A Giant Mistake?
A Giant Mistake?
A Giant Mistake?
The Barry Bonds trial is the saga of two ex BFFs who decided to call the FBI on each other. One of the friends is much more famous, wealthy, and allegedly guilty of the trendy crime (in 2003 anyway) of taking illegal performance-enhancing drugs (or PEDs). The Bonds' former childhood friend, Stevie Hoskins, is certainly less well known and (allegedly) guilty of forging and selling Bonds sports memorabilia, an arguably less interesting crime. Parenthetically, question to high-end sports memorabilia collectors who believe those scribbles are authentic--does the phrase "caveat emptor" mean anything to you?
Unlike the busy mother with too many kids and too little money, who would have told the battling boys to work it out between themselves or take it outside, the Feds took the bait. Several polls with decent sample sizes say the population believe the Bonds perjury trial is a huge waste of tax payers' money and that Bonds was unfairly targeted for a crime that: a) all the other kids are doing; and b) many don't believe should be a crime in the first place. Media coverage suggests that even those opposed to steroid used by professional athletes and long-established Barry Bonds haters are now rooting for himor better said, rooting against the federal prosecutors.
"He shouldn't have lied," according to Mark Hurley, an 18-year old Bay Area college baseball player/my very cute nephew. "But someone doesn't get out of bed in the morning, take steroids, then hit a baseball 500 feet." Even hardcore baseball fans agree that Bonds was unwise to (allegedly) lie to a federal grand jury. So if Bonds had copped to the supposed "crime," there would have been a faint "tsk tsk" and, more likely, a louder refrain of "I knew it."
A professional athlete who is willing to compromise his medium and long-term health with side effects that would make the most macho of men run across the playground screaming like a little girl, might be a man not reviled, but rather admired, for his willingness to sacrifice so much for America's favorite sport. To many fans, professional athletes sacrificing their physical and mental well being to provide a show worthy fans' hard-earned money and precious little free time, deserve respect, not prosecution. These hard-working athletes exhibit fierce dedication at personal peril to make baseball more exciting for them, the fans.
Bonds' problem wasn't that he didn't play by the rules but that he lied when he said that he DID play by the rules. And he didn't lie to his wife (which he did), lie to his girlfriend (which he did), and lie to his ailing father (which he (allegedly) did, but seemingly to protect him from an ugly truth that a loyal son was not proud). Bonds (allegedly) lied to a federal grand jury in 2003. The feds get a little touchy about thatand unlike a spurned lover, ex wife, or disappointed dad, the federal prosecutor has time and money to pursue their possible betrayal. Despite the evolution of evidence like DNA, phone records, GPS, electronic paper trails, much of today's legal system remains hinged on ye olde honor system.
The solemn "swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth" is a cornerstone of the legal system, and much more serious than marriage, since marriage certificates don't require signatures "under penalty of perjury."
When someone says anything important in our judicial system, that person is legally obligated to speak the truth. The ONLY punishment the judicial system has for those who do not tell the truth, even if they said they did (aka "lie under oath") is to prosecute that person for perjury. That's it. Nothing else. Nada. For many people, the threat of jail time and a hefty fine (should they happen to get caught in a lie) is enough for them to tell "the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth."
Perhaps human beings are truthful primarily because they fear the punishment if they get caught. Bonds (allegedly) got caught in an unnecessary lie. By now, many athletes have admitted steroid use, including fellow MLB players testifying at Bonds' trial, all to very little public reaction and even less surprise. The other players who testified about their own use of PEDs with the compliments of Greg Anderson and his friends at BALCO seemed to be hard-working, earnest guys, unapologetic about doing anything possible to improve their performance and extend their career.
Maybe everyone who wants to be really good at their job does what it takes to perform at their highest level. Had they been available, it seems plausible that Theodore Roosevelt would have taken what Barry Bonds (allegedly) referred to it, "a little some'n some'n" before storming San Juan Hill. And if it thought it would help, he may well have shared it with the rest of the Rough Riders.
What does it say to the population at large if the only reason not to lieeven if one has to sign their name under a line that reads, "under the threat of perjury," is the possibility of getting caught?
It should give us pause that the Fed's case against Bonds could not be made had the prosecutors not given immunity to the major witnesses of their own crimes of steroid usage, drug trafficking, mortgage fraud, etc.
So what is the message we want the kids of America to take away
Telling the truth in the first place is always best or it takes liars to take down liars?
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