As a young person I read King Arthur, Robin Hood, The Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and many other hero stories. One underlying theme of all these myths is honor. I understood honor to be courage, honesty,integrity,and a sense of something greater than oneself.
When I started to compete in sports,I understood sports to be a practice field for life and conflict. I internalized the message that honor and integrity were and are concepts greater than the individual. One did not sacrifice these values even to the point of early death. Thus sports. A place where one could practice bravery honor teamwork and self sacrifice without death.
Lance Armstrong. "Everybody else is cheating so it is okay for me to do it." Vince Lombardi "Winning is everything." (Later claimed it was out of context) Mark Grace "If you aint cheating you aint trying."
I know that these people are wrong, more than wrong,they are the conception point of evil. When a person starts to bend the rules of goodness for their own profit or in order to hurt others, that is evil. I hear people say that Armstrong did more good than bad.
To them I say do you expect a cheat not to lie? Do you expect a liar not to Steal? Do you expect a thief not to kill? This man cheated out of ambition and greed. He later started a foundation. Is he less likely or more likely to embezzle. because he cheated? I will say no more.
This is the same personality that was cheating in the financial markets. How did that turn out? We like to blame the system or the government or the other guy who was cheating.
A friend of mine was saying that Armstrong could not have won without cheating. To that I say so? Did he have a right to win that made cheating okay? Did he not have the integrity to point out what was happening?
I know of at least one person who quit a sport rather than cheat. I have much more respect for that person than any person who gives up part of their humanity in order to win and or gain.
We all have these theories about all the problems in the world. I think that in the US most of our problems come from these three statements quoted earlier we reward liars and cheaters and punish honor and integrity. We worship success by fair means or foul. This is wrong and it is not what we should be teaching on the fields of play to our young.
Honor integrity and courage are values that reach beyond the individual. Let us try to live that way
When I started to compete in sports,I understood sports to be a practice field for life and conflict. I internalized the message that honor and integrity were and are concepts greater than the individual. One did not sacrifice these values even to the point of early death. Thus sports. A place where one could practice bravery honor teamwork and self sacrifice without death.
Lance Armstrong. "Everybody else is cheating so it is okay for me to do it." Vince Lombardi "Winning is everything." (Later claimed it was out of context) Mark Grace "If you aint cheating you aint trying."
I know that these people are wrong, more than wrong,they are the conception point of evil. When a person starts to bend the rules of goodness for their own profit or in order to hurt others, that is evil. I hear people say that Armstrong did more good than bad.
To them I say do you expect a cheat not to lie? Do you expect a liar not to Steal? Do you expect a thief not to kill? This man cheated out of ambition and greed. He later started a foundation. Is he less likely or more likely to embezzle. because he cheated? I will say no more.
This is the same personality that was cheating in the financial markets. How did that turn out? We like to blame the system or the government or the other guy who was cheating.
A friend of mine was saying that Armstrong could not have won without cheating. To that I say so? Did he have a right to win that made cheating okay? Did he not have the integrity to point out what was happening?
I know of at least one person who quit a sport rather than cheat. I have much more respect for that person than any person who gives up part of their humanity in order to win and or gain.
We all have these theories about all the problems in the world. I think that in the US most of our problems come from these three statements quoted earlier we reward liars and cheaters and punish honor and integrity. We worship success by fair means or foul. This is wrong and it is not what we should be teaching on the fields of play to our young.
Honor integrity and courage are values that reach beyond the individual. Let us try to live that way
Amen, brother Annon, Amen!
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