JC Romero Thoughts
most of philadelphia is up-in-arms about the "injustice" of jc romero being given a 50 game suspension for "unknowingly" taking banned substances from a supplement he bought at a GNC.
i can certainly understand where people are coming from, because i was thinking the same way until i looked at the product he purchased. some facts, as reported, that would lead you to side with jc are:
- this product wasn't on the banned substances list
- jc asked multiple nutritionists if the ingredients in the supplement were ok to take
- jc asked the trainer if the supplement was ok to take (trainer said he didn't know)
- jc asked the union if it was ok to take (union said it was ok)
based on these widely reported facts, i initially thought that the suspension seemed unfair -- that he never intended to violate the drug policy and that he took the "supplement" in good faith.
then out of curiosity, i googled the product he supposedly took. here is the first google link that came up:
http://anabolicminds.com/store/1347.html
it's not a popular stance, but i'm on record as saying that i think this whole notion of cheating makes no sense to me. if a grown man wants to take something that makes him a better player -- thereby increasing my entertainment -- so be it. (note: i understand the argument that allowing pros to take steroids encourages kids to take it. it's potentially the only valid reason to ban the stuff.)
however, for good or bad, the rules are in place... and it's clear to me that romero's intent was to artificially boost his testosterone levels via these "supplements". so while in his mind, he may not have technically violated the doping restrictions. to me, his intent to circumvent the spirit of the rule is clear.
here is some text from the advertising for the "supplement":
i don't know. sounds like steroids to me.
i can certainly understand where people are coming from, because i was thinking the same way until i looked at the product he purchased. some facts, as reported, that would lead you to side with jc are:
- this product wasn't on the banned substances list
- jc asked multiple nutritionists if the ingredients in the supplement were ok to take
- jc asked the trainer if the supplement was ok to take (trainer said he didn't know)
- jc asked the union if it was ok to take (union said it was ok)
based on these widely reported facts, i initially thought that the suspension seemed unfair -- that he never intended to violate the drug policy and that he took the "supplement" in good faith.
then out of curiosity, i googled the product he supposedly took. here is the first google link that came up:
http://anabolicminds.com/store/1347.html
it's not a popular stance, but i'm on record as saying that i think this whole notion of cheating makes no sense to me. if a grown man wants to take something that makes him a better player -- thereby increasing my entertainment -- so be it. (note: i understand the argument that allowing pros to take steroids encourages kids to take it. it's potentially the only valid reason to ban the stuff.)
however, for good or bad, the rules are in place... and it's clear to me that romero's intent was to artificially boost his testosterone levels via these "supplements". so while in his mind, he may not have technically violated the doping restrictions. to me, his intent to circumvent the spirit of the rule is clear.
here is some text from the advertising for the "supplement":
We undertook the due testing to prove to ourselves that this product had the ability to stimulate testosterone levels beyond even the range of upper normal - indeed it stimulates levels well into the supraphysiological range.
i don't know. sounds like steroids to me.
Labels: baseball, miscellaneous
posted by The Mean Guy at 11:27 AM
13 Comments:
"I didn't cheat, I just took a known performance enhancing drug to give myself an edge over the comopetition" (sarcastic quote, not actual quote)
You cheated JC, pay the piper.
It would be nice if Amaro would come out and comment or something. Instead he just stays in his candy coated shell and says nothing.
On a football note, is anyone else tired of Mcnabb trying to paint himself as the ultimate martyr? I am tired of reading blurbs about being spit on, kicked, etc. I am tired of turning on WIP yesterday and hearing him say of the Giants, "it's a long season, guys have ups and downs. Not everyone gets benched for it..." Grow the eff up! You are the face of the franchise and you know what, you have absolutely sucked at times this year. I was in the stands in Baltimore. he was beyond awful. he looked like a Council Rock North QB vs. USC. Did the benchign wake him up? probably not, but when he is bad, he is terrible (Washington game 2, Bengals, Baltimore). It's not people spitting on you dude, it's people (OK at least me)saying "come on already! After 10 years, enough with the throws at people's feet, the puppy dog whines, the laughter in the face of massive, crippling mistakes, the utter inability to grasp core concepts in managing a shortened game clock." Dude is great, dude is loved (both my daughters wear McNabb jerseys every Sunday), but dude deserve criticism when he sucks.
Bumble
I'm not sure who is "up in arms" about JC. I haven't talked with anyone who thinks differently than either the MG or Bumble.
Romero tried find a loophole, cheat, and got caught. Kind of like Clinton's getting head without having sex depending upon what the definition of "is" is.
I still love JC, and I still love Bill, but but it's hard to see their respective behavoirs as being anything other than what they were - cheating.
Tough way to start the season for the Phillies, but that's baseball.
Pitchers and catchers report in a little over 5 weeks. I'm hoping the Eagles can warm some of that time for me.
Ed Wade
On a football note, is anyone else tired of Mcnabb trying to paint himself as the ultimate martyr?
yes, yes, double yes. as we've discussed before, i think mcnabb's thin skin/oversensitive mentality is his single greatest flaw and is probably the single biggest reason he is not loved more in this town. there is a lot of hyperbole surrounding philadelphia fans, but one thing is definitely true. we can't stand players we view as weak (mentally or physically).
I'm not sure who is "up in arms" about JC. I haven't talked with anyone who thinks differently than either the MG or Bumble.
i was basing that on the tone of the newspaper stories (most of which cast romero as a victim) and the tone on wip (hosts and callers). of course, the tone on wip doesn't necessarily represent the sentiment of the population at large, but during my time listening this week every caller agreed with the notion of romero as the innocent victim.
I still love JC, and I still love Bill
me too on both counts. JC pitches with emotion and guts, i've enjoyed his time here.
i can't believe we found him in the scrap heap. (... of course, that may be right about the time he started taking better supplements too...)
Being the resident Reid/5 apologist, I can see where McNabb has some reason to feel slighted. I'm not saying he shouldn't be critisized (and I agreed with the benching), but there seems to be 6 negative comments about his performance for every 1 positive one. Keep in mind we're talking about THE GREATEST EAGLES QB OF ALL TIME. You don't have to kiss his feet or anything (and defnitely not treat him like GB fans treat Favre), but I think this town treated Bobby Hoying better.
Being the resident Reid/5 apologist, I can see where McNabb has some reason to feel slighted. I'm not saying he shouldn't be critisized (and I agreed with the benching), but there seems to be 6 negative comments about his performance for every 1 positive one.
some would say that QBs should expect criticism (deserved or not) if they haven't won a superbowl.
two QBs pop into my head that were boo-ed and/or critcized heavily until they won a title:
- john elway
- steve young
elway i think is a particularly good comparison point. elway was killed all the time in the denver press and by local fans for not being able to win the big game and for not being "clutch" enough to win the big one.
it wasn't until after he won that he became revered in denver. i'm not sure if he "forgave" denver fans for being tough on him prior to winning it wall, but i suspect that donovan will never forgive or forget.
i usually defend his play on the field because i think much of it is unjustified or flat out wrong. however, i've never quite warmed up to donovan the personality.
I like Donovan-he is a family man, a seemingly nice guy, a gifted athlete, and someone who values being a mentor to other players in the league. That said, I just hate that things stick in his craw and he comes back to them again and again. He needs to learn to move on. Shrug it off, look at the source, and move on. It looks childish to keep having to point out his merits vs criticisms like he always does, "see you said mean things about me but I'm really really good after all, I won the Dallas game. I won the Vikes game." It's just hard to latch on to that and respect the guy. As a leader, you are always the center of all criticism and controversy. That is true in any profession.
Bumble
Bumble, the flip side is he gets asked 8x per week at least about getting benched and whether he thought it was the right thing to do. Can you imagine if you were taken off a project at work and then was asked about it by all your co-workers every day of the week for the rest of your employment there? Meh. He's a franchise QB and is paid like one. Maybe he just needs to shut the eff up and cash his checks. I don't know.
I'm just glad that he's going to be out there tomorrow behind center vs. the Giants.
Me too, Phil. I'm liking our chances with Donovan. I can't wait for the game.
Ed Wade
and the real Jake Delhomme shows up again. That guy being good is one of the biggest myths in pro football. He tosses a few balls a year up for grabs and Steve Smith runs under them. Game plan to make him beat you and he cannot.
Let's hope the scared puppy Eli shows up tomorrow (Doubt it). I expect a good game. The Giants will get their 150 on the ground, but the key is the Birds offense. they absolutely have to answer. I don't like hearing about a gimpy Westbrook, but I do like being in a spot where if you win, the only thing standing between you and the SB is Kurt Warner whom Jim Johnson owns as bad as Peyton Manning owns Jim Johnson.
Bumble
How so you lose a home playoff game to the Cardinals? If that happened to the Eagles there would be a big pile of bodies beneath the Ben Franklin bridge.
Let's go Eagles!!!
Ed Wade
I was a little concerned that the Eagles could beat the Giants twice in the Meadowlands - a tough task under any circumstances. Wow, did the D ever come through today! Tremendous 4th down plays by Bunkley. Fantastic interception return run by 22, especially the way he finished it by driving his shoulders into Eli.
I know it was a dopey play, but it was fun to watch 5 pull a TO and make a phone call on the Giant's sideline when the game was salted away. Postgame, he mentioned something about being a "veteren player in this league having a little fun." Looled like a rookie to me, and I guess that'd why I liked it.
Can't believe all that stands in the way of another Superbowl trip is the Cardinals. Based on what I've seen of them this year, the Eagles should be able to prevail. Warner and the fantastic WRs concern me, but not that much...
E-A-G-L-E-S!!!!
Ed Wade
E-A-G-L-E-S...Eagles
Wow, what a defensive performance. Fantastic. Two 4th down stops on back to back drives. Turnovers not TDs allowed. Great stuff.
Now please blitz Kurt Warner to smitheriens.
Simon
Football is fun for another week. Yeah!
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