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I agree with reggie on the fact that parents should be in control, but obviously is hard enough to keep that up. I would more than willingly encourage this. I have fellow students making fun of this great sport of baseball, accusing me that players I play against at this level are on steroids. I'm tired of the issue to be honest. Players at this level don't have access to all the masking agents or whatever (at least I would think).

And also, would you not think that drug testing high school athletes would possibly clean up some athletes more than just in steroids? This could definately be wishful thinking, probably is, but I think it could be a discouraging thing (to go through with poor decisions) in the back of their mind.
First of all, I would love to hear better ideas for cleaning up baseball than disparaging the plans they have in place.

Parents control their kids...there's an idea. My son's HS had their homecoming last weekend, parents hosting one of the after party's bought alcohol for 16 and 17 year olds. Hmm, do I want to trust parents like this to make sure their kids aren't cheating, taking illegal drugs, influencing my son or daughter...NO!

Who pays, the kids parents who test positve. Otherwise, have each school district set-up a budget. Everytime this subject comes up, somebody plays the "whose going to pay for it" card. Maybe we should be more worried about "why we even need to test for illegal drugs" in highshool.
I am all for it. Yes parents should be in control of their kids. We do everything we can to stay on top of ours. Remember back when you were their age, did your parents know everything you we doing. Mine did not. "Big brother", those are just over used words, it is a privilage to play sports or any other extracurricular activities, not a right and schools need to have control over what goes on in these areas. Who pay's, I agree with Kirk that parents should pay all cost incurred for a positive test once it has been confirmed. Yes we should be worried why we need to test, but there are enough reasons to test for now.
Last edited by threeboysdad
OK - Steriod Test Cost :Cost to test approximately 500 athletes is $150 to $200 a test.

If you assume 500 athletes at a 5A school that would be a total cost of $75,000 to $100,000 for the testing. If you want those who fail the test to pay for it and for argument sake 10.0% fail the test (remember 1/2 will be girls), that would be $1,500 to $2,00 per failed test. Get real!
I think this would be a good secondary check, parents should take be involved with there kids. In todays hustle bustle world, parents working 2 jobs for the most part, kids in all kinds of different things from sports to church functions, its a bit of a world wind for your average family. However, you still need to take the time to SPEND time with kids and see what is going on with them. If we did more of this then we would see less of issue, at times. Although I understand that we cannot be with them every minute of every day as they continue to grow up. But we can definetly set the standards of right and wrong, and hard work versus trying to take the easy road.
Rambling
Administrators don't want to know what is going on!!!
Case in point, when I approached the Principal about my support of testing athletes, I was met with the response of..."then we would have to randomly test the general student body." Seems he is sweeping aside the fact that the "general student body" is already scrutinized with drug sniffing dogs, undercover random locker checks, hidden video cameras, and other means, with accompanying legal ramifications.

There appears to be little or no backbone to the "conduct policy" that parents & students sign at the beginning of each year, as well as disregard & lack of enforcement of the "athletic conduct contract" signed by student athletes. Administrators, faculty & staff will politic & have the ability to falsify records, or "spin" a situation "for the team".

Parents, students AND school officials should be held accountable.
So, the real question is...who will "police the police?"
Last edited by baseballmom
An Idea I have heard brought up, and I think is very apparent when a kid takes steroids is the massive weight gain in the span of a month. I know a kid personally at a PISD school who got caught because he put on 35 pounds in a month, if your coaches keep an eye out in the weightroom they can obviously see that the weight your putting on is increasing at a huge ammount and that your weight is doing the same..

IMO
reggie- Once again, I think you have a valid point. But I don't know if testing that many kids would be necessary. At least at first, I would think that the idea that they may be tested, would keep kids from doing it. If you (anyone) tested a quarter of that amount, then I think they could be just as effective. Kids talk, when one gets tested, they'd tell another who would then tell others. As long as they know it's not the city/state bluffing, I think it could have lots of benefits. Obviously, it probably won't stop everybody, but the kids whom it will stop, need it to happen for their own sake. Just wondering the cost for rehab (or if there is such a thing) from steroids. I don't really want an answer from anyone, but I would think any parent would willingly help pay for this test in order to save some expense down the road.
Parents in control...well, there are some that want little Johnny to succeed at whatever the costs, so that isn't the answer. Seen it done too many times.

The real issue mentioned above is the costs of the tests, and who pays. There is NO doubt steroids are being taken (HS, College, Pros), and how do you deal with it.

Personally, I think the state should step up and handle this, if tax payers have to foot the bill; so be it. It has to be controlled, maybe they could pull some lotto proceeds into the pool. If you clean it up now, you might be able to control the future. Otherwise, the problem will just get larger. Like the Fram commercial, pay me now or later.

Sad part is, the kids all know who is on the juice.
My main point is 1/2 the people tested would be females. I would rather spend the money raising teachers salaries, hiring additional teachers or buying better equiuptment for the classrooms than testing athletes for steriods. It comes down to where do you want your tax dollers to be spent. If I am concerned with my son using steroids, I feel its up to me to have him tested, not his high school.
Reggie,

You make good points, all of which I support; however sports are a big part of our society at all levels. When you have a problem (cheating), that impacts the health and safety of students you have to deal with it. In this case, the person taking steroids is putting himself/herself and others in jeapordy. You can't expect parents to have the support to deal with this on their own. You have to go to a higher authority.

There should be zero tollerance, if you get caught your banned.
Honestly, you know who should pay for it... the professional teams in the state. Or lets say that for every player that gets caught with an illegal substance, they have to pay a fine that supports the testing.

The proffesional, even big-time college programs, I think could gain lots of respect by funding these tests. Obviously it probably wouldn't happen, but the NFL goes out of its way to show how loving and caring their players are. Why doesn't Jerry spend a few more bucks and help clean up the youth that idolizes and dreams of being that stud safety.
I do understand that parents often need help in addressing problems with their kids. I have raised 3 and it does not get any easier. But having high schools use their very limited financial resources to address a problem that affects a very small percentage of the high school population in my mind is not the correct solutiuon. If parents or coaches feel their players/ children are at risk, have them tested, then ask for help if help is needed.

I feel we are always looking for someone else to solve our problems. Stay in touch with your kids, hopefully you will know if they need help.

I would guess there are a lot more serious issues for high school teenagers then steriods in the general population (depression / teenage pregnancies / underage drinking and drug abuse) why don't we address every iussue out there. You just can't afford to do it. To me we are blowing this issue way out of proportion
Correct me if I'm wrong but the goal for drug testing in high school should focus on helping/"rescuing" kids --- not necessarily on catching cheaters.

Once, when walking around the neighborhood without a shirt on, PantherSon was approached to appear in a public service announcment for steriod prevention ---- as the "BEFORE" model. Smile Shhh, don't tell him I typed that....
Last edited by Panther Dad
If athletes are going to be tested for steroids why stop there? Can anyone out there really say that steroids are a bigger problem in our schools than other drugs, and that athletes take more drugs than the general student body?

If we are going to subject athletes to random testing then it needs to be extended to all athletes, male and female, anybody else in extra carricular activities,as well as the general student body and include other drugs.

If the schools or the state are going to take this on then there needs to be some sort of plan in place to deal with and/or help the affected kids.

JMO
Band, orchestra, performing arts kids aren't taking performance enhancing drugs (steroids, etc.) Dewhurst is recommending steroid testing. If we widen the testing to include pot, etc. then there are other issues. Again, the documented goal of his plan is to help kids....not to even the playing field.

Outside the fact that punishments need to be clearly understood, including an adequate appeal process, why would we object to testing our kids for steriods? Most of our employers can drug test us at any time.
True PD, but I definately see H&Us point. I can gaurantee you that recreational drugs (if they should even be called that) are much higher on the charts than performance enhancers. If our goal is to protect kids, in a way, these other drugs should be tested for first. Although I agree with both sides on almost all of this, I think we all agree that there needs to be effective ways to protect kids from illegal substances.
PD,
I'm not against drug testing kids. I just don't think it is the responsibility of the schools. They for one are not employing kids. The last time I checked my tax bill I think I was actually paying the school.

Kids at high schools nowadays are taking a lot more than pot. Look at the deaths of teanagers due to drugs and alcohol use in the Plano schools and others thru the years.

It would be interesting to know the percentage of kids taking meth, pot, cocaine, extasy, alcohol, etc. compared to the percentage of athletes taking steroids.

If the real goal is to help the kids and if the state and school systems want to take the responsibility, I just don't see the reason to stop at steroids. Kind of like saying lets try and fix one drug problem and ignore the other.
If I may, it appears we're missing the point here. I've got no argument that illegal substances are a much bigger threat to kids and their health than steriods are. Again, no argument.

The reason we're talking about it on this forum is that kids/schools are using PERFORMANCE ENHANCING drugs to promote themselves at the expense of the ones that aren't. The use of recreational drugs (again, a much more serious problem) does not give one kid/school an unfair advantage over another.

So the "if we test for steroiods we need to test for everything then" argument doesn't play with me. Sure, random testing should be used as a deterrent to the use of performance enhancing drugs thereby promoting kids' health. But the cynic in me wants to catch and expose cheaters. Sorry.

Are parents the answer? Yes, but we--as a group--haven't stepped up to the challenge, have we? We're tickled pink that our sons are bulking up on over-the-counter supplements and weight training. Never mind that the supplements are potentially as bad--especially when taken at higher than recommended levels--as steroids themselves and that this is an almost unregulated industry. (It's just creat, right?) More than a hndful of us reading this are probably a bit uneasy, but my point: too many of us are taking solace in the fact that our kids aren't on steroids, just legal, OTC stuff.

Sorry for the rant, but this one hits a little too close to home. We can start another thread on the merits of testing for other illegal substances. I'm suggesting we reserve this thread as a debate on whether we should find out if kids/parent/schools are taking a pharmaceutical training approach.
I'd also like to add that by our peers (our being students) thinking all baseball players are using the juice, it takes away from the people who truly put in the time and the effort. I have been using supplements for a short while. I know exactly where they come from, and I know they are legal. I've done extensive research to confirm what others-who I trust a lot- have told me. What hurts/bothers me is when people say (jokingly), "hey so how are those 'roids helpin you." As a player, I want the sport clean more than maybe any parent. Yes, parents are responsible, but peers can hold eachother responsible. I love winning, but sacrificing my entegrity is something I'm not willing to do. Any kid takes steroids and I'm 100% sure, in either program I play for (summer or HS), I'm notifying someone ASAP.
Well...I stayed away from this subject long enough and here goes my two cents. There are many athletes on the juice and we all know it. We just accept it because Johnny is hitting home runs and is such a great player.

I ask some experts out here what are the signs of steroids? Here are some that I see: bad acne, attitude change, obviously arms/forearms are bigger, and major mood changes.

Now take it one step further....look at Mom and Dad standing 5'7" and a small frame. Son turns into "Arnold" during the season what would be your first thoughts??? Well we have all seen this and have ideas of just who is on the juice. Why do we allow it?? because we fail to believe our kids could be on the juice because of the pressure of making it to the next level. We as parents put so much pressure on our kids (we all do in one manner or another) to practice more, work harder, get bigger.

How many times have you heard...BIGGER IS BETTER....wrong. You must be BIG to get noticed....wrong.

I hope this law gets approved and makes kids get tested ASAP. If any kid is positive they should be banned from the team and if they received a scholarship they should have to repay it for cheating. I have seen some kids bodies change for the baseball season that just makes me ****ed off because you know what he is up to. In my eyes besides the health issue that user is cheating in that sport and if we allow him to continue doing so will take away a potential scholarship from athletes that really work it and want it.

DTIGER....I loved your comment about reporting it but open your eyes.....its all around you in HS and on the summer teams.
I agree that there is no place for illegal steroids in sports; high school, college, or professional. I have to disagree with there being a problem with a LEGAL supplement however as I think they are beneficial.

Most of the problems with supplements is ignorance and lack of research done by the parent and athlete prior to using a specific supplement. Without doing the research, I would agree that supplements can be a problem. One main one being "whats on the outside of the can may not be what's inside" An athlete could be taking a NCAA banned substance and not know about it.

As far as random testing for steroids in school, I just don't think this will fix the problem. There is too much of a chance for corruption.

If costs for testing can actually be as low as $100.00 require that all athletes be tested. The timing of testing could be a random date and could even be more than once a year. Just require that every team athlete be tested. I think knowing for certain that at some time you will be tested instead of knowing that only a small percentage will be tested will do more to alleviate the problem.

Pay for it by adding a dollar or 2 to ticket prices and require that booster clubs donate part of their concession funds etc. to the school athletic department testing fund. I know I for one would pay an extra dollar or 2 to watch a game and an extra 50 cents for a dog and a drink to insure that everybody was clean.
Train, I can gaurantee you that no one at my high school baseball team is on the juice. If they were... we may be better Frown. All kidding, aside, I will also say I can gaurantee that no one on my summer team is either. As I've said in the past (ancient past if I remember correctly), my summer team is a great team on and off the field. We're clean, fun loving kids, and I'm proud to say that off the field issues are... not an issue.

Now, with other summer teams, who am I to speculate? I don't spend months with the other kids, so I won't sit here and say that other teams in the area have these kids.

It's interesting that you mention the parent pressure. I feel that this may be, in a round about way, one of the biggest causes for athletes steroids use. I know, as an athlete, from the time I was beginning sports, I wanted to impress mommy and daddy. I know parents would never say, "here are some illegal substances that will help you dominate." Having said that, if the kid is an average/above average player and wants to stand out, consitently perform well, he may resort to these substances.

Once again, I know kids with tremenduous work ethics who have their respect taken away by this issue. It's unfair to say that every kid who bulks up in one offseason is on the juice (obviously there are degrees of bulking up, I'm not being unreasonable). As I stated, I've been on some very legal, very well researched supplements, and I too am starting to show some more noticeable (than before) results. I've done it through beginning a consistent work out regiment with a personal trainer, some very effective supplements, and lots of dedication while outside of the weightroom (extra training, eating healthy, so on and so forth). I guess I don't want people to become so worried about steroids that they lose respect for hard work... which is more of a reason to fix this problem ASAP.

H&U- I hope you did not consider my comments as a way to say they are bad. I'm just clarifying (not sure if there is any need for this anyway). I'm loving what I've got, and how they've helped.
I can tell you tha H&U is correct. I've seen his son develop over the years and although he is quite impressively built, there was no sudden jump. Since the time he was 12 he was "jacked" for his age. So I guess technically this proves nothing, but normally a sign is a sudden change... and there definately was none here.
while i'm not from texas and have no dog in this fight. i will say steroids in our part of the country aren't at the front of teen drug use.but we have a drug problem ,i know this isn't about those drugs.but many drug companys will donate test kits to schools for free.they may be able to do this for steroids as well.

interesting post for this northerner to read.
Train,
I don't claim to be 100% accurate on everything. However in this case I know without a doubt that I am. I also know that there are many parents out there who know that their sons are without a doubt clean. Maybe you should examine your relationship with yours if you are not 100% sure too.

My comment was intended to make the point in my belief that the responsibility for testing should be with the parents and that I for one would have mine tested if there was even a miniscule chance of use.
I appreciate your posts, honest and unbiased.

While there are documented cases of steroid abuse at all levels, most of the empirical evidence, with credibility, that I have reviewed, indicates that it is not as widespread as many, including candidates for public office, would have us believe.

I think for those that search for excuses, steroids, is just another example.
H&U....I have had mine tested. He passed.

Nobody should use the number 100% because we both know that when we were kids we did many things our parents did not know about. Think about it....seeking alcohol, ocassional joint, the sexual encounters with many female friends, etc.

If you think our kids are stupid enough not to sneak around us then your mistaken. Now, if they get caught...another story (especially in your case Big Grin).

DTIGER....I used him as an example because of the 100% comment.

I just cannot stand CHEATING to get ahead in athletics. Why we stand for it in all professional sports by suspending the pro athlete sends a messages to the kids its okay as long as you dont get caught. Its like taking a vacation in any pro sport if you get caught. THEY SHOULD BE BANNED and have to get a real job. Until they realize its a privledge and most of all God given talent (not saying athletes dont work hard)some pro athletes will always try to beat the system. IMO,,,,all of Bonds and McGuire's records should be banned from MLB and not allowed into the hall of fame. Maybe the hall of shame!
FO,
I agree.


TRAIN,
Thanks for sharing your childhood memories and encounters. I for one did none of those 3 listed things you did when you were a kid.

I realize that kids do things that their parents don't know about, or in many cases choose to ignore. I would be curious to know what triggered your concern about your son being on steroids enough to have him tested. Did he exhibit the warning signs you listed earlier? Did you just not trust him? Have you had him tested in the last month as he could be on them now?

I agree with you concerning cheating in sports, athletes being banned, and records removed. Might want to ban some parents from younger kids sports too, as I have witnessed countless cases of cheating by them starting at very early ages.

Back to topic: Does anybody out there know how any legislation passed by the State would affect private schools?
FO:

You could be right. Some of us could be looking for excuses. However, I'd be interested to know what you consider "widespread" to be. If I remember correctly, the last time we had this conversation, you were unimpressed with the percentage of HS kids on PED's (something in the negihborhood of 2 or 3%, I think).

Two points I'd like to make: 1) What is the trend? If we don't make a statement now, when will we? 2) Don't focus just on PED's. What (and how much) our kids are ingesting in the name of bulking up is sobering. More is better, right?

So maybe we're looking for excuses, or maybe we're looking for answers. And maybe we're just looking to expose cheaters. I'm not claiming to be noble. In any case, the discussion has merit.

JABO

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