First of all, it’s good to be back. I was hard at work on my first big freelance assignment since hanging out my shingle. It was for a web magazine, and my task was to motivate readers to improve their health so they won’t have to pay for higher health insurance premiums when the consequences of their bad habits catch up with them. Among others, I interviewed lots of consultants, an adventure in itself, and I’ll tell you more in detail what I learned later on.
Now back to our regularly scheduled program.
I was momentarily shocked (or maybe I wasn’t) when I heard the list of alleged steroid users in baseball, among them some of my favorite players. (Johnny, how could you?) Putting aside the argument for the moment that HGH (human growth hormone) is given to help heal injuries faster and in some drug trials, has been used as a treatment for fibromyalgia, this issue, I think, is more about the entertainment factor in baseball rather than sport.
I mean, didn’t all this business start after the strike in the mid 90s? Owners wanted butts in the seats, and what better way than to give them hard-hitting home run sluggers? So have we then crossed the line even farther into entertainment?
Steroid use is called cheating by some, but in the entertainment field, things like this are done all time under the guise of getting more work and getting more butts in the seats. Actresses get their faces done, even some actors, and the breast implant and liposuction businesses are booming. Do we call these men and women cheaters, and deny them their Oscars and their stars on the walk of fame, and put an asterisk next to their names in the record books? No. The world lined up to see Angelina Jolie’s breasts star in “Tomb Raider”, and many, many actresses are still getting work as romantic leads into their 40s, 50s, and 60s, looking like women half their age thanks to Botox and other "injectibles."
I’m not saying this is right either. I just think we shouldn’t judge baseball players so harshly. Yes, they make a boatload of money, but so does Pamela Anderson.
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6 comments:
Yeah, Opus, I understand, and even kinda agree with your point. I don't think plastic surgery to fend off aging is a reasonable response to it, but I understand that physical appearance is a big part of getting work in Hollywood, so the proposition is different. Steroid use in the sports world is certainly similarly based. Those guys aren't going to be playing in the majors, pulling in the bucks, if they can't bring it.
But it still seems more wrong to me.
Actors have to have the ability to act (theoretically anyway). That does not come from plastic surgery. I'd like to say that some actors/actresses could have all the plastic surgery in the world and still not get work acting if they can't act. But I know that's not always the reality. I believe, however, that it IS the reality most of the time.
They can take acting lessons. They can practice. They can WORK to improve. This seems somehow more "fair" than taking the steroid route does for sports stars. Of course, that's likely just my emotional response.
SW: Good point. However, as I wrote many moons ago about Mark MacGwyer, you can bulk up as much as you want to, but you still have to get the bat on the ball. There are brilliant athletes on this list who worked their asses off to make it to the majors and merely took HGH to make an injury heal faster so they can get back on the field and make more money for their teams' owners.
So it's about six of one, half-dozen of the other, wouldn't you think?
Perhaps. The healing statistics certainly have to be a factor, but I think most steroid users do it to build muscle mass. There are certainly safer, healthier...and maybe less cheater-pants ways...to do so.
But your points are all well made and I'm certainly going to cut them much more slack than I have in the past. Not that I've given anyone much of a hard time about it. Mostly, just in my mind...
Have a great holiday!!
Happy end of the calendar year season greetings for whichever festivities you choose to celebrate. (How's that for PC!)
Pote: or, "Happy Generic Winter Celebration of Your Choosing."
Whatever yours may be, a joyous Christmas, a belated Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, soltice or...well, good food, friends, family and presents (in the case of my family) to you and all of my faithful readers!
Nate: yes, I know, I spelled "solstice" wrong.
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