Not too long ago, the country witnessed the outright fraud that was the banking scandal caused by financial companies like AIG, UBS, and JPMorgan, making unscrupulous deals that they knew would ruin the lives of millions of families. In the months that followed, the heads of these financial institutions tried to play the victim in this fiasco, pleading with the public to understand that they didn't mean any harm. Of course, we never bought the excuses, and many are still feeling the pain caused by the greed and ego of a few, that ruined the lives of so many. Lance Armstrong, once famed Tour De France bike racer and seven time "winner" of the European event, in a recent interview with Oprah Winfrey, became a stark reminder of how greed and fame drives a person -- a hero -- to do bad things, regardless of who gets hurt. What made matters worse was that the actions he took over the years ruined the lives of anyone who would challenge him.
Watching the interview, one could only sit and wonder what went on in Armstrong's mind for all of these years. As he raced in so many Tours, he spent as much time on his bike, as his lawyers did going after anyone who would dare mention anything about Lance using performance-enhancing drugs. Lance and his entourage of attorneys, publicists, assistants, and even coaches, agents, and random officials in the UCI, made the decision to support Armstrong even though they knew he was doping.
To anyone who follows the sport of cycling, it is no surprise that nowadays, many if not most of the Tour De France's premiere cyclists regularly cheat. Whether it be blood doping, steroids, EPO, or some other means, it is common knowledge that doping happens as a means of leveling the playing field.
But the point is that the Tour De France riders in the past who got caught cheating, didn't go after other people. They got caught, paid their fines, took their suspensions, and moved on. But not Lance. He went as far as filing law suites against anyone who tried to out his doping -- lawsuits against people who were telling the truth.. He further spend time and effort bashing people and calling them outright liars, in some cases, ruining those peoples lives. This is the act of a person who had no soul, and proved it time and time again.
So if you wonder what the deal with Lance is about, just look back at those bank CEOs, and what they did to millions of people. They cheated, they got outed, they got caught, and then they tried to pretend that they were victims.
For those who were or still are Lance fans, all one can do is feel sorry for you. You supported a guy who strong-armed and smashed people for telling on him. You supported a guy who lied, cheated and stole. You supported a bully.
Heck, maybe you still support him, but remember this -- no matter how impressive his wins, you can't ignore his greed, his drive for fame, and the way he ruined so many people's lives, for the sake of his own.
That's no hero...