Living in a kleptocracy is a bundle of laughs. One of my chuckles this morning comes from headlines about some sports medicine person testifying about possibly testifying about conversations with Lance Armstrong, years ago, when he had cancer. The rumor is that he'd confided to her that he'd taken performance enhancing drugs. McGuire, Bonds ... Clements, Armstrong ... Oh, no: people wouldn't cheat in a money mad society, would they?
And just the other week there was a story about some poor kid who confessed his way out of a golf tournament win. He'd unwittingly carried an illegal fifteenth club in his bag. No one accused him; but himself. That's what myths about the purity of golf will do to the impressionable young.
I'm reminded of the story from the Decameron where the dying old sinner confesses to a priest that he'd once had disrespectful thoughts about his mother. The priest runs around getting the old bastard declared a saint!
Spectator sports are how a society of managed consumers pretends to be active and engaged in fair competition. Did you ever look at Clements on the mound? He was cheating with every breath he took. One look: and a fair society would have DSQ'd him for life: or at least have given him the Oscar for intimidation. (Except he wasn't acting: he really would knock you down!
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