A PLEA FOR HELP TO THE T-NATION

 Everyone who reads this please take the time to e-mail, fax, type, or hand-write your own version of this sample letter and then send it to all of your federal Senators and Representatives in Congress as often as possible, and don't stop sending them until this bill is defeated in 2003!

Dear Congressman/woman (last name) Date

 I would like to take this opportunity to respectfully request your immediate intervention to prevent the Federal Government from imposing an unnecessary ban on a safe and widely used dietary supplement called androstenedione. Please vote against H.R. 5564 because this bill will jeopardize my legal right to purchase androstenedione under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, which was overwhelmingly supported by the American people in 1994.

 Androstenedione is a safe, non-addictive, non-toxic, natural substance that is found in the pollen of Scotch pine trees. There is no legitimate reason to ban it because it is not a public health hazard, has no potential for abuse, and has been commercially available for many years. Androstenedione has an exceptional safety record and the millions of adults around the world that have used it without any serious side effects should serve as incontrovertible evidence of its safety. In fact, there have not been any deaths linked to the use of androstenedione and the Adverse Event Reporting System maintained by the Food and Drug Administration corroborates exactly that. The Federal Government cannot make a similar claim about other legal products such as alcohol and tobacco which have killed millions of Americans, yet remain legal.

 An irrational ban on androstenedione would have devastating financial consequences for the entire dietary supplement industry. H.R. 5564 will cause many supplement manufacturers to close their businesses under Title 11 of the Bankruptcy Code, and will increase the unemployment rate. Moreover, thousands of distributors and health food stores will be crippled by decreased revenues at a time when there is already significant economic hardship. The government should not ban a supplement with an excellent safety record because of innacurate and sensational media reports which lack credible scientific evidence and do nothing more than misinform the public. As an adult consumer of androstenedione, I believe in personal responsibility and serve as proof that the supplement does not promote any serious side effects whatsoever when used as directed.

 As a taxpayer, registered voter, and constituent, please protect my consumer right to purchase natural dietary supplements such as androstenedione over-the-counter in accordance with the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, and do not permit the Federal Government to disregard my civil liberties and the will of the American people by imposing a ban on its manufacture, distribution, and sale in the United States.

                           Sincerely Yours,
                           (Name, info....)

My understanding is that the bill would ban
more than just androstenedione, so perhaps some adjustment to include other androgen prohormones would be an improvement.

Excellent letter, Mark! In addition to Bill’s suggestions, perhaps we could mention something about the possiblity of a sharp increase in steroid use/abuse. Just take a look at the thread Bill started asking forum members this very question.

No, Bill. When the time comes, you want to be able to cite certain portions of the authoritative JAMA study. Getting into the modern derivatives and delivery methods will not help your cause. Also, use gentle language to promote your safe, natural, non-toxic products which are used to promote a sense of well-being and don’t mention that seven letter word that begins with the letter “S.”

In addition to the above, everyone should send a follow-up (but separate) message with some variation of the following:


This is a make-or-break rights issue for me, and in the next election I will vote AGAINST any public representative who supports H.R.5564. Thank you.

Excellent letter, very informed and educated sounding. Better than, “I want to get big so I can fuck chicks, dont ban roids!”. I think anyone who took the T-man oath has a responsibility to write to their representatives and help deal with this. Thanks for giving us a great letter to use!

Damn. I just wrote Sen Nighthorse and Wayne Alllard like 2 days ago. I wish I had this lettter then. I will send them one ( this one) again. And again. and then?..And again. Until they blacklist me on the e-mail server and send me to dev null. ( of course I will be responsible about the frequency )
Kewl letter. Great job.
-newb

Just sent the letter! Great job…let’s hope it works.

Great letter, just one note from someone who has done a little volunteer work and has known some small-time political adjunct types – the personal assistants and gophers will be reading this letter, so the letter should be titled in very bold print, before ANY other information, “VOTE NO ON H.R. 5564.” The reason I emphasize this is that most personal assistants will NOT take the time to read the full letter, and most of them aren’t that bright anyway, and if the letter gets to them before their morning coffee, they might glance over it and accidentally think you are asking your representative to vote FOR H.R. 5564. No, I’m not kidding, things like this happen all the time. So, make the very first part of the letter or email something that’s extremely clear. Maybe one out of five thousand letters will be consciously read by someone interested, but for the most part the assistant will attempt to get the quickest possible understanding of the letter’s intent, and put a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ check in the database.

When it comes to this bill, the #1 concern is use of these products by children. You MUST address that concern in your letter. Give them a reason and a way to (1) protect the kids and (2) allow you to make your own choices as an adult. The only way to make both points mesh is to welcome an age restriction with open arms. IMO that is the only hope. This bill will be passed, it makes political sense for them to vote YES. The people they piss off with a yes vote will be outnumbered by all the soccer moms and dads the a vote “for the children” will win. I guarentee this bill will be made law in one form or another. You need to welcome the idea of it being controlled a la tobacco or alcohol, or all access to these products will go out the window.