what are the odds?

What sadder thing could there possibly be

Than having the whole of our national identity

Defined by sport, or nearly all…

don’t forget gambling on two flies crawling up a wall

betting on which way two coins might fall

betting on which party might win an election

Or the chances of our footy team’s resurrection

Or which horse is faster over a short distance at our favourite track when the weather is dry but the turf is still soft and the horse is placed on an inside barrier and carrying top weight cos it’s normally faster than the other horses in similar races and the jockey is not an apprentice …

The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority is a statutory body charged with keeping dope out of sport. Sometimes it seems to me that there are a lot of dopes in sport. I think ASADA has its work cut out for it.

Lance Armstrong might be in disgrace, but I bet our entire country’s sporting reputation is looking fairly tarnished in the face of the recent scandals at the Essendon Football club. Well, that’s what happens when we corporatise community organisations. This time I mean it: I am never going to admit again that I'm an Essendon supporter - well, at least not until we win another premiership.

I thought taking a dive or match rigging were only international cricket things. Much the same as insider trading and therefore quite common and therefore perfectly respectable.

But one of our football teams has been tanking? - deliberately losing matches to gain some advantage further down the track? Who’d have thought? Bring on relegation.

But wait, there’s more:

Footballers with substance abuse/ anger management problems or sexist, racist or homophobic attitudes are one set of things, but taking drugs to CHEAT?

No. A line must be drawn. Now.
The government – authors of ha ha ideas for reducing problem pokie-playing – is talking of an enquiry into all this cheating in sport BECAUSE IT IS MAKING GAMBLING A DIRTY BUSINESS.

I’m sure Australia is not the only country with a Sports Anti-Doping Authority. I’d put money on it.

Nonetheless, having a statutory, government funded authority just to deal with this issue says something about our priorities, or what we think is the role of government.

ASADA’s 2012 annual report says the federal government gave it an appropriation of about $13 million.

And a 2011 article in the Hun puts the cost to Victoria of the Grand Prix at $100 million and rising.

Further research… well, okay, a quick and grubby glance at Google… reveals that in 2010 in NSW it cost about $450,000 per year to keep one hospital bed open. Honestly, newspaper stories like that are just unAustralian.

the inimitable leunig