Monday, June 30, 2008

Baker Reaction

We received the following, indirectly from Arnie Baker:

The Court of Arbitration of Sport upheld the findings of the American Arbitration Association in affirming a doping violation against Floyd Landis.

Having closely read the laboratory’s reports and the statements of its witnesses, I strongly disagree with the findings of these tribunals.

The evidence documents conclusively that not only did the laboratory (1) never identify testosterone in the testosterone/epitestosterone ratio test according to WADA criteria, it (2) had no written procedure to identify substances in the more sophisticated IRMS test.

Moreover, there is evidence of scientific misconduct/malfeasance. Records have disappeared and documents appear to have been fabricated. USADA, its experts, and the lab appear to have repeatedly made false statements. I document the reasons for my opinions in the Wiki Defense 2.0. Source documents are provided.

By all means download the material from my website—it is free—and come to your own conclusions.



5 comments:

Eightzero said...

I have to step away from the keyboard. I've spent much of the day near tears; my soul weeps for Floyd and his family. Worse, I fear for the use and misuse of science in our courts and by polictial forces. Science is my religion; justice is my calling. This day has blown up everything I believe in. I'm shellshocked, but know what I feel can't be anywhere near what Floyd, Amber and Ryan are going through.

I only wish there was something I could do for them. And for the athletes Floyd fought for.

Oddly enough, the only thing that makes sense right now are something Floyd's mom said. To paraphrase: "All Earthly glory is meaningless."

Odd, but only today does that saying finally have meaning for me.

jennyknick said...

I know it was silly of me given the current climate, but I really thought the truth might win out at last and the CAS might do the right thing. I mean, how could anyone look at that evidence and say Floyd received justice, right? People with the power to ruin the lives of others just can't keep getting away with saying the opposite of the truth, right?

Wrong. I guess I was whistling in the dark, even as I knew that the system was entirely corrupt and the people in charge say and do whatever they want and are rarely held accountable for their out-and-out lies or any other unethical behavior for that matter.

I'm fighting back tears, too, Eightzero. Floyd's suspension has been upheld, the USADA continues to portray itself as a moral crusader, Contador and Leipheimer won't be in the Tour, and the Bush Administration keeps doing a great impression of Big Brother while throwing the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights under the bus. I guess we're not out of Alice's Wonderland yet.

I refuse to give up on Floyd or my country (though I think I'm almost there when it comes to the Tour), but this CAS "decision" has made me sit back on my couch, heave a big sigh, and wonder what to do next to help Floyd Landis and his family. I honestly don't know right at this moment. Maybe tomorrow something will come to me.

Until then, I'll keep listening to people like Keith Olbermann, and I'll keep believing that if enough people tell the truth for a long enough time, someday, sometime, the good guys will win.

Here are a couple of quotes I carry around which help keep me going:

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it." Helen Keller

"Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it." The Talmud

Jenny
Bozeman, MT

jennyknick said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
whareagle said...

Jenny - e-mail me off-list. whareagle at gmail. I'll be in Bozone the 10th through the 14th. We can meet at Bangtail & discuss the travesty.

cleduc said...

I missed following this most recent appeal. I didn’t see any press on it until now. But I followed the US based appeal very closely - watching daily most of the sessions and reading the coverage here and elsewhere.

As I haven't had a chance to review the CAS decision, I guess I'll reserve final judgment. However, I will say that based on what I had seen previously, I'm somewhat appalled as I was when the previous decision was rendered.

If it was a criminal case, requiring “beyond reasonable doubt”, I don’t think their decision would stand a chance. Although Floyd has been through the ringer, there is a part of me that hopes he can find a way to go after them in a civil action.

Even if Floyd was truly guilty, and so far I haven’t been convinced that’s been proven, I think Floyd made a great stand for athletes and sports in general. He has provided a real service exposing the flaws in the system and the people who administer it. I thank him for that. His case revealed several very troubling aspects about what this governing body is about. Personally, how they conducted themselves troubled me much more than an athlete who cheats. I thought they were a bunch of hypocrites.