by Bruce Bostwick

Created on: March 15, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

Cheating is cheating no matter how many ways you slice it. Though it may not guarantee automatic success, it does however enhance your body but there is a difference in use and abuse. Abuse is going well beyond what you are prescribed and it's not just steroids, it's all performance-enhancing and of course regular medication. The point is that it is something that shouldn't be needed but why does it get used? A better question would be why do players think using them would be a brilliant idea in a form of competition? It just makes little to no sense. It not only can heal you but also destroy you later on in life. It is a choice that everyone makes. To be ok with it is saying you like cheating and think it's the way to go. Just because someone does something that's cheap doesn't mean that you have to follow suit. Trying to gain a competitive edge in an unnatural way is pretty shallow and really doesn't say much about that person.

Even if it's undeserving, these players are looked up to as role models. Quite frankly, it seems everything you turn around, there's always some scandal and you can't really look at them as someone to follow their example in life. Take for instance a major star like Mark McGwire. I'm sure people looked up to him a whole lot more than Barry Bonds, which is why he is used as the example. In 1998 as everyone who follows baseball is aware, he broke the record to have it set at 70 Home Runs, only for it be broken three years later by Barry Bonds, whom hit 73 that season. The one item that really damaged him was him not speaking at Congress and not testifying at all. Had he done so and was honest, who knows but his reputation got damaged and probably was going to be either way. Possibly people looked up to Sammy Sosa but he didn't speak much about steroids at all pretty much neither confirming nor denying his usage of it.

Steroids and any other performance-enhancing drug should never be used for personal gain. What do you stand to gain out of this? There is nothing to gain from cheating in the game except a possible banning from the Hall of Fame. I use baseball as the primary focus because that seems to be where it all focus's on and its attention. There is a reason that it is illegal and no matter how many ways you slice it or try to sugar coat it, it is still cheating.

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