Good Sport Ch. 8-9

Housekeeping

• Final questions are at Canvas
• Monday--you will be able to ask clarificatory questions
• Also, we will do some reviewing--e.g. we will review Murray's book
• May need to discuss the last presentation (depending on what happens today)
• Will look at the poll results on trans and intersex athletes
• Will poll you on some further issues about online classes

Ch. 8: Privacy Issues

• Murray's View: Prohibitionism--doping is bad for sport 
• Counterargument: even if doping is bad for sport, the invasion of privacy is problematic, and possibly even worse than doping
• How does testing work? (Murray)
• during competition
• in some sports, year-around
• whereabouts rules--have to say where you'll be one hour per day
• testing is also outside that time frame
• "observed voiding"
• Murray's view: most athletes don't mind
• How does testing work at SMU?
• several students explained in their RRs
• NCAA testing vs. SMU testing; different penalties involved
• each of those students did mind to some degree

Ch. 9: Transhumanism

1. Prohibitionism (Murray)--performance enhancing drugs and technologies should be banned when they subvert or undermine the meanings and values that are important in sport: talent, dedication, and courage
2. Physiological View (Foddy & Savulescu)--drugs and technologies should be allowed but only when they enable a person to move within the healthy, human range

• EPO OK if it let's people move within the normal range, but shouldn't increase hematocrit beyond 50%
• Beta-blockers not allowed (because a fearless competitor isn't human!)

3. Transhumanism/Posthumanism (Andy Miah, discussed by Murray; see video below)--the more spectacular the performance, the better; no problem with achieving better than human performance

Watch up to 38:38 or to the end--if you're listening, not watching, the sound in the background is the Sochi Olympics (2014)

Notes based on the lecture:

Performance Enhancing Drugs that could have a "transhuman" effect

1. The usual PEDS, such as EPO, when they create a super-high hematocrit, outside the human range
2. Marijuana
3. Placebo pill, so athlete believes they have extra ability

Other performance enhancing technologies that could have a "transhuman" effect

1. Genetic screening--who should be a sprinter and who should be an endurance athlete?
2. Gene doping
3. Prosthetic devices

• Oscar Pistorius's blades -- might make him better-than-human
• Your mobile phone
• Google Glass
• Phone tooth implant
• "nano sized" devices that help us optimize health

4. Surgery

• Laser eye surgery--when it creates better than perfect vision (Tiger Woods)
• Surgically enhanced hand and foot webbing for swimmers
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Discussion (probably Monday)--what should we think of the transhuman swimmer?

• Transhumanists (e.g. Andy Miah): hurray
• sports have always pushed in a transhuman direction through new technologies 
• sport-specific shoes, gloves and padding in football, swimsuits, fiberglass poles
• why shouldn't athletes enhance performance with technology used internally?
• Physiological View (e.g. Bernard Foddy & Julian Savulescu): not good, because he's moving outside the normal human range; not human, not healthy
• Prohibitionists (e.g. Murray): two objections

Murray p. 164

• Who is right?