mirror reflection

Last night Major League Baseball and baseball fans (including me) around the world received earth shattering news that the best baseball player in the world and perhaps one of the greats in the history of the game tested positive for performance enhancing drugs. Alex Rodriguez currently of the New York Yankees reportedly tested positive for steroids in 2003. The history and records of baseball is very integral part of being a fan of baseball. Currently the sacred record of baseball - all time home runs is held by the notorious steroids user Barry Bonds. Alex Rodriguez was to be the player who embodied the ideal athlete who through diligence and talent was to restore the integrity of the sacred records of baseball.

Listening to the New York sports radio stations over the internet, the disappointment of the fans is palpable. For fans, sports is the diversion to escape from the rigors of real life. It affords people to be entertained by seemingly larger than life heroes who one can live vicariously through.

Unfortunately, the sports world is very much part of real life populated by real people like us all. The competition is high and the payoff for the top performers like any other industry can be very high. Its actually not surprising that people are willing to take the risk and take performance enhancing drugs to give them the best chance to succeed. This sort of thing happens in all walks of life. Here in China, parents line up to buy Chinese medicine reputed to enhance cognitive activity in the days leading up the College entrance exams for their children. Scientists are engaged in genetic engineering that may one day produce intelligent babies. What parent wouldn't want a child like that? How many people lie on their resumes in hopes of getting their foot in the door of a better job?

Trying to get an edge on the competition is an inherent character trait that all species have. I think it is safe to say that at this point, humans has gained such an advantage over the rest of the animals that it has become unfair.

So just how unfair is what Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez have done? That is a tough question to answer, as they are only doing what we humans are programmed to do. Just like any other subset of society, sports is just a reflection of who we are. Sometimes we don't like looking in the mirror because we might not like what we see. Unfortunately, heroes are just creations based on standards and ideals that nobody can never live up to.