Perjury: the willful giving of false testimony under oath or affirmation, before a competent tribunal, upon a point material to a legal inquiry.
Everyone needs to take an interest in the Barry Bonds case because this is the sort of thing that happens in the United States of America by people of authority if they do not like you. And it may not be something YOU did to them personally but something that is based entirely on hearsay.
All we have been hearing about and discovering since STEROIDS invaded the major league baseball world, sometimes referred to as the Big Leagues, is how players violated the laws of the land, even though baseball was making millions of dollars on the game's stars who had an amazing ability to belt the ball over the wall. And during all of this, Bud Selig, the commissioner, has acted like he couldn't believe the players would do such a thing.
Why do the players have to confess and apologize for having taking steroids, even if it was understood that certain tests were said to be kept under wraps. (In 2003, the Big Leagues tested all of its players for steriods use. The results of those tests were to remain confidential (of information, a document, etc. Bearing the classification confidential, usually being above restricted and below secret.)
Why have prominent names been allowed to be leaked? (Alex Rodriguez doesn't sound very informed, but who's to say what the guy knows. Why does everyone assume he knew? Maybe it was one of those 'You want steroids, I'll take care of you,' and like Barry trusted Greg Anderson, Alex trusted his source.)
Why doesn't Bud Selig have to admit he knew what was happening (all along)?
Do we ever get these answers are do the powers that be have a way of fixing it so they aren't held responsible, much like Enron?
Big Leagues? That brings up another question, is the treatment of Barry Bonds because of skin color? The league wasn't very BIG prior to 1947 or in the ensuing years what with the way blacks had to eat at separate locations at places of business who would accept the black players.
In an article by Jonathan Littman, of Yahoo Sports on February 18, 2009, Yahoo Sports reviewed the never-before-revealed testimony of Benito Santiago (former Bonds teammate on the Giants). More than any other of the 30-odd athletes who testified before the grand jury in the long-running BALCO case, Santiago's testimony suggests that the government engaged in selective prosecution by filing charges against Bonds, whose trial on 10 counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice begins on March 2 (2009).
Mike Rains, Bonds' attorney, and another source said that while Bonds was testifying, Santiago was allowed to review pertinent documents- the very opportunity Bonds was denied.
We shall see.
(thanks to Yahoo Sports' Jonathan Littman for key information)
Kevin Marquez
|