A Little Much?

So I know I came down pretty hard on Brother Boonen yesterday. Flahute has shared some good insights on the subject and it made me think why I got so upset. To put it simply drugs suck. I have seen too many talented people destroy themselves and everyone around them with drugs. Simple experimentation is one thing. I can’t tell you not to do something and expect you to listen. Everyone needs to decide for themselves what is appropriate for them. I have never done anything stronger than a Chimay as for me it seemed there was a lot more downside than upside (can you tell I work in the stock market?). For others they need to try it and see for themselves. Nothing wrong with that. It just seems Brother Boonen did not do a very careful risk reward study before pulling the trigger.

I am happy to see he is taking it like the man I have always hoped he is. To the surprise of no one the snail eaters at A Tour of France have banned him from the race. Nice move Frenchy. Only in France could a convicted drug cheat, liar and garden variety douche like Richard Virenque be considered a hero. If the ASO had any balls at all, they would strip that jack ass of the climber jersey’s he stole before his drug conviction. Brother Boonen, I hope you can find what you are looking for.

How about Georgie boy? Somehow I missed that yesterday. To be honest after I read the Boonen headline I stopped reading all cycling pages. Like I said over reaction. Anyway good to see Big George win something.

2 Responses to “A Little Much?”

1. Bob says:

   June 12, 2008 at 8:33 am

   I do not know the whole story of Boonen, but giving him a free pass because he might have a ‘problem’ is not the solution. If he does have a ‘problem’ one of the best ways of forcing him to deal with the ‘problem’ is to assure that he has consequences. Patting him on the head and saying, ‘oh it’s ok, you have a problem’ only Enables the ‘problem.’

   I question whether he has a ‘problem’ though. Here is why. Someone with the ‘problem’ can barely make it a day with out the ‘medication’ let alone the multiple weeks a grand tour entails.

   Oh yeah, it is not a ‘problem’ it is a Disease.
2. Flahute says:

   June 12, 2008 at 9:19 am

   Unfortunately, Bob, unless you’ve actually been there, you don’t know what you’re talking about.

   When I was dealing with my problem, I would go on binges … 3-5 days straight stuffing as much stuff up my nose as I could, until I ran out of money, then I’d crash and sleep for a few days.

   Then I wouldn’t do anything at all for several weeks, sometimes for a few months until that overwhelming urge hit me again … and off on another binge I’d go.

   Drug problems and addictions manifest themselves in different ways for different people. Perhaps Boonen’s “problem” hasn’t hit the point where it really is a problem yet, where it’s still under control, and not a full-fledged addiction.

   A lot of people have functional addictions … they still need their fix everyday, but are not so consumed by the addiction that they aren’t able to otherwise function normally in society.

   A lot of people are able to stay clean for while, until pressures build up so much they need to escape somehow. Some people drink. Some people do drugs. Some people ride their bikes.

   When I cleaned up, riding a bike became my new addiction … it saved my life, which is why my lack of motivation to ride now is so disheartening to me. At least I’m not turning back to my old habits … just about 17 years clean at this point.

   From what I can tell from the various articles published thus far, nobody is enabling Boonen at this point. He’s been banned from the Tour. He may lose his job. He may do jail time (Belgium has much harsher drug laws in some ways than the United States). He will almost certainly face a hefty fine, and will suffer future contract consequences.