Why would a Wookiee, an eight-foot tall Wookiee, want to live on Endor, with a bunch of two-foot tall Ewoks? That does not make sense! But more important, you have to ask yourself: What does this have to do with this case? Nothing. Ladies and gentlemen, it has nothing to do with this case! It does not make sense! Look at me. I'm a lawyer defending the Tour de France Champion, and I'm talkin' about Chewbacca! Does that make sense? Ladies and gentlemen, I am not making any sense! None of this makes sense! And so you have to remember, when you're in that jury room deliberatin' and conjugatin' the Emancipation Proclamation, does it make sense? No! Ladies and gentlemen of this supposed jury, it does not make sense! If Chewbacca lives on Endor, you must acquit! The defense rests.
Wed 02.08.06 Quickie Morning News Roundup From My House to Yours
(for those who still care about the integrity of this process)
The AP's article by Jamie Keaton today, a good summary of what's on the plate, has Floyd's spokesman confirming that the T/E ratio was 11:1. It also has a dramatic about face by UCI's prez Pat MCQuaig who has now decided that his previous overeager condemnations of Mr.Landis w/o benefit, by his own admission, of the actual lab test results might have been bad PR for the UCI. He has seen the light & now wants to genuflect at the altar of due process.
(snip)"FL UCI president Pat McQuaid said he had not seen the test results, but emphasized Landis was presumed innocent until found guilty and guaranteed the cyclist would be given the chance to defend himself in front of an arbitration panel before any penalties would be imposed.
"It could take weeks," McQuaid told The Associated Press by telephone.
McQuaid added that even if the "B" sample confirms the "A" results, no penalties would be decided "until the disciplinary process is completed." That process could also drag out if Landis decides to appeal a UCI ruling before the Court of Arbitration for Sport."
This article also offers my entry for the best quote of the day, from Dick Pound:
"Asked about the Landis case, Dick Pound, president of the World Anti-Doping Agency, said, "I sure would hate to be the brand manager for cycling right now."
By my lights, one of the clearest, most dispassionately composed & best articulated pieces I have read to date in one place with respect to the current situation is from wallstreetjournal.com's "The Numbers Guy", Carl Bialik. He discusses the studies about alcohol's impact on T/E readings, the reliability of those pesky isotope tests, and "chemical McCarthyism".
click for wsjonline assessment of the alcohol defence & sundry issues
For a really good, short explanation of how the IRMS test distinguishes natural from synthetic testosterone, a blogging organic chemistry geek explains it concisely in a way that even I understood: read organic chem phd blogger's entry about FL here
And if that doesn't do the trick for ya, there's always the wikipedia translation from the original bwteimish to english explanation of the mass spectometry used to read the testosterone fingerprint in question here.
Finally, here's a quickie projected timeline for Floyd, the lab & the UCI's expected title-stripping scenario at the WaPo: news service time table summary