Lance the Bully

[peterst6906]

I'd go as far to say that I wish the cancer had of killed him the 1st time. The world would be a better place without him

Really? Classless.

 

[ultimobici]

I see a pattern. Lance bullies on responsible, stable folks who can control themselves very well. With such bulliness, you're bound to walk into a fist once in a while. Yet he doesn't. Isn't it amazing what he gets away with, I mean without hard personal retaliation, in a violent country such as the US, and a hostile environment such as Europe?
Although on second though in his last Tour it was really other riders dumping their banana peels in front of his bike on purpose all the time.

In what way hostile?

 

[RobbieCanuck]

Real Athletes Know

I have played many sports at a fairly high competitive level (University, European Professional). Any experienced athlete knows pretty quickly who are the good guys and who are the a$$h*l@s. A classic example is a pick up basketball game, where the jerks can be identified easily.

Watching, observing, and listening to LA leaves no doubt the guy is a prima donna of the first order. Selfish, arrogant, hubristic, self-centered, and narcisstic only begin to describe the guy. Only the American obsession with the faux cult of celebrity keeps this phoney alive.

 

[SilentAssassin]

Anyone that knows anything about these foundations, charities that are run by celebs ie. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will know that first and foremost Lance's cancer foundation is a tax haven for him. The tax laws around these are very complex. Easy to manipulate. Bono (U2) only spent 1% of one of his charities on it's true purpose.

Armstrong is a bully. Remember during his comeback some guy yelled out something about him being a doper and he says "Come and say that to my face". What a dude. the cancer was back within the peloton all right.

Well this tells you where the money goes.

http://blog.livestrong.org/2011/05/02/where-the-money-goes/

81% for charitable services is quite good.

"At the foundation, more than $245 million (81% of each dollar spent) has been invested directly in cancer programs, initiatives, and advocacy efforts to change the way the world fights cancer."

Directing hate for Lance is one thing, but you shouldn't direct hate for Livestrong. Probably no one in this forum could start a charity and raise 245 million for cancer related services programs. I mean that's pretty unreal especially considering that Livestrong hasn't been around for that long.

 

[Houndbike]

If 'cancer related services' means having big $6,000,000 parties with the charity money in Dublin and flying around on a private jet then I wouldn't mind trying.

 

[Zarvinov]

What about Armstrong's remarks about the 2008 Tour De France. Didn't he call it " A bit of a Joke "

Now that was highly disrespectful.

 

[ChewbaccaD]

One funny thing underlying this thread is that a few of the most hate-filled LA persecutors on this forum display much of the same alpha male bully mentality they despise LA for. Harassing through Twitter accounts, etc.

I'm not talking Race Radio for instance, but there's been some pretty ugly stuff that just looks like bully A picking a fight with bully B.

I'm not going to be blamed for being a better smart *** than Wonderboy. If he didn't want to get smacked down intellectually, he should have kept his keyboard shut. He decided (if it was really him, and I am starting to doubt that it was) to give comment on a tweet I made, and I returned fire. I'm not sure how that is bullying, but you can pretend that it is to suit your narrative. I am fairly certain that the little electronic smack down I gave didn't suppress his actions in any way. I just exposed how inept he is at tickle fights. Pouty face.

 

[Cloxxki]

You have to be impressed with the list of empty remarks and half insults the guy must be tapping into. No-one comes up with those real-time. It takes the preparation of a TdF winner and someone who has decided to wit himself out of any crime even when caught red-handed.

 

[Race Radio]

Well this tells you where the money goes.

http://blog.livestrong.org/2011/05/02/where-the-money-goes/

81% for charitable services is quite good.

"At the foundation, more than $245 million (81% of each dollar spent) has been invested directly in cancer programs, initiatives, and advocacy efforts to change the way the world fights cancer."

Directing hate for Lance is one thing, but you shouldn't direct hate for Livestrong. Probably no one in this forum could start a charity and raise 245 million for cancer related services programs. I mean that's pretty unreal especially considering that Livestrong hasn't been around for that long.

The IRS investigation of Livestrong along with all of Lance's legal entanglements are probably the best things that ever happened to Livestrong. Before the investigation they wasted hundreds of millions of $$ on useless "Programs" design to raise awareness of Lance. The were a joke.

The investigation was a wake up call. They have changed dramatically. Increased transparency, no more $6 million parties, money for real programs not advertising Lance. After 10 years and $100's of millions wasted they now do a lot of good work

 

[Race Radio]

When LeMond dared questioned the myth Wonderboy walked into the intern room and instructed them to hit the internet room and instructed them on how to smear, err "raise awareness", Greg. Some key members of the Foundation were so disturbed by it they wrote Greg letters of apology.

 

[Runitout]

In my experience, people who either personalise conflict or take happiness from others' misfortune tend to be miserable themselves, regardless of whatever success they might have.

With Armstrong, I see someone who has achieved everything an athlete could possibly achieve, and there's still a well of anger that drives him. Guys like that can never be really happy.

The bullying, the domination of teammates and their siblings, the Oedipus Tex thing - it would be both slightly hilarious and worthy of pity, if it didn't involve other people and their lives.

 

[BroDeal]

With Armstrong, I see someone who has achieved everything an athlete could possibly achieve, and there's still a well of anger that drives him. Guys like that can never be really happy.

Didn't Landis once say that Armstrong was the unhappiest person he ever met.

 

[Merckx index]

In my experience, people who either personalise conflict or take happiness from others' misfortune tend to be miserable themselves, regardless of whatever success they might have.

With Armstrong, I see someone who has achieved everything an athlete could possibly achieve, and there's still a well of anger that drives him. Guys like that can never be really happy.

The bullying, the domination of teammates and their siblings, the Oedipus Tex thing - it would be both slightly hilarious and worthy of pity, if it didn't involve other people and their lives.

I don’t think it’s stretching things too much to say that on some level, maybe all unconscious, LA has welcomed USADA’s actions. He needs enemies to fight, opposition that can be painted completely bad or evil on his terms. He becomes most alive when he is under serious challenge of this kind.

I even think a major reason for the comeback might have been this. I think he missed not only the physical activity and competition, but also the haters. It’s pretty clear from his own statements that he welcomed doubts about whether his 7 titles were won clean, because they provided the basis for a new challenge. I think he enjoyed racing more under those conditions than he would have if he were universally regarded as clean.

In this respect he’s like a master criminal who is never satisfied no matter how many times he thwarts those trying to catch him. He has to prove to himself that he can do it again. His legacy is not really “I was the most tested athlete in history” but “I beat more tests while doped than anyone else in history”. The greatest athletes are thrill seekers, and there has to be a major rush in doing something against the rules, and constantly getting away with it.

 

[JA.Tri]

I don’t think it’s stretching things too much to say that on some level, maybe all unconscious, LA has welcomed USADA’s actions. He needs enemies to fight, opposition that can be painted completely bad or evil on his terms. He becomes most alive when he is under serious challenge of this kind.

I even think a major reason for the comeback might have been this. I think he missed not only the physical activity and competition, but also the haters. It’s pretty clear from his own statements that he welcomed doubts about whether his 7 titles were won clean, because they provided the basis for a new challenge. I think he enjoyed racing more under those conditions than he would have if he were universally regarded as clean.

In this respect he’s like a master criminal who is never satisfied no matter how many times he thwarts those trying to catch him. He has to prove to himself that he can do it again. His legacy is not really “I was the most tested athlete in history” but “I beat more tests while doped than anyone else in history”. The greatest athletes are thrill seekers, and there has to be a major rush in doing something against the rules, and constantly getting away with it.

In my gut, this feels right. Lance has something to lash out at in a way that he perceives is "constructive".

 

[montagna lunga]

In my gut, this feels right. Lance has something to lash out at in a way that he perceives is "constructive".

Very much in common with the Clinic denizens, eh?

 

[Race Radio]

Very much in common with the Clinic denizens, eh?

True, the way the groupies go after Greg, Floyd, Tyler etc is just odd.

 

[Anonymous]

Almost forgot about TexPat. Maybe he can elaborate.

 

[Benotti69]

Very much in common with the Clinic denizens, eh?

Rather be a 'Clinic denizen' than an 'Armstrong minion'

 

[D-Queued]

Almost forgot about TexPat. Maybe he can elaborate.

Hasn't been forgotten him at all - and the lawsuit!

At the same time, we shouldn't forget Emma O'Reilly (and other spurious lawsuits):

"They agreed to backdate a medical prescription," O'Reilly tells SI. "They'd gotten a heads up that [Armstrong's] steroid count was high and decided they would actually do a backdated prescription and pretend it was something for saddle sores."

In violation of its own protocol requiring a TUE for use of such a drug, officials from the UCI announced that Armstrong had used a corticosteroid for his skin and his positive result was excused. O'Reilly also told SI that, just before the start of the '99 Tour, Armstrong asked her to use some of her cosmetics to cover up injection marks on his arm, though O'Reilly does not know what substance Armstrong had injected. O'Reilly made these same allegations in a 2004 book about Armstrong, published only in French, called L.A. Confidentiel. Armstrong subsequently filed a libel suit against O'Reilly, the book's authors and its publisher. He also sued The Sunday Times of London for reprinting the allegations in a review of the book. (Armstrong settled The Times case for an apology and recovery of his legal costs, and dropped the others.)

Dave.

 

[function]

I'm not going to be blamed for being a better smart *** than Wonderboy. If he didn't want to get smacked down intellectually

There was nothing intellectual about that exchange

 

[D-Queued]

And, we should probably at SCA to those bullied by Lance.

In fact, it is a good example of the economic toll of Lance's bullying.

Including legal fees, SCA paid out a total of $12m.

"CSE (i.e. Lance) is issuing the following statement in response to widespread media reports by CNN, the Associated Press and USA Today containing false and reputation-threatening information by SCA..."

Yup, lie, conspire, deny, harrass, attack the truth, lie, conspire, deny, harrass, attack the truth, lie...

Dave.

 

[D-Queued]

Hasn't been forgotten him at all - and the lawsuit!

At the same time, we shouldn't forget Emma O'Reilly (and other spurious lawsuits):
...

Dave.

Ah, this just in from David Walsh (8 July 2012):

"...Armstrong’s complaint that USADA’s chief executive is conducting a vendetta against him is a tactic he has used before. It used to be the French who were against him; physical therapist Emma O’Reilly was a disgruntled former employee, Betsy Andreu was the embittered wife of a former teammate, Mike Anderson was a troublesome former personal assistant, Greg LeMond a jealous ex-champion.

Armstrong’s difficulty is not Tygart but the amount of evidence he has accumulated. "

http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/

Dave.

 

[TexPat]

Almost forgot about TexPat. Maybe he can elaborate.

Well, it's (almost) all on record here:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/24714560/Michael-Anderson-s-Testimony-On-Lance-Armstrong-Doping, which makes for rather unpleasant reading for me. Just read it again last night after 7 years have lapsed--still very fresh in my mind.
Has anyone seen the transcript of my deposition?

 

[Deagol]

....
Has anyone seen the transcript of my deposition?

No, is it available online somewhere?

 

[TexPat]

No, is it available online somewhere?

Not sure. Maybe sealed by the court, though I'm sure it's floating around somewhere.