Figures
John McCain might be breaking Campaign Finance Reform Laws.
Sucks having to abide by the law, doesn’t it, McCain?
Landis
This is a bit old, but my father and I were discussing Landis’ doping charge on Saturday and it’s still fresh on my mind.
Something’s not right with the story.
First, I’m in the camp that a one day boost of testosterone wouldn’t do much for an athlete. Others would disagree, saying that it does increase your endurance. To quote Dr. Black from the above article:
“I have injected myself with testosterone in doing research, and I can tell you from personal experience that within hours, you feel a profound psychological change, a sense of well-being, aggression and energy,” Black said.
Well, from my personal experience the psychological changes are there, but there’s no physical benefit short term. I’ve never injected the stuff but I have taken testosterone supplements (after I had left the world of sports) in pill form and the only thing that happens, short term, is you get a really strong desire to fight everybody and screw any woman you see.
It’s like being 16 all over again.
Second, it’s fairly easy to absorb it through your skin. A fellow I hung out with during my college years worked at a pharmacy and would lift some of the liquid testosterone, mix it up with Purell hand sanitizer, and smear it on his body. It helped with his weight lifting. It isn’t inconceivable, to me, that somebody could have smeared some liquid testosterone on Landis somehow the night before the 17th stage just to disqualify him.
Just one lone individual with access to testosterone and a strong desire to keep yet another American from winning the Tour. That’s all it would have taken.
Doing Something
In relation to my post below on the likelihood of liquid explosives being built on planes I’d like to address something that I’ve seen a lot of over this weekend.
The insistence that we must do something to combat this new threat.
I’m not dumb and I realize that we must react to the conditions around us as human beings to ensure our continued survival but I’m prejudiced against letting a government body make those decisions for me. Frankly, government bodies aren’t known for their critical thinking abilities.
I really do believe that the American public figured out the answer to this new wave of terrorism within the first hour after the first WTC tower was struck: If somebody is fucking around with a plane you kick their ass.
It’s unfortunate that Flight 93 went down over Pennsylvania, but the passengers did that they had to do. They figured out that the game had changed and acted appropriately. Given the same people in the same situation one day later (if not even a few hours) I highly doubt that Flight 93 would have ever gone down. They’d have started kicking ass earlier; well before those asshats took control of the cockpit.
That’s the answer to this problem, not forcing people to dump out drinking water before they board a plane.
Hell, since 9/11 we’ve seen people do exactly that. There was a report some time ago about a fellow (veteran of Iraq II actually) trying to bust down a cockpit door. The passengers took him down. We’re Americans — that’s what we do. If we feel that you pose a threat to us we’re going to fuck you up. We live in a nation where carrying a loaded handgun is considered a right. We’re starting to pass laws across the country permitting lethal force without the duty to retreat.
Frankly I don’t see why our government expects us to act like a bunch of dickless pussies when we board a plane. Further, I don’t understand why the populace as a whole feels it’s prudent that we do and that our safety should lie in the hands of government agents incapable of telling the difference between H2O and HCl.
I’m no hero, and I’m not even particularly brave, but damned if I don’t get on a plane with the understanding that as a decent American that values human life I might need to assist in putting the hurt on some asshole that tries fucking with the plane.
Fuck security screening. You put me on a plane where I know that at least 3 other men are willing to drop fists, knees, elbows, and a good choke hold and I’ll figure I’m pretty safe. I want no part of any system that would take a juice-box from a child based upon the prediction that I, as an American male, would be a dickless pansy unwilling to stop some yahoo from constructing a bomb or doing anything else to jeopardize the other souls on that plane.
An empty water bottle is a symbol. An honest man willing to visit violence upon a terrorist is a real testament to safety.