Innocent until proven guilty and all that, but when you're the common thread between Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, Marion Jones, Tim Montgomery, Bill Romanowski, et al., anyone who works in a profession that has a drug policy might do well to stay far, far away.

BALCO is no more, but Conte now runs Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning. Rangers outfielder Marlon Byrd wanted what SNAC has to offer, so he gave Conte a call.

I'd been doing the GNC-can search, putting this product with that, seeking and searching," Byrd said. "I tried everything over the counter. I needed an expert."

Soon tubs of "Proglycosyn: The Ultimate Post-Workout Recovery Formula," tubes of "Physiobalm: Muscle and Joint Rejuvenator," and bottles of "Aerobitine: The Ultimate Anti-Fatigue/Fat Loss Formula," "Vitalyze: The Mental and Physical Performance Enhancer" and "ZMA: Rapid Anabolic Sleep Enhancer" began arriving at Byrd's New Jersey home. Later he had the products sent to the Rangers' spring training site in Surprise, Ariz., and to the Rangers' clubhouse in Arlington, Texas.

All these products are MLB-tested and approved, so there's nothing techincally wrong with this arrangement. But not everyone is happy.

Two years ago, the Rangers instructed pitcher Scott Feldman to dispose of Proglycosyn he'd obtained from SNAC after a reporter saw it in his locker. "Our doctors say there may not be anything wrong with [Conte's products], but there's no sense having yourself associated with the name at this point," general manager Jon Daniels said at the time.

So, Marlon Byrd, what the heck are you thinking? There are thousands of other supplement providers out there, most of which have never been associated with irrevocably damaging America's pastime. Take a look at SNAC's gallery of athletes. You're now on a page with roided bodybuilding freaks, confirmed Olympic cheaters, and oddly enough, Michael Chang.

Victor Conte is alleged to have told an associate of his that Barry Bonds, despite his claims to the contrary, knew exactly what he was doing when he used "the cream" and "the clear." They weren't just random substances from a friend, it wasn't something he wasn't sure of; he knew. At least, that's what Conte said, according to some other steroid-loving chemist named Patrick Arnold.

So, in order to believe that Bonds did in fact knowingly use steroids, all you have to do is believe that Patrick Arnold is telling the truth about something he heard Victor Conte say, and that Conte was telling the truth when he said what he said.

Myself, I just don't care about this. It's not that I'm willing to cut Bonds any slack, or to take his word for anything... I just don't trust any of these people.

Conte indicates that Bonds knew about steroids [ESPN Magazine]

So in the new Grand Theft Auto game, one of your "missions," according to Sam at SLAM Online, is to hunt down and kill an informer planning on giving a doping report on "our country's most famous athletes" to the FBI. The man, we're told, has more than a passing resemblance to BALCO barker Victory Conte. According to Sam, "The whole mission is to steal an FBI car, then go to the meeting spot [with "Conte"] in a dark alley. He gets in your car, realizes you are not a fed and he gets out and runs away. Then you kill him and take his report."

Video of the intro to the game is above. Question: Is Bonds' head a weapon option?

Bruce Conte is returning to Tower of Power after a twenty-something year's absence. Iit was his brother who got him fired in the first place. When he was in the band, Victor was always scheming, looking for angles and trying to run scams. Finally they got tired of his meddling and got rid of both Contes.

Actually, most of this is in Game of Shadows, the book that keeps on giving. And it's no stranger than the fact that Charles Manson wrote a song that was recorded by the Beach Boys. Not that we're comparing Victor Conte to Charles Manson. Conte is far worse.*

* = By "far worse" we mean "not even close to as bad."

Victor Conte Is Ready To Bring Some Rawk [Deadspin]

Bizarrely, Conte did a stint guest-blogging at the New York Daily News Web site, spreading the word about his new band and their new single, "Ape Walk." About the song, Conte actualloy writes:

We recorded more than ten tracks at the Music Annex studios in the Bay Area. "Ape Walk" is one of the unreleased tunes we recorded featuring Randy playing a guitar synthesizer programmed to sound like a tuba. When I listen to "Ape Walk" now, it reminds me of a muscle-bound athlete who is boldly walking throughout history and into the present.

We're not quite sure what that means, but it's pretty much official: Victor Conte is freaking insane.

Victor Conte And The Ape Walk [New York Daily News I-Blog]