Not to speak for Garth...
There likely is some Heisenberg corollary similar to what you have suggested...
But in simpler math, we only have two answers: Safe and Out. That means we must interpret the actions into one of those two categories.
Most umpires watch the play at first and, (At least, this is the way I would explain it.) if they are certain that the runner was there first, they call safe. Otherwise there is only one other choice (and it is not tie, or nice play by the shortstop, or gladly pay you on Tuesday for a hamburger on ...). IT IS OUT!
Personally, I think umpires should want to call strikes and outs. Unless I have certainty that a pitch was not a strike or that a play was not an out, I make the call that keeps the game progressing; I call strikes and I call outs.
The batter-runner must prove to me that he beat the throw before I will call him safe.
[Edited by DownTownTonyBrown on Sep 25th, 2003 at 04:12 PM]