Live Wrong ≠ Live Strong (Dec 2012--Jan 2013)

Live Wrong ≠ Live Strong

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Rand Guebert, MBA

Researcher/author of the NCI Professional Review

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Have you ever considered the possible parallels between Lance Armstrong et al.’s doping scandal and NCI?  Do the ends justify the means in either case?  Is the dishonesty worth it?

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The Armstrong et al. duping and doping scandal goes back to his first Tour de France victory in 1999.  For years he got away with it, accumulating six more Tour tiles.  And now seven years after his last title the truth finally has come out in a convincing and undeniable manner.

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So, why now?

Because people cared about cycling and its participants; those future generations of riders and spectators who would want a fair playing field. Those in the know, and those who had their doubts, persevered in pursuing the truth. Crucially, they fought through the wall of denial and opposition.  Enough cyclists cared about their own integrity and finally admitted their personal involvement. They made the difficult choice to take public responsibility and clean up their sport¹.

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Let’s look at some of the parallels between Armstrong et al. and NCI:

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1.      Armstrong and NCI were both associated with popular charities—Livestrong with the former and YWAM/Mercy Ships with the latter (according to court docs²).  People did not want to tarnish the image of these charities that are trying to do good—part of the rationalization that the ends justify the means.

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2.      Armstrong and some of the NCI promoters and investors were often endorsed by important persons whose reputations needed to be protected. Armstrong was endorsed by Nike and many journalists, while one of the chief promoters of NCI was endorsed for years by YWAM before it became known that NCI was bankrupt.

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3.      Governments appear to want to protect (or not deal with) both Armstrong and the real sponsors of NCI. Earlier this year the US government closed its investigation of Armstrong without bringing any charges, while in Sweden the government only prosecuted the administrator of NCI (a Swedish man) rather than others who actively promoted and benefitted from the money.

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Armstrong and people associated with NCI were both guilty of discrediting whistleblowers—they dealt with their critics by ostracizing them in order to conceal the truth, thus avoiding real transparency and accountability.

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4.      Armstrong and YWAM leaders both reinforced a regiment of secrecy on those in their sphere of influence in order to protect themselves.  The most telling evidence of this is that Armstrong’s fellow riders and YWAM members were afraid to resolutely step forward for fear of retribution.

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5.      In the Armstrong scandal it was fellow riders who finally brought the truth into the public light.  The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) played a role in wanting to clean up the sport of cycling, but this regulatory agency could not have been successful without the testimony of people in the know. Unfortunately in the case of NCI, no regulatory agency has stepped forward (even at the request of victims and others) to extract the truth.

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So, why not forget about NCI and just move on?

Evil never acquiesces easily.  Nor does injustice simply disappear with time. The evil and injustice surrounding NCI continues to contaminate the Christian community. NCI investors, the various organizations affected³, and YWAM members in particular (since YWAM as an organization has been affected more than any other) must consider whether the “secular” sport of cycling has stronger moral principles than the “Christian” work of missions.  That would be a sad statement if it is true.  And so far, based on my research of court documentation and involvement with the case, this is in fact the very sad reality.  One of these days the truth will come out just as it has for Armstrong et al. ^{4 5 6}
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When it does, which side of history will you be on?

Live Wrong ≠ Live Strong

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Note 1: For example, see the CBS News’ “60 Minutes Overtime” summary report online (10 October 2012) about the Armstrong and the US Postal Service cycling team--the code of silence, cover ups, etc http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504803_162-57530044-10391709/usada-report-slams-lance-armstrong/

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Notes 2, 3: For links to documents and information on some of the people/organizations affected by NCI, see the previous weblog entries, such as June-July 2012 and August-September 2012.

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Note 4: Click here to watch some of Lance Armstrong’s repeated denials of doping (Telegraph, UK, 11 October 2012)

Note 5: Click here to watch the PBS News Hour report (October 2012) on Armstrong et al. and the doping scandal

Note 6: Click here to watch an overview of Armstrong's response to the USDA report (World News 365, August 2012).