Obligatory Lance Armstrong Post

[howeird]

As I have posted many times before, I am all in favor of professional athletes taking any drugs they want which will enhance their performance. Heck, I am all in favor of anyone taking any drugs they want, whenever. All the war on drugs does is raise the price of drugs and escalate the violence around their distribution. We have adequate laws in place for being intoxicated in public, driving while drugged, etc.

This whole media circus over drugs in sports is ridiculous. Barry Bonds was a skinny guy who was a great outfielder, golden glove winner, and maybe he saw how bulked up his dad was when they were both Giants, but regardless, he knew he would have to put on muscle weight to do what outfielders are expected to do - hit homers. So he did what it took, and took what he did, and busted the home run records. Babe Ruth bulked up on hot dogs and beer, and it killed him. There's no asterix next to his name because beer is legal. Well actually no, it wasn't. Ruth played from 1914-1935, prohibition was in force 1920 to 1933.

The media circus around Lance Armstrong is ridiculous. I don't care what he was on, he won those races. The Tour de France is no walk in the park, and while drugs may help build muscle, they don't build the kind of determination and guts it takes to win a 21 day-long bicycle race which includes mountain passes and a variety of winding roads. Seven times! After recovering from stage 3 cancer.

And I don't care if he lied about it. The Livestrong organization he founded in 2002 has helped cancer programs to the tune of about $30 million a year. I'd lie if it would do that kind of good.

I think what the media is doing to him is criminal. Lives will probably be lost as a result of this media hounding.