Letters to the Editor
michaeljb
Published Letters: 10 Editor's Choice: 3
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Faustian bargains and Hakeem/Michael
[Read the article: King Kaufman's Sports Daily]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Never has American professional sports seemed more of a Faustian bargain; it provides a living and fame and fortune for a small group of people, in exchange, they face a life of being a has-been at 40 and all the resulting medical problems coming not only from the fact that bodies aren't meant to do what football players (to name one) do to compete, but also from all the various drugs they have to take over a long career in order to keep playing. My question would be, does any thinking person past 40 really fantasize about a pro football career, wishing they'd had one? I'm sure plenty do, but I'm not sure why. Fame is one thing but it doesn't compensate for living the rest of your life with a body that's spent.
And I think the reason no one has engaged the Michael/Hakeem question is it's too patently ridiculous. Hakeem was a great player but doesn't anyone doubt that had Jordan not spent two years chasing baseball, the Bulls would've won 8, not 6? Some Houston fans, I'm sure, but they're delusional. It wasn't just Jordan's talent, it was his will -- once he started winning, he never lost again (this is ignoring of course his ill fated comeback with the Wizards); the combination of having the most talent and the strongest will was why Jordan and company would've beaten any team the Rockets put up.
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self-righteousness
[Read the article: King Kaufman's Sports Daily]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]It's funny to read all this self-righteousness over the negative reaction to Bonds breaking the record. I mean, if anyone deserves some shit karmically it's Bonds, who has been an asshole for 20 years (and to be an infamous asshole by pro sports standards means you're...well, a serious dickhead in a world filled with them). And is anyone really surprised that the man breaking the most famous record in sports (though I'd argue that Ruth's 714 was the real iconic record, the one boomers like me grew up with. Until this recent hoo haw, I wasn't sure what Aaron's exact number was, 750 something) should elicit a lot of negative reaction? He's not some faceless pitcher juicing, he's a superstar who by most accounts just couldn't bear the adulation McGuire/Sosa got during their HR fest. It seems fitting to me that Bonds starting to juice was ultimately an act of supreme petulant ego. And is there really any doubt about it? He's admitted to rubbing a steroid cream on, an entire book was written by two respected reporters that laid out irrefutable evidence, including needles, an enlarged head, rage and skin breakouts galore. So let's just stop the "innocent until proven guilty" bullshit, this isn't a court of law. I'm more open to the argument that so many people were juicing, Bonds is simply a product of his times. Fine, OK, I'm with you on that. But don't go all whiny about people dissing the guy breaking the HR record. In for a penny and all (to Bonds' credit, if he hasn't exactly bucked up to the issue, he's at least saying the right things). One last thing, I'm sure there's a lot of speed use at the major league level but it's not really quite the same, is it? Steroids not only build muscle mass, they stop all those little piddling aches and pains that bedevil any pro athlete playing a game every day for six months. That's a huge advantage and doesn't quite compare to a drug that basically keeps you from falling asleep in the outfield (OK, I'm being disingenuous here, but you get the point)