Why Do So Many Athletes Feel That They Need to Use Performance Enhancing Drugs?Essay title: Why Do So Many Athletes Feel That They Need to Use Performance Enhancing Drugs?Paul WalshDr. AzizPsychology 1000WHY ATHLETES FEEL THE PRESSURE TO USE STEROIDSWhy do so many Athletes feel that they need to use performance enhancing drugs?Our society loves to place athletes on an iconic status they expect to see a good show day in and day out. They want to see bigger athletes playing, bigger home runs in baseball, bigger hits in football, and faster times ran in track meets. Our society is very demanding in these issues they want to see these big plays on sportscenters top ten plays and these 500 bombs ft. that just rocket of bats. Then when a little controversy arises about these performance enhancing drugs an athlete may be taking our country will turn their back on that person as soon as they hear of such a thing. Then after all the allegations of pro athletes using steroids I turn on my favorite show sportscenter and have to listen some college geek who couldn’t make high school swim team talk about how the game is tarnished and its not pure anymore. Shit as long as young kids are playing football and baseball in the parks and having a good time then I still see the game as pure as it has ever been. If these little twerps did not put such high expectations on athletes with their preseason all everything teams then maybe athletes wouldn’t feel it so necessary to do such a thing to their body. But from my experiences as a college athlete there is tons of pressure put on you to succeed by fans, coaches, and administrators that some feel necessary to gain as much of an edge as possible. That includes cheating if need be because that is what athletes are doing by taking steroids they are cheating the game and all of those involved with them. Every athlete wants glory every athlete wants to leave something behind every athlete wants his legacy to be remembered they want to be talked about forever. Like Babe Ruth his name will never be forgotten even though his home run record was broken. People will never forget him people will still remember him as the best hitter the game has ever seen. Hank Aaron broke his record and Barry bonds will crush the records that Aaron and Ruth set, but surrounding Bonds is a dark cloud filled with questions of steroid use. People will remember Bonds as a great hitter but there will be an asterisk next to his name in the books. A couple years ago when Bonds all of a sudden started crushing homers everyone in this country loved him opposing teams fans would cheer when he would send one out of the park. Then the Balco scandal was surfaced and Bonds was questioned of steroid use. Then all of a sudden he was getting booed at his home park our society had turned their back on another athlete that they once cheered for every day.
I s it wrong for these athletes to use steroids? The world today seems to think so, but would they trade all those highlight plays for steroid free sports today. That is a question I would like to be answered by our society. Personally I don’t think that trade would be made because our society today is too obsessed with these highlights. Our society doesn’t care about steroid use as long as is kept quiet; as long as they don’t have to hear about it they will keep on keeping on.
Even President Bush is calling for a ban on steroids in baseball. Bush stated “unfortunately some in professional sports are not setting much of an example”. He goes on to say “The use of performance enhancing drugs like steroids in football, baseball, and other sports is dangerous, and it sends the wrong message. That there are shortcuts to accomplishment and that performance is more important than character.” The President’s comments on the subject came at the time of an international doping scandal which involved BALCO, The Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative, a supplement lab which listed Barry Bonds as one of their many high profile clients. Bonds, who ranks fourth on the all-time homerun list broke the single season record for homeruns in 2001. (Kroichick,Crumpler,pg.1
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Read the full quote here: “There’s a point of view that has the president of the United States who has been advocating for more regulation of performance enhancing drugs against the U.S. that believes they are worth more than some steroids to take us all out of a competition. He’s been asking us, ‘Is performance enhancing drugs worth it?’ It’s like he said we should throw in the towel. … No, the problem is they’re for us. They’re for the rest of us.”
The comment comes as President Trump took a sharp break from his usual routine of his press briefing today and in the hours to follow.
The following is a brief excerpt of his remarks:
On drug, which is all over the news these days, why do we go to public with the details of the evidence that we have now on the link between performance enhancing drugs and cancer?
Now, do you agree? In my view, the government should not be allowed to get involved in this that is happening. We need a leader from the American people who does the scientific analysis, who has shown us that there are serious risks that are not going to be tolerated. And that is a big issue. But how do you come to be able put a man of science into Washington without being held accountable for his actions? The American people have shown me through his record that he puts the scientists, he puts people in government jobs where he does nothing but serve his business interests.
The president continues, “When that president started throwing out any kind of scientific statement as well as anything pertaining to his personal opinions, which I have learned from the scientific analysis of the evidence, that is an easy thing to do. He has always done just that. He didn’t change a single little bit. He just threw out any kind of statement as well as anything that was related to his personal interests and the public’s needs—not including, as I have been asked, his political views.”
As the president points out to me, “if anything, there would be a better way.”
While it is true that there are real health risks when used to treat cancer and a possible link between performance and drug use, the President asserts that the question needs to be “be put aside for now.”
The president then continues referring to his own review of the evidence and reiterating that the president’s views could change as he decides how and when to proceed with the case.
Mr. President we’re very sorry for the misunderstanding regarding the science of cancer. Please let all Americans know that the evidence for your claim is very strong, much stronger. This is a hard question—we’ve had many, many scientific reports that show a long-term association between performance enhancement drugs (such as those used in sports) and various cancers.
Let me just say what I have learned. It is true that performance enhancing drugs can reduce the risk of cancer and that the evidence shows the benefits of these drugs are great. Now