Actually, the government has every right to tell people what they can and cannot do with their own bodies when it is in the interest of public health and the general welfare of the people to do so.* If people can't be educated about proper cycling (which they cannot) and if we can't keep kids from getting gear (which we cannot - and if gear was legal a LOT more kids would have access to it), then it is in the best interest of public health and the general welfare of the people to have it be illegal. Like it or not, right or wrong, the government has the right (and more importantly, the power) to protect the people if they can't protect themselves.
I think that we all need to accept the fact that it's probably a good thing that not everybody has access to gear, because with all the dumbasses out there, there'd be a lot more people fucking themselves up, not to mention how many teenages would **** themselves up on a gram and a half a week of test, stunting their growth and permanently damaging their balls, leaving them dependent on HRT and unable to have kids. I wish it weren't the case, but it's the truth.
Try doing gear in front of a cop, and then telling him that the government doesn't have the right to tell you what you can do with your body. Then tell the judge the same thing, and see where it gets you.
Look, in a perfect world, gear would be legal, and we could all do what we wanted with ourselves. But it's not a perfect world. Gear is easy enough to get, and not very expensive, so why do people spend so much time complaining about it being illegal?
And people need to stop with the alcohol and tobacco comparisons. Alcohol and tobacco are multibillion dollar industries that employ (both directly and indirectly) millions of people, not to mention the billions of tax dollars that they bring in to the states and federal government. You simply cannot compare them to gear.
/karp
*Many Supreme Court cases have focused on the right to privacy and control over one's body vs. government interests. I can find some for anybody who is interested.