Cheating at sports

by Tom Haughey

 

I must admit to being amused by the supposed “deflate gate” which has caused rather unusual pre- Superbowl consternation. I’m amused because major league sports are so hypocritical in the way they enforce (or don’t enforce) a level playing field. Take, for example, the use of steroids (which can be shown to actually influence the results in both individual and team sports but which creates superhuman stars that draw fans and money. Both football and baseball give multiple opportunities to players to stop this kind of cheating. About all that goes on their permanent records is a notation which probably keeps them out of the Hall of Fame. They also may have an asterisk after their stats indicating they have the season record or are close to it for home runs or yards gained. You will never see football games, baseball games or titles, however, forfeited due to steroid use. By contrast, Pete Rose was banned for life from baseball although he didn’t take drugs to enhance his play and didn’t indulge in point shaving. It was enough that he made bets his team would win.