Dewhurst: Mandatory drug tests needed for HS athletes

come on H&U ....your a pretty wild guy! Again, your in denial.

Why not test your kid? You have nothing to lose then...right? You should allow the schools to test whomever they want or send him to a private school.

In regards to your personal attack on my kid....my kid is not the one that became "ARNOLD" at the begining of baseball season....YOURS IS.

Enough said...lets move on. We will never be in agreement about steroids because YOU prefer to blame the administrators or the state because they single out an individual and not test everyone. I wonder why you do that??

Train,
I'm not sure what part of my post was a personal attack on your son. I don't even know who he is, remember? All I asked was what triggered your concern enough to have him tested and if you haven't tested him recently how do you know that he is clean now?

You are the one who stated what the signs of steroid use are and that nobody can be 100% certain. I would think that a parent would have to have some rational reasoning to have their kids tested and/or retested for any drug so that is why I asked the question. I thought you might be able to shed some light on this to us other "in denial" parents.

Also I am not sure what part of any of my posts blame the State or administrators. I just think that if they are going to take this on that they should test everybody. That way there are not people like you, hiding behind some monikor on a message board, still claiming that specific kids are on steroids, and they just got lucky because they were not "randomly" selected for testing.

Here's a hypothetical question for all of you... or at least some. Using steroids right now is cheating, also happens to be illegal. Let's say that they become legal (obviously not going to happen, but for the sake of a laugh). Therefore they are no longer considered cheating. Do you let "Johny" take them? If you think that everyone else is doing them, would it not be unfair to your child if you kept him from being on the same level playing field?

Obviously these questions-in my mind- are bogus. We don't allow steroids not because they help cheat but because they hurt the body. Creatine (spelling?) has been researched, but from what I can find, the results are about as conspicuous as me trying to write an essay in 30 minutes. We are worried about harm to the body are we not? Yes they are cheating, but they are considered cheating because they are illegal, and they are illegal because they can cause harm. Of course, alchohol and cigarettes cause harm-but that's another story.

My point is that other drugs cause harm-other drugs cause LOTS more harm (probably a subjective statement). H&U has a point that we should test all drugs and all people. If some people say no because it's public schools, then I say at least start with the private insitutions and see the results. Private schools are naturally selective, therefore violating a term of condition (drug use) could be a legitimate reason for expulsion.

In this discussion let's not forget that kid safety is at the forefront... not clashing egos, not politicians, not school reputation.

Dtiger,

In a previous thread about this issue, there was a Dallas Morning News article about some tests that were conducted in the public schools.

The article tried to overstate the problem, but a close reading revealed that during a ten year period, there were a very insignificant amount of positive tests.

Can't remember the detail this minute.

In an NCAA report on their website, there is data that indicated only about 100 tested postive out of 10,000 tested.


I am opposed to drug use, steroids, and testing.

Testing does not produce the result that is one would normally expect.

There are better ways to prevent drug abuse.

Education that starts at home that includes dealing with peer pressure is one of the most important.

I agree FO

I'm curious, was this testing for steroids alone? I'm sure you realize that the point of my post was to emphasize that it's health that is the most important issue. Sometimes we lose that when we discuss sports.

DTIGER....are you saying CREATINE is okay to take and not considered illegal?

H&U...you know anything about CREATINE?

Dtigger.

Here's a reference to that previous thread, just back in April of this year.

UIL Survey on Steroid Testing.

http://hsbaseballweb.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/7106002781/...741050561#6741050561

And, the Dallas Morning News article link.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/highsch...spohsuil.d4498f.html

From the Dallas Morning News article.

quote:

A testing program began in schools in 1996, and 10 positive results for anabolic steroids have been discovered. According to the survey, 4,138 tests given last year yielded one positive result.

The way I read that is that there were 10 positive results in a ten year period. Last year there was ONE positive result in 4,138 tests administered.

Does it imply that there were 10 positve tests out of 41,380 tests?

Here's a more recent report, that I have not read completely, but what I did see, reports results similar to others that I have read.

http://www1.ncaa.org/membership/ed_outreach/health-safe...Study2005_Report.pdf

Creatine is not prohibited by the NCAA.

What would there be to prevent loopholes in a high school testing system? (I think someone mentioned this earlier....who would be responsible for policing the police.)

If an athelete is determined enough to use steriods or other questionable supplements they will find a way to use them whether there is testing in place or not.

ESPN REPORTS..."Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman has been notified he will be suspended for four games for violating the NFL's steroids".

CONGRATS to our hero's of all professional sports for showing our kids its okay to cheat.

It is very clear in my mind that congress needs to start at the top with the pros and work its way down to the HS athletes. If a strong enough message is sent...our kids will listen.

LIFETIME BANNED FROM THE SPORT IS WHERE THEY NEED TO START TO MAKE A STATEMENT....anything else would be just a slap on the wrist.

Think Steve Howe would be alive today if he did not take all that cocaine or I should say have all that money to support his habit? Think Alazado would pass on steroids today? Think McGuire and Canseco wishes they never did?

LIFETIME BANN FROM THE SPORT IS THE ONLY WAY TO SEND A MESSAGE.....THE ONLY WAY.

quote:

but it is my understanding that NCAA programs are responsible for "randomly" selecting the athletes to be tested in their programs (i.e. they have a pretty good idea as to who is clean and who is not and they select those that are squeaky clean to test, over and over, while some athletes are never tested.)

Can you describe how you gained that understanding?

quote:

If an athelete is determined enough to use steriods or other questionable supplements they will find a way to use them whether there is testing in place or not.

Yep.

quote:

In this discussion let's not forget that kid safety is at the forefront... not clashing egos, not politicians, not school reputation.

Excellent point, DTiger...
I've seen how "politics, reputation, etc" have played into "indescretions" of student athletes the last 6 years...
Administrators are weighing the ramifications in favor of silence & cover-ups as opposed to the health & well being of students. They may "profess" concern & "appropriate actions", but, I've seen otherwise.

And... districts are also concerned about being sued for "discrimmination"...They'd have the bucks for a lawsuit...but not testing???

quote:

I have had mine tested.

How sad. What kind of trust relationship are you building with your children that you feel obligated to test them for illegal drug use?

With regard to the rest of this discussion, most here know my views. FO & Reggie don't need any assistance from me. Bottom line - stop relinquishing your responsibilities and rights as private citizens to local, state, and federal authorities.

As much as I feel that parents should be responsible enough to have close knit relationships preventing them from not knowing if their child is taking steroids, who are we to say that others must be tested, but testing our own is sad? I agree, it may be, but if we feel the testing everyone is necessary, it may as well start at home.

DBG_fan...okay go on believing you know it all. I rather test at home then say gosh only if I would have done something.

Its like telling your buddy they should not drink anymore when their ready to drive....you know you should but don't do it.

After the accident/tragedy you say "ONLY IF I would of could should of". Be proactive and do something about it. You must be a follower and not a leader.

quote:

How sad. What kind of trust relationship are you building with your children that you feel obligated to test them for illegal drug use?

Of all the reasons not to test, this is the best.

Testing for steroids should not be done in HS because kids just go to Jucos and get roided up before going to D1 schools. Also, the costs of the test are $125 per test, there is no way that each district could pay for hundreds of these tests.

This issue is a very volatile one. It is amazing the passion that is, to me, especially on the anti-side, I laugh because it reminds me of the description of “ROID RAGE”. I wonder, if the cost wasn’t a factor, would the anti group be so passionate in their views. The last time I brought this up, concerning a team in Georgia that the kids all say they knew that some were using, I was attacked for just asking if it was time. I didn’t use player names, or school names, I just should we. One response acted like I was the bad guy for bringing it up. I personally would love to see full testing for all illegal substances, at regular intervals. Of course that isn’t going to happen if for no other reason than the costs.

To address a few topics:

Should parents control it: you’re darn right and we should be involved in our kid’s lives as much as possible? But what we want is for the playing field to be as level as possible; let the natural skills, training and ability dictate who excels. After all, who knows if your family values are the same as your neighbors, he may want to be sure his kid gets better just to beat yours. Just look around at the parents who do everything legally possible to advance their kids. I expect a few that would go that one small step to push the envelope. Just look at how much research and money is put into “supplements” just to gain an edge.

Use isn’t widespread: So what, is one kid using OK? How about two? How about two at each school? Those of you who know who my son is know that no one could benefit more than he from these substances (and I could probabiliy get them legally). So is it OK if we start? After all it will only help him compete.

Invasion of privacy: Playing school sports is optional, don’t play school ball if it bothers you that much. Don’t forget, your employer can test you for illegal substances.

So the bottom line will be costs for most of us, along with who administers the program and how often. Like I said, they could test my son every month it's ok with me, we’re clean.

Not to get too of topic but there was a pretty good article in the DMN this morning about energy drinks. These are unregulated and loaded with caffien, etc. I know many parents who allow them and even bring them to games for their sons. The article says that some parents believe they give their kids a competitive edge.

Banning of these at school events and in the locker rooms might be a good place to start.