Consider the first line of an Associated Press story today:

Tennessee Titans running back Travis Henry was suspended for four games by the NFL on Monday for violating the league's substance abuse policy.

After a long year of political posturing and general finger pointing over the issue of substances in sports, no one has thoughtfully considered whether the employment of a diagnostic medical tool should be so widely touted as a panacea to perceived ills.

A great deal of Mr. Henry's medical privacy has already been compromised by the NFL's testing regime and the publicity surrounding the league's subsequent disciplinary action. Surely the public doesn't have any claim to specific information regarding his failed drug test. Still, questions remain: what did he test positive for, and is he really an "abuser"?

Indeed, the NFL should be brought to account as to what it considers "abuse." Does the presence of any amount of an illicit substance, including marijuana, satisfy its definition? If so, why is that the case? No one could seriously argue that marijuana enhances athletic performance in any way comparable to what is probably the most widely used (and abused) drug in sports at all levels: amphetamines.

Another issue that must be raised is whether or not the drug "abuse" policies of the professional sports leagues make adequate allowances for the prescription or over-the-counter use of medications that could trigger a positive result.

Curiously, the NFL's policy is not readily available on its website.

The public and the media should ask whether a urine test, standing alone, is truly sufficient evidence of "abuse." If not, the NFL and other sports leagues should revise the name of their policies from "abuse" to "use," drop any pretense that an individual athlete's health is a primary concern, and continue to wage war against those within its own ranks -- including the recreational or medical marijuana smoker. This type of candor would distinguish professional sports from the duplicitous purveyors of government drug policy.

Outside of the medical context, drug testing is ultimately about the exercise of control over a given population. Regrettably, more and more citizens -- whether in the workplace, at school, or in clubs -- are subject to such debasement.