failure to cultivate any relationships with members of the print and electronic media left him with few friends once this became an issue. I doubt the pious voices coming from the sports media over the last few years would have been as vocal if they knew where their witch hunt was going to take them (Clemens and Pettite among others).

4) People that use the word “juiced” when talking about steroids usually don’t have clue as to how steroids work in achieving muscle growth.

Weebs loves the longball.

Sporting leagues follow a set of rules that make up a game. These rules are completely arbitrary (bases 90 feet apart, only wooden bats, etc.). If certain actions are considered dangerous or not in accordance with fair competition, they are banned (horsecollar tackle and salary cap rules, respectively). I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong about that, mostly because all sporting rules are really arbitrary. If a league wants to arbitrarily ban the use of certain substances, that’s their problem.

I just don’t support Congress/our legal system dealing with things with such arbitrarity.

“…people seem to be making arguements that are ad hominen attacks on owners, Congress, etc. and naturalistic arguements about how great a country without drug laws would be…”

Congress has the power to do this because baseball has an anti-trust exemption.

Yes. That’s right. I forgot. Congress is compelled to control and manage everything that receives any benefit from the government.

In a nutshell, baseball (uniquely) is understood to have an anti-trust exemption for no apparent reason. As part of what at this point is basically a verbal commitment, baseball gets certain anti-trust benefits like approving team moves, and Congress gets to use it’s amazing oversight powers.

I don’t really agree with most of this. I don’t like public funding of stadiums. I think this anti-trust stuff is nonsense. Congress is definitely grandstanding. All that said, the libertarian drug legalization reflex is in full effect on an issue that doesn’t really have anything to do with legalization and which Congress does technically have a right to investigate.

The owners are just reacting to an unfortunate situation resulting from the drug war. In a truly free baseball market, there would be some number of fans who prefer non-juiced athletes and some number who prefer to maximize performance at whatever cost. The league would figure out who can make more money for them and that would be how the rules are made.

Instead, they are forced to adopt the drug warrior standard and attempt to balance the desire for profit with the need to look pious and lawful. Of course this just increases the incentive to juice if you think you can get away with it, and the incentive for the league to look the other way. As long as that’s the case there can’t be a fair playing field of either variety.

I have no problem with the owners enforcing their contracts or the League enforcing whatever rules they want. I think it is a bit disingenuous to say the their hands are tied by the Union. It seems more probable that they enjoyed the extra revenue brought about by juiced players and just kept quite (no blood no foul). If the owners and the league are not going to enforce the rules, I don’t see how it falls to the government to do it for them.

……..which brings us back to the prohibition on drugs…….

Other than that, I’m with you. Even though steroids were banned, I have trouble condemning players for breaking a rule that baseball wasn’t serious about enforcing. If they want to ban and then test for substances, that’s their right as an employer. Hell, they can ban vitamin C and caffeine for all I care.

But Congress should keep out of it.

I know of many employers who can fire you for following a doctor’s advice.

How is it an abuse of power exactly?

Do you really, honestly, in your heart-of-hearts, believe Babe Ruth being a drunk is analogous to Barry Bonds juicing so he could break the most prestigious record in sports?

Of course the owners were aware of it. Everybody was. Their hands were tied with the players’ union though. I don’t see how that makes it right. Also for a libertarian blog, people seem to be making arguements that are ad hominen attacks on owners, Congress, etc. and naturalistic arguements about how great a country without drug laws would be, but nobody has a problem with these players flagrantly breaking the terms of a voluntary contract. I’m not aware of a libertarian philosophy, or any philosophy for that matter, that allows for exploiting a law while breaking it. I don’t care if people do drugs, but I have no sympathy for a drug dealer who makes an excessive living, given market conditions, by breaking the law. This is essentially what the juicers did. Everyone is supposed to play by the same rules, even if those rules are non-ideal.

On a side note, there’s a crisp Benjamin for anyone in the DC area who walks into the hearing dressed like Vincenzo Pentangeli.

As for Congressional oversight, I have two conflicting thoughts: one they shouldn’t be involved, and two, at least it keeps them from making other trouble - like a little kid in an exersaucer.

I also think there’s dynamic here where those who follow the law are punished. If there were good steroids enforcement, players would have confidence that others weren’t cheating and wouldn’t have to wonder if they too should be choosing a short-term gain/long term health effects route versus the no-steroids route.

I think this matter also concerns baseball fans in a different way than non-fans. It viscerally bothers me that Rafael Palmeiro (4 all star teams) has more career HRs than Mike Schmidt, one of the premier power hitters of his generation, 3 time MVP, 12-time all star, and All-Century team. I don’t expect that to concern non-fans, but stats in baseball mean a lot. Baseball should worry about this annoyance from longtime fans in managing their product.