Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.issues From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: issues Wed, Jul 29 1992 Date: Wed, 29 Jul 92 04:32:50 EDT Message-ID: 07-29 0000 DECISIONLINE: Issues & Debate USA TODAY Update July 29, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network Here are some of the issues and topics being debated across the nation Wednesday morning in USA TODAY: Drugs, Iraq. TODAY'S DEBATE - DRUGS: USA TODAY'S OPINION: The dark cloud of drugs didn't take long to gather over the Summer Olympic Games in Barcelona. Sunday's upset swimming victory by China's Yong Zhuang raised suspicions she and her teammates use anabolic steroids to pump up their muscles. Rumors that Chinese athletes use performance-enhancing drugs have spread since their sudden prominence in Olympic sports and by their muscle-bound appearance, a tell-tale sign. Complaints ... could have been avoided, if Zhuang had been tested as medal winners generally are in the Olympics. ... Use of steriods is an issue that reaches beyond the issues of cheating and the legalities of Olympic competition. ... The latest estimate is that 400,000 U.S. teens ... take steroids. Steroids build muscle and make a person look better, but the risk is high: liver cancer, kidney and heart disease, impotence, sterility, hair loss and acne. ... One way for (teens) to learn that is to see an idol barred from competition or sent home in disgrace. ... Olympics officials should establish standards for testing and enforcement that apply worldwide to every athlete in every Olympic sport. OTHER VIEW: JEFF RIGGENBACH, a Houston writer and broadcaster: Why shouldn't athletes take anabolic steroids if they want to? The conventional wisdom that steroids pose a significant danger to those who use them is not universally accepted. There are reputable medical professionals who have studied steroids and believe they are safe if used in moderation and under medical supervision. ... the vast majority of the athletes the anti-steroid crusaders seek to "protect" are not children. ... As long as all athletes have equal access to anything that can enhance performance, whether a special diet, nutritional supplement, special shoes, exercise machine or steroid capsule - there is nothing unfair about using it. ... forcing athletes to submit to urine tests and excluding those who failed them from competition does introduce a significant element of unfairness into sports. Drug tests are notoriously unreliable. ... No amount of urine testing can guarantee a level playing field in athletic competition. If athletes want to use steroids, they should be allowed to do so. VOICES ACROSS THE NATION ON FORCE ON IRAQ IF CEASE-FIRE IS DEFIED: BARRINGTON, Ill., Lew Robert, 50, entrepreneur: No. It's past the time when the USA should be policeman of the world. Let's solve our domestic problems and rebuild our inner cities rather than using force against Saddam. It's time for the Middle East - Syria, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan - to find a peaceful solution to the problem. HARRISBURG, Va., Titus Crawford, 37, construction worker: I think so. The man needs to be stopped. I don't see why they didn't just go through with getting him before. This time, finish it. I am angry at him for what he stands for and for what he's done to his people. Anyone who does what he does makes me angry. POCATELLO, Idaho, Carolyn Meline, 55, county commissioner: I really feel we should. I've always felt Bush would do something before the election, but he wouldn't do something just for political reasons. I get the feeling he has support from both Democrats and Republicans. NEWARK, N.J., Anre Williams, 26, marketing manager: Yes. He should be made to live up to his word. He doesn't respect the United Nations. After the war he told the people of his country it was a victory for them. All the things he promised to do to end the war, he didn't. He didn't return a lot of the Kuwaiti property. LOUISVILLE, Ky., Lynne Christenson, 36, media consultant: The U.N. should handle it now. We should participate very little. My first thought was this was a ploy by Bush to divert attention from the domestic agenda. His administration and the previous one were aiding Saddam for years. It looks like the whole thing was engineered. Issues & Debate Editor: Kate Coughlin. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM