UW-Rock County Philosophy of Sport Stephen E. Schmid UW-Rock County Philosophy of Sport
• What's the difference between licit and illicit drug use?
• Where is the line between these instances of drug use?• Where is the line between performance enhancers that are
• "The never-ending contest between the performance principle and
the cultural restraints that work against it blurs the line separating the licit and the illicit." (237)
Stephen E. Schmid UW-Rock County Philosophy of Sport
• Late 19th c.: Cyclists given alcohol and kola nuts. Scientists
expressed no ethical concerns but saw it as research
• Early 20th c.: Ethical condemnation of doping as sports become
• 1970s: Modern doping bans implemented. • 2012: USADA Antidoping Agency Report reveals systemic
Stephen E. Schmid UW-Rock County Philosophy of Sport
• Part of the challenge in drawing the line between the licit and
illicit is to distinguish between . . .
• Natural vs. Artificial• Nutrient vs. Stimulant• Therapy vs. Enhancement
• Rehabilitation vs. Performance Enhancement• Healing vs. Improving
• What are deviations from "a natural way of life" and which are
Stephen E. Schmid UW-Rock County Philosophy of Sport
• Coined by Peter Kramer in his Listening to Prozac
• Pharmacological Calvinism: "a general mistrust of drugs used
• The problem is that within the therapeutic model and modern
medicine, the distinction is unclear between treating specific disorders or illnesses versus treatments for cosmetic or general enhancement
• Prozac for mood treatment vs. Prozac for sports
• Drugs for daily stress vs. drugs for performance anxiety• Hormones (testosterone) for therapy vs. hormones for
Stephen E. Schmid UW-Rock County Philosophy of Sport
• Building off of Kramer, Hoberman notes the same cycle of
• Initial discovery leads to ethical doubt which leads to
therapeutic concern which culminates in transformative ambition
• Hoberman sees the real ethical issues arising in the
transformative phase, the phase where science/medicine moves beyond therapy to enhancement
• "Supplementary nutrition" is the new phrase describing the
treatment of common aging problems with drugs
Stephen E. Schmid UW-Rock County Philosophy of Sport
• Dual-use drugs are those that can be used for both therapy (for
"the enfeebled") and for enhancement (for "the powerful")
• Hoberman thinks the "gentrification" of these types of drugs will
1. The drugs will become more broadly used as they are marketed to a
2. "Gentrification will also undermine the campaign against doping in
• The "hard line" against doping will soften
3. Gentrification will lead to a slippery slope and blur the lines
between the licit and illicit uses of genetic engineering
Stephen E. Schmid
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