How does one man go from being the perfect hero to a globally loathed ‘lying bastard’?
By undertaking and overseeing the most systematic and sophisticated doping programme ever seen in the history of sport.
How do MPs crash from being respected representatives of the British people to liars and cheats, the anti-Christs of today?
By deliberately trading in the trust of their people for a fast buck, through a systematic and sophisticated exploitation of the expenses system.
What Lance Armstrong has done cannot be underestimated, as I believe the 2009 expenses scandal has been. Because of the system at the time, where expenses had to be recorded by the MPs themselves, they knew they could get away with what they did. They knew they could, potentially, unlawfully take money from the public – steal and not get caught. Having weighed this up and considered their chances, they went for it. They stole taxpayers’ money without one iota of remorse. They would still be doing it today had they not been caught.
Lance Armstrong in his heyday. Image Credit: Puliarf/Flickr
What is so awful about this crime, and what has been glossed over in the aftermath, is that in doing what they did the intentions of the MPs were laid bare. They have revealed that they were not really there to represent their people and truly better Great Britain as a nation because when offered the chance to trade this opportunity in for pure financial gain, they grasped it with both hands. They were there for themselves, and they were happy to lie to British people, while stealing from them.
The Lance Armstrong case is a similar one. His relationship with Americans is different to that of MPs and the British as, his relationship was not legally binding. Armstrong was, however, the perfect hero, summing up the American Dream: growing up in a broken home he went on to face a gruelling battle with cancer before battling back to win the Tour de France a record seven times. An almost superhuman effort apparently achieved by pure hard work, he was an idol. Whether he liked it or not, like the MPs, he held an incredibly important position in society, they were role models.
Once again, like MPs, however, he chose to abuse this. Not only carrying out but also ruthlessly instigating the doping of his and his teammates’ blood with EPO and blood transfusions to enhance performance, like the MPs, he cheated and lied.
The most important parallel between these two cases is this: both parties held privileged positions in society, which meant a lot to a great deal of people. Both risked this by trading it in for a chance of more success or more money. The gamble didn’t pay off. The MPs who fiddled expenses have ruined the name of British politics and have corrupted the trust they held from the general public. Lance Armstrong has put the future of cycling in jeopardy. The rulebook must be thrown at him; he must be hung out to dry. The right message must be sent and it must not get blown over like the MPs expenses scandal.
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