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The short answer is of course not. What is interesting to me, however, is that we usually view this question in terms of what is best for the fans, and reserve our vitriol for athletes who are caught, when we should be taking a closer look at how much the system itself is to blame.

If you are a serious sports fan, chances are pretty good that you have already rooted for a player who was using or rejoiced in an outcome which was tainted by performance enhancing drugs. Since many, many players never get caught - thanks to masking agents, careful chemistry, and poorly enforced drug policies - we remain none the wiser. The bottom line is what we don't know doesn't hurt us. This results in an upside down perception phenomenon where we view the sports with the toughest drug policies (cycling) as the most tainted, while sports with the most lenient drug policies (football) are considered relatively pure. Given the considerable advantages gained by taking steroids, many of us might be skeptical about the actual level of use in football. Those of us who want to keep our heads in the sand, however, have the option of remaining blissfully ignorant.

My point here isn't to condemn the NFL for not being aggressive enough in its pursuit of steroid abusers - that is a separate issue - instead, I want to point out something fundamental about the nature of cheating. Cheating is dictated by two key factors: 1. How high are the stakes? and 2. How likely am I to get caught? Question one says that If there are several million dollars on the line, and I can gain an advantage over those I compete against by taking a drug, I am much more likely to overlook the long-term effects on my health as well as the ethical issues involved. Generally speaking, the amount of cheating in sport is roughly proportional to what's at stake. Interestingly, the steady growth in popularity of triathlons has brought with it a curious new phenomenon: the use of performance-enhancing drugs among age group competitors. The fact that people use drugs to get an edge when their entire livelihood and reputations are on the line should hardly be surprising when others are willing to endanger their health for bragging rights in the local triathlon.

Question two, how likely am I to get caught, is equally important. If I can gain a significant advantage with a syringe, and find a way to pass or avoid the drug test, then why shouldn't I? Of course there are moral standards and considerations about my health, but again,

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