Not all banned substances are PED's (but all PED are banned substances, or should be)

I've noticed a trend in branding anyone that fails a drug test in boxing (or any sport) for a "banned substance" as being a PED cheat - or, even more lazily, painted with the brush of "steroids cheat", an even more specific term which doesn't cover the very broad scope of the reality of what "banned substances" in sport include.

Marijuana seems a cut and dry one to me, yet has sparked a bit of controversy here and there. IMO this controversy is stupid. Any claims that marijuana has pain-dulling benefits that outweigh the horrific risks that go along with being stoned while fighting (dulled reflexes and hampered gross motor skills, for instance...dehydration, etc) as you'd need to be to glean the pain-dulling benefits are ludicrous enough to dismiss offhandedly.

Then you have weight-cutting aids, such as diuretics. These are more of a grey area, in my opinion, and there isn't as clear a right and wrong. On the one hand, gaining an edge to cut weight and enjoy a physical size advantage is wrong. On the other hand, it really isn't the same as taking, say, anabolic steroids or anything else classified as performance enhancing drugs to directly impact your in-ring prowess in a manner that causes it to exceed the expected formula in a "level playing field" of your natural athletic talent x your willpower & craft. Taking a diuretic to cut weight you otherwise might not be able to cut on your own is against the rules, but should be viewed in a different light than what it commonly termed "juicing", as it actually is a different (and lesser - still wrong, but lesser) infraction than juicing. Much like committing petty shoplifting of a candy bar at the drugstore is still undoubtedly a crime, but isn't the same as raping & murdering an old lady.

Lumping all banned substances together is silly. People who are busted for actual PED use should be looked upon far more harshly than anyone caught using a shortcut to make a divisional limit...or someone that likes to get high in their spare time.

 

More astonishing is Terry Funk still kicking, 4yrs Sheik's junior.

 

The problem with the masking aspect is the near impossibility of proving it, which leads to a slippery slope of assuming anyone using something that COULD BE a masking agent IS guilty.