The bottom line:

That Dixon and various NBA officials and reps were even called before Congress to testify about steroids was more evidence that members are convinced this issue is political gold, devoid of any real downside no matter how far they stray into bizarre territory. What if they are right?

Now, here is my take, which is one you all have probably not come across before:

Most people, by definition, are of average body composition. In the days of yesteryear, professional athletes were not giants; they were very talented, yet ordinary people. That is part of what made them so special.

Time, and money, changes all things. Many great players of the recent past, the present, and the future would not have been and will not be able to make the cut in professional sports without steroids. The entry bar is set too high. The average, yet talented people will effectively be barred from pursuing their dreams of playing professional sports because they are barred from using performance enhancing drugs.

It seems to me the Ritalin, Prozac, and all the other government approved drugs are also performance enhancing drugs. Many people can not do their jobs or compete effectively without the drugs. Steroids would seem to be in the same class, to me.

I think the reluctance to accept steroids into the socially acceptable (ie, government approved) fold of life-enhancing drugs is because their use actually changes the physical appearance of the body. The religious folk go apoplectic if you tinker with God's creation in any way. How else do you explain the outrage over steroids versus the deafening silence on the over-use of Ritalin, Prozac, Xanex, Wellbutrin, Viagra, and all the others.

The canard that steroid use by pro athletes is a bad influence on kids who may use steroids as a result is not sufficient cause to deny thousands of people the right to pursue happiness by playing competitive sports at the professional level.

It's a constitutional matter, in my opinion. Let people be free!

[UPDATE...]

To answer all, uhh... "inquiries", recent and imminent regarding this matter:

Yes, I know that many in the legalize marijuana camp are pot heads. No, I do not, nor have I ever, taken steroids. I have never even taken a nutrition supplement like creatine or whey. I was the beneficiary of a nice gene pool and can build muscle mass just by looking at a weight set. On the other hand, if I were physically deficient in some way or another that affected athletic perfomance, and it were preventing me from fulfilling my goals, I think I would like the opportunity to undertake a responsible, monitored performance enhancement therapy. The point being that it is my decision to make, not hte government's.

The theme of the article, in a similar vein as many articles on this site, is that I do not like the government deciding who can take performance enhancing drugs (e.g. Prozac, Viagra) and who can not (Steroids, marijuana, amphetamines).

Appreciate the emails.