For many weeks during the Chinese gymnast scandal, lawyers have been scratching their heads over the rather dim-witted focus of the IOC on documents that can be (and have been in the past) altered by the Chinese government. Criminal lawyers are accustomed to expert testimony establishing the age of victims with considerable precision through x-rays and medical testimony. Various experts have now spoken out and called for simple x-ray examinations to confirm the age of the gymnasts through actual science rather than Olympic spin.
The call for literal transparency in the IOC investigation is not likely to go down well with the body, which is viewed as engaging in willful blindness on the issue for over a year when the controversy began, here. The IOC is known as a highly political and flawed organization (putting aside the rampant corruption that characterized prior games).
In a L.A. Times article below, Dr. David Seen, a forensic odontologist at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center says that “It would be relatively easy” to confirm their ages. Indeed, it is so easy and non-invasive for the Chinese, says
Dr. Peter Hampl, president of the American Board of Forensic Odontology, “It’s almost incriminating if they don’t.”
While the constant exercise can effect estrogen production and have an impact on bone growth, the use of various bone indicators can adjust for that problem. Teeth can also be used as a secondary measure.
The question is why, with science available, has the OIC continued to ask for documents that are immediately suspect and in obvious contradiction. The Chinese have already blamed incriminating documents found by hackers and reporters as simply “poor recordkeeping.” FIG, the governing body, has already worked hard to avoid any effort to question the documents and insisted that such things as a passport issued by the Chinese government must be valid and true — after all it is a Chinese passport, here.
For the full story, click here.
etc etc etc – niblet aka dundar aka martha aka martha h aka bartlebee aka zakimar aka cromag’non’man aka jim winchester
http://jonathanturley.org/2008/07/28/getting-right-with-god-church-shooter-allegedly-targeted-knoxville-church-due-to-its-liberal-views/
mespo727272 1, July 29, 2008 at 3:07 pm
Patty C:
Unless we see more, you’ve won with the “under” bet since he only went for 7 hysterical replies. I am guessing more is to come, but I am willing to concede defeat. I also think we should nominate Gyges for the Euphemism Award after our hero’s diatribe against him for something he didn’t say and in response to a question to someone other than our comical friend. “Wordy”, how’s that for avoiding the real thing? Bravo Gyges! I haven’t wanted this to be competitive, but in my sport we do know victory is at hand when we get into the head of the opponent. We’re there and it’s vast, desolate, and scary. Yikes!
jonathanturley 1, July 30, 2008 at 8:01 am
BARTLEBEE:
I have removed three of your comments which included foul language directed at another person. This site is committed to civil discourse. I do not want to bar or censor anyone on a site that has free speech focus, but we need to maintain a minimal standard of civility in discourse. Also, I would appreciate it if you would try to combine some of your comments rather than have four or five one-line comments following in one after another. The problem is that there is a limit on the number of comments which appear on the opening page. We welcome continued exchanges and dialogues. However, having four comments in an uninterrupted line prevents other comments from being visible for the other readers on the home page comments column.
JT
BARTLEBEE 1, July 30, 2008 at 2:07 pm
No problem JT.
Since you permit bloggers like mespo and patty to attack new bloggers, unprovoked, and litteraly badger them until they finally retort with some uncivility of their own, and then penalize the blogger who dares respond to the non stop stalking attacks of your two favorite friends, I will do you one better.
I’ll leave your blog and never post in it again.
You guys spend your days damning the right for cronyism, yet clearly it is a dual standard when it comes to your own.
Notice not one word to mespo or patty, about their non stop attacks on me.
Not one word about how they follow me from thread to thread, insult me, harrass me, demonize me, and generally try and interfere with my comments to other bloggers.
Just let them piss me off enough to wear I might use some questionable language, and then walla. Here comes the teacher to chastize me for responding to these two GOONS you keep on hand to drive out anyone who won’t goosestep to the blog beat.
This isn’t a vehicle for free expression, nor does the free speech you so loudly proclaim on Countdown exist here.
What you have here, is an “ECHO CHAMBER”, where bully liberals like messpo and patty c, are permitted to drive out new bloggers by badgering them until they either leave, or react in a way that draws your rebuke.
Well, you can “say” you don’t like to censor all you want, but you just censored me, and without so much as an inkling of alluding to the bloggers, who harrassed me until I finaly let loose with some bad language, obviously to try and discourage them from talking to me.
I don’t talk that way, it should have been obvious to you that my intent was to make it unpleasent for them to keep harrassing me.
But apparently that was neither visible to you, or you just didn’t care. Either way, I won’t hang out in an ECHO CHAMBER, where left WINGNUTS like Patty and your pal messpo, are permitted to badger bloggers, but responses from those bloggers are censored and stifled.
I really thought you believed the stuff you say on Countdown, and who knows, maybe you do.
You just don’t practice it yourself.
So I will bid you good morning sir, and leave you to your ECHO CHAMBER, so you guys can “talk” about free speech.
😀
Oh… and in case I don’t see you, good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight.
******************
When are you leaving-again? So we can mark our calendars in gleeful anticipation…
It was pretty obvious, I think, to any observant layman, that the female Chinese gymnasts were dramatically less mature in appearance than their competitors. The Chinese government had clearly tampered with either their documents or their genes.
One had only to look at the other end of the gym at the Chinese gymnast team’s male counterparts, who showed no analogous immaturity: they had muscles popping out everywhere – yet the women were all twiggies & snake-hips.
And the entire world knows – even without X-ray tests – that girls enter puberty slightly EARLIER than boys.
Nice photo on the cover. I assume it was taken from the Gymnastics floor routines?
😐
They could however stand to lighten up a bit on their overzealous dietary restrictions.
While I would not advocate for any new, unnecessary, exposure to even low level radiation, especially for adolescents, certainly, any previously performed x-rays – dental and/or especially S/P trauma, viewed in conjunction with the scrupulously held medical record, may satisfy – assuming such exist.
If not, these kids are likely due for a modern oral wellness check-up, at the least, anyway.
1L:
Very funny, though it may be easier to yell “hey, there goes Hanna Montana and note who jumps up.”
JT
Do they just count the rings?