04/23/24
July 28, 2006
Hidden: Landis case politics and resentment of American athletes: Once again, an American cyclist has been charged with cheating. Lance Armstrong went through this for seven years, and now the international cycling testing organization has wasted no time in finding a dirty test for Floyd Landis, although previous tests showed no abnormalities. Let's see what happens from the second test. Doctors have determined that a spike in testosterone levels can be a natural occurrence due to several factors, but something is fishy. Landis' tests came clean all through the tour. Why, after the fact, is he accused of it now? Resentment that an American again has stolen the crown of a "European" sport runs deep. With Armstrong, accusations in 2005 which dated back to his first win in 1999, were proven untrue. Landis needs to have the test done by an independent organization not affiliated with cycling. Tests are never 100 percent positive. If a person eats a poppy seed bagel, then a test will be positive for heroin. Blood doping is when a person's blood is replaced with plasma, which causes a major boost in endurance and energy. This is not a doping case. Nonetheless, the media has misunderstood this to be. The New York Times has covered the story thoroughly, including a story about what could cause a positive test. Performance-enhancing drugs are a real problem in sports today, not just cycling, with what is going on in other sports, especially in baseball. Of course, we, as the masses, will never know all of the story, but this case smells of political resentment towards American athletes.
Right idea; wrong procedure. Actually, wrong idea, wrong procedure. This FPP violates several basic rules that new guys need to learn, and that you would know already if you'd read the link guidelines and new user message, and spent a little time reading the site before you posted. Problems with this FPP are as follows: - There is already a SportsFilter front page post (better known as an FPP) relating to this verynews event. When someone has already created an FPP pertaining to a specific happening, don't create a new one; add your comments, links, etc. in the existing thread. - The new FPP contains a link to nowhere. All FPPs must start with a valid link that does not self-advertise. - The new FPP contains copious amounts of editorializing. The text that accompanies an FPP should reflect the content of the link, not your own opinions. If the link is to a simple account of an event, then just the facts, ma'am. If the link is to an op-ed piece, then say something about the opinion of the author. Your own opinions should be confined to comments inside the thread -- yes, even if you started it -- or, if you really feel that strongly and want to write that much about it, in a column. Because it breaks some very basic rules, this FPP will be deleted by the Pantheon once they spot it. Given your posting history, quaybon, you might want to read up on the rules -- that is, if you hope to ever post anything that doesn't get removed.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 02:45 PM on July 28, 2006
No, you're wrong about the resentment, but I do have a begrudging respect for a political system that turns well-fed people with access to information into complete retards. And frankly - America cheats. USTAF is the biggest cheater-hider since East Germany. Discuss. (keeping in mind this will be deleted shortly)
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 02:52 PM on July 28, 2006
Americans suck!
posted by bperk at 02:59 PM on July 28, 2006
bperk, why do you hate freedom?
posted by lil_brown_bat at 03:02 PM on July 28, 2006
Okay, I'm a loser. FPP here.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 03:04 PM on July 28, 2006
I also hate apple pie, which means I don't support the troops.
posted by bperk at 03:06 PM on July 28, 2006
I think the real question is 'Why does ESPN hate freedom?'
posted by garfield at 03:13 PM on July 28, 2006
Quaybon, read the guidelines and adjust, or I'm gonna sick rcade on ya.
posted by justgary at 03:14 PM on July 28, 2006
Oh, bperk! Do you at least love moms?
posted by ctal1999 at 03:15 PM on July 28, 2006
I love Chevrolet, but America isn't free. Oh, and I do support our troops in Afganistan.
posted by tommybiden at 03:31 PM on July 28, 2006
You know what bperk, kill urself, Landis Is Innocent and everyone knows it. Fuck you u foreigner!
posted by Billy33 at 03:57 PM on July 28, 2006
i support the troops at pendleton. (my son being one)
posted by ptluigi at 04:09 PM on July 28, 2006
billy has a lot to learn
posted by garfield at 04:11 PM on July 28, 2006
billy, i think bperk was being, aah ... whats that word? oh ya, sarcasstic. lighten up.
posted by ptluigi at 04:17 PM on July 28, 2006
There was already a post on this topic? Jeez, techno-weenies, calm down. Please, let's keep the language clean, ok? The piece was meant to elicit thought and ponderance. It was also not meant to promote any jingoistic ramblings about America vs. well, everyone, else. Perhaps the diplomatic and political climate promoted by the current administration has something to do with how Americans are treated outside its borders. At the World Cup, the bus carrying the U.S. team did not have any markings or decals with the flag, etc., for fear of repercussions and violence against them. Remember, both France and Germany, both democracies, refused to back the U.S. occupation of Iraq. However, let us keep the discussion on a more intelligent level than name-calling or using obscenities.
posted by quaybon at 04:18 PM on July 28, 2006
i second that emotion
posted by ptluigi at 04:22 PM on July 28, 2006
quaybon, have you been reading the TdF threads around here? give it a try. all the points you've raised have been covered. and I believe 'techno-weenie' can be construed as 'name-calling'
posted by garfield at 05:03 PM on July 28, 2006
To be brutally honest, we (speaking as an official European personage) don't care that an American won the Tour de France. Everyone I spoke to who was anyway interested in cycling was hugely impressed with his final stage. Course now the drug issue arises. But not really a surprise given that everyone in cycling has some cloud hanging over them. Also I'm a bit confuddled (I often am, must be the European in me) by quaybon bringing up a war and the whole Iraq mess. This is related to sports how? As for the bus issue, I thought that was requested by the US team? Or their officials? I deal with US citizens almost every day at my work, and I have never, ever threatened them with repercussions or violence... Okay, so there was that one time, but honestly if you don't bring your books back what can you expect (I'm a librarian)? If I was smart I would've just ignored this. But I'm European, and too smart for my own good. So smart I'm dumb.
posted by Fence at 05:07 PM on July 28, 2006
Right idea; wrong procedure. http://www.slate.com/id/2107096/ Hamilton is suspected of using a different method of blood doping, one that requires no hormones; instead, concentrated red blood cells are transfused directly into the bloodstream a week or less before competition. For reasons of convenience and safety, autologous transfusions, in which the cells are the athlete's own, are reportedly far more common than homologous transfusions, in which the cells belong to someone else with compatible blood. Typically, an athlete has up to four units of blood removed a month or more before competition. Technicians then use a centrifuge to separate the red blood cells from this sample; the RBCs are placed in cold storage, only to be reinfused shortly before the big race. (The athlete may even use EPO months before an event to boost the number of RBCs in the units of blood that get removed; the EPO will be undetectable by race day.) More RBC means a higher oxygen carrying capacity for the blood. This means the muscles get more oxygen with which to perform their tasks.