Post by magdama112 on Dec 5, 2012 6:49:13 GMT -5
A ”Cycle” of Accusation
Lance Armstrong and other cyclists from the U.S. Postal team were recently involved in what the United States Anti-Doping Agency called one of the ”most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping programmes sport has ever seen”. For years they had managed to avoid or cheat in doping tests. This group of athletes had agreed to keep this a secret, thereby forming a consensus.
Humans are naturally very concerned with their own selves; so much so that they are willing to go to great lengths to elevate their status and to preserve themselves if they are threatened. It is often the case that people begin pointing their fingers towards others once their own personal security is at risk. Unfortunately, this is what creates a tyranny of consensus, which continues until people are brave enough to admit to their own faults and to reveal the truth.
After a long battle with cancer, Lance Armstrong decided to return to cycling. However, having lost so much training time, he soon also decided to use performance enhancing drugs such as EPO in order to return to his high ranking. Having won seven Tour de France titles, Lance Armstrong became a celebrated and iconic figure in sports just as Danforth and Hathorne were respected and powerful figures in Salem. However, just like Danforth and Hathorne, he refused to pause and admit to his wrongdoings, which ultimately led to a very unfortunate and dishonorable end to his career in cycling.
Though some athletes have admitted to it and apologized, none stepped forward prior to the accusations to reveal the true story. This is comparable to Danforth’s attitude in The Crucible and how he was afraid to backtrack on his past decisions because it would reflect badly on him and the court at the present moment, so in order to preserve his name he kept quiet and continued along with the consensus.
Once some cyclists started getting accused, they also began naming other names that were involved. Floyd Landis, one of the witnesses in Lance Armtrong’s trial, was himself accused of having used drugs while cycling. He initially denied the claims, and even wrote a book entitled Positively False to explain why his drug test was positive, but in 2010 he finally admitted to drug use. He then accused Lance Armstrong and other members of the team of using just as he had, and the investigation began. His actions of self preservation after being accused mirror that of the citizens of Salem during the with trials, and their quick instinct to offer other names when they themselves were in danger. These kinds of actions are what began the tyranny of consensus in The Crucible, when Abigail and her friends, being suspected of witchcraft after they were caught dancing in the forest, quickly accused others in order to shift the blame from themselves.
One by one, athletes were proven guilty of using and issued apologies. Another two former teammates of Armstrong’s are George Hincapie and Tyler Hamilton, both who were caught using performance enhancing drugs and who are now testifying against Armtrong. It is clear that many athletes, in order to show that they weren’t the only offenders and to perhaps clean up their own name, directed the Anti-Doping Agency towards other athletes they knew, because 11 of the 26 witnesses in Lance Armstrong's case are his former teammates. Evidently, humans will do anything they need to preserve themselves if they feel threatened, even if it means lying to, accusing and betraying their peers.
Word Count: 584
www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/10/lance-armstrong-teammates-testify-doping-probe_n_1954654.html
www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/22/lance-armstrong-stripped-of-medals-banned-from-cycling_n_1999965.html
www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/floyd-landis-outlines-elaborate-doping-system-letters-details-lance-armstrong-alleged-role-article-1.446089
www.nytimes.com/2012/10/12/sports/cycling/how-lance-armstrong-beat-cyclings-drug-tests.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Lance Armstrong and other cyclists from the U.S. Postal team were recently involved in what the United States Anti-Doping Agency called one of the ”most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping programmes sport has ever seen”. For years they had managed to avoid or cheat in doping tests. This group of athletes had agreed to keep this a secret, thereby forming a consensus.
Humans are naturally very concerned with their own selves; so much so that they are willing to go to great lengths to elevate their status and to preserve themselves if they are threatened. It is often the case that people begin pointing their fingers towards others once their own personal security is at risk. Unfortunately, this is what creates a tyranny of consensus, which continues until people are brave enough to admit to their own faults and to reveal the truth.
After a long battle with cancer, Lance Armstrong decided to return to cycling. However, having lost so much training time, he soon also decided to use performance enhancing drugs such as EPO in order to return to his high ranking. Having won seven Tour de France titles, Lance Armstrong became a celebrated and iconic figure in sports just as Danforth and Hathorne were respected and powerful figures in Salem. However, just like Danforth and Hathorne, he refused to pause and admit to his wrongdoings, which ultimately led to a very unfortunate and dishonorable end to his career in cycling.
Though some athletes have admitted to it and apologized, none stepped forward prior to the accusations to reveal the true story. This is comparable to Danforth’s attitude in The Crucible and how he was afraid to backtrack on his past decisions because it would reflect badly on him and the court at the present moment, so in order to preserve his name he kept quiet and continued along with the consensus.
Once some cyclists started getting accused, they also began naming other names that were involved. Floyd Landis, one of the witnesses in Lance Armtrong’s trial, was himself accused of having used drugs while cycling. He initially denied the claims, and even wrote a book entitled Positively False to explain why his drug test was positive, but in 2010 he finally admitted to drug use. He then accused Lance Armstrong and other members of the team of using just as he had, and the investigation began. His actions of self preservation after being accused mirror that of the citizens of Salem during the with trials, and their quick instinct to offer other names when they themselves were in danger. These kinds of actions are what began the tyranny of consensus in The Crucible, when Abigail and her friends, being suspected of witchcraft after they were caught dancing in the forest, quickly accused others in order to shift the blame from themselves.
One by one, athletes were proven guilty of using and issued apologies. Another two former teammates of Armstrong’s are George Hincapie and Tyler Hamilton, both who were caught using performance enhancing drugs and who are now testifying against Armtrong. It is clear that many athletes, in order to show that they weren’t the only offenders and to perhaps clean up their own name, directed the Anti-Doping Agency towards other athletes they knew, because 11 of the 26 witnesses in Lance Armstrong's case are his former teammates. Evidently, humans will do anything they need to preserve themselves if they feel threatened, even if it means lying to, accusing and betraying their peers.
Word Count: 584
www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/10/lance-armstrong-teammates-testify-doping-probe_n_1954654.html
www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/22/lance-armstrong-stripped-of-medals-banned-from-cycling_n_1999965.html
www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/floyd-landis-outlines-elaborate-doping-system-letters-details-lance-armstrong-alleged-role-article-1.446089
www.nytimes.com/2012/10/12/sports/cycling/how-lance-armstrong-beat-cyclings-drug-tests.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0