Posts tagged "Lance Armstrong"
Michael Jordan, Oscar Pistorius, and the Year of the Heroic Fall
Identity / Law / Sports

Michael Jordan, Oscar Pistorius, and the Year of the Heroic Fall

by Ethan Richardson on Feb 21, 2013 • 2 Comments

“You ask for these special powers to achieve these heights, and now you got it and you want to give it back, but you can’t…I drove myself so much that I’m still living with some of those drives…I don’t know how to get rid of it.”

These are the words of a 50-year-old Michael Jordan, in an interview with ESPN’s Wright Thompson this past week. The name of the article ESPN released is “Jordan Has Not Left the Building: As He Turns 50, MJ Is Wondering If There Are Any More Asses to Kick.” There is an illustration of a Bulls-era…

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Another Week Ends: AKB48, More Super Bowl, Seeing Cézanne, Failed Rehab, Humanity According to 30 Rock, Presumption vs Grace, and Creepy Lance Armstrong
Addiction / Art / Celebrity / Conferences / Film / Music / Reviews / Sports / TV / Week In Review

Another Week Ends: AKB48, More Super Bowl, Seeing Cézanne, Failed Rehab, Humanity According to 30 Rock, Presumption vs Grace, and Creepy Lance Armstrong

by WB on Feb 1, 2013 • 1 Comment

1. In the “mea culpa” world this past week, Minami Minegishi of the hit Japanese band AKB48 was publicly lambasted and forced to apologize on YouTube, where people have watched her tearful confession roughly 5 million times, for the crime of staying a night with her boyfriend. No one’s ever done a fantastic job with managing celebrity expectations, but this takes the cake, ht AOC:

“As a senior member of the group, it is my responsibility to be a role model for younger members,” she said, before ending the four-minute mea culpa with a deep, lingering bow.

The most striking thing about her apology,…

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The Duality of Lance Armstrong: Simul Jerk et Humanitarian
Celebrity / Interviews / Reformation / Sports

The Duality of Lance Armstrong: Simul Jerk et Humanitarian

by Matt Schneider on Jan 24, 2013 • 3 Comments

I have been in mourning over the revelation of cyclist Lance Armstrong’s guilt for several months now since the preponderance of evidence seemed to point toward his having indeed doped (using banned performance enhancing substances) during his seven-year Tour de France reign. Of course, the man himself finally confirmed his guilt last week during a highly publicized two-part interview/confession with Oprah Winfrey. Now I find myself at a new place with the story since I am finally viewing Armstrong (and the many other cyclists allegedly guilty of doping) through a theological lens. In fact, I found Armstrong’s confession to be…

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Lance Armstrong Redeems…Lance Armstrong?
Celebrity / Forgiveness / Sports / Theology

Lance Armstrong Redeems…Lance Armstrong?

by Nick Lannon on Jan 16, 2013 • 2 Comments

As I write this (Wednesday, January 16), Oprah Winfrey has confirmed that, in an exclusive interview taped on Monday to air on Thursday, Lance Armstrong has admitted to the use of performance enhancing drugs. At this point, this is a total snore. With the baseball writers’ recent decision to not vote a single player into the Hall of Fame (some simply for the possession of bacne), PED accusations and confessions are like Beanie Babies: when everyone’s got one, no one cares.

The Wall Street Journal (online) has a piece in the January 15 issue called “Behind Lance Armstrong’s Decision to Talk”…

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Five Golden…Themes! What We Just Couldn’t Get Enough of in 2012
America / Everyday / Film / Identity / Music / News / Politics / Psychology / Relationships / Sports / Technology / Theology / TV

Five Golden…Themes! What We Just Couldn’t Get Enough of in 2012

by Ethan Richardson on Dec 14, 2012 • 4 Comments

One of Mockingbird’s most distinctive features is the repetition. Like Christmas itself, we’re trying to point that one “old, old story,” that ancient theme, as we see it dug up time and again. It’s dug up in all sorts of places, of course, from 18th century poetry archives to slasher films, from church basements to top-tier corporate office towers. But it’s still resonating a singular focus–the Gospel–from these unforeseen, albeit obscure, sources.

Despite the wide-spanning scopes and intentions of some of our favorite “news” sources, the same thing unwittingly tends to happen. After all, reporting the news means telling and retelling…

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A (Failed) Great Escape: The Latest Move by Lance Armstrong
Law / Psychology / Sports

A (Failed) Great Escape: The Latest Move by Lance Armstrong

by Nick Lannon on Aug 29, 2012 • No Comments

This is the second (and, let’s be honest, most likely final) in what will no doubt be our long-remembered “God will not be mocked” series. Last week we talked about playing Little League baseball according to the rules, and the nonsensical nature of a life in which such rules don’t exist. This week, Lance Armstrong has tried to create just such a life for himself.

Over the weekend, USADA (the United States Anti-Doping Agency) announced that it would ban Armstrong (the seven-time Tour de France champion) from cycling for life and strip the sport’s greatest champion of its greatest championship. In…

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What Goes Up Must Come Down: the Top Five of 2009
Celebrity / News / Sports / Theology / Year In Review

What Goes Up Must Come Down: the Top Five of 2009

by Todd Brewer on Dec 31, 2009 • 3 Comments

All of the following have enjoyed the heights of success, but unfortunately have now felt the sting of reality. These are empirical proof that “all is vanity and a striving after wind” (Ecclesiastes 1:14).

5-Campaign WristbandsWhether it be WWJD, Livestrong, or Bono’s One bracelets, the popularity of this clever marketing gimmick has mostly passed. It also doesn’t help that Lance Armstrong placed second at the Tour de France.

4-Susan Boyle (See this post and this post)With her breakout performance on “Britain’s Got Talent” she was poised for what seemed to be a long and prosperous career. But after finishing second in…

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