MKirk wrote:
trail wrote:
>I don't read a single thing in Z's affidavit where he even slightly indicates Lance pushed him into taking PEDS..... It was all Johan >and the team doctors, You're right about there being no direct mention of Armstrong by DZ. But you can't then conclude that "it was all Johan and the team doctors." There were other riders who fingered Armstrong. And the reason DZ is in there, is DZ's testimony corroborates the testimony of the other riders in other important details. The power of eyewitness testimony lies in this mutual re-enforcement. It would be nearly impossible to fabricate. I don't disagree that Lance was probably the best doper on the team. What I am looking for is an answer that people and the media are saying that he was the ring leader that created this cycling doping problem. I'm saying that all the doping was already there and that EVERY SINGLE rider that provided testimony are just as much at fault or to blame as Lance. They were all doping either prior to Lance or started doping when on Lances team....but on their own with the assistance of Johan or Dr.F........ and without Lance "forcing" them to dope. I'm just looking for one example where Lance took a non-doping rider and either directly introduced them to taking PEDS or forced them.
Yes, Lance doped.....but all that is flying around is that he created the problem when the problem was already there.
Michael
You're the only one who keeps using the word "created"...nobody is alleging LA "created" doping in cycling. We all know it neither started nor ended with him, so spare us this fake scenario. How about "magnified" or "aggressively promoted" or "aggravated" or "amplified" or "exacerbated"; take your pick. Point is, he wasn't merely 'going with the flow' but actively directing traffic. He went to great lengths to make it worse, clearly to a greater extent than those WHO WORKED FOR HIM.
Let's flip it around for comparison... how absurd is it to surmise Floyd or Tyler, Levi or DZ, Tommy D or GH, or anyone else in Postal/Disco's crew could/would kick LA to the curb for not toeing the party line?
"Um, hey Lance, I just talked to Ferrari and you really gotta get with the program. There's no half-assing it, bud. The rest of us are counting on you and no way we're gonna tolerate you pissing away all we've got riding on this year's Tour... Capiche?" As if. Wielding that sort of pressure only flowed in one direction, and it sure as shit wasn't from the support riders UP to the Boss. That's like blaming the hooker for the sins of the pimp.