Sports Talk with MC

by MC

By now, a lot of you reading this article would have probably already read many others in relation to the Chris Benoit case. I for one, am exceedingly disappointed that investigators managed to prove that Benoit had, in all likelihood, murdered his spouse, their son, and then killed himself, last weekend. For someone who had painted such a respectable image of himself amongst his peers, this comes as, understandably, a huge shock.

In this blog, I recently paid tribute to the man as matter of honoring his in-ring and purported back stage poise. I shall continue to hold Chris Benoit in high regard when it comes to being an entertainer. That will not change, irregardless of the further findings made in this sordid situation. His personal life is a whole other matter which, evidently, all of us who have borne witness to the unfolding of this tragedy over the last couple of days, never knew enough about to possibly form conclusive judgments about the “Rabid Wolverine”’s “true” character.

For all the crap he’s slung at us on-screen in the last couple of years, Vince McMahon was right about one thing he said in a brief statement aired over network television moments prior to the beginning of this week’s “ECW on Sci Fi”. There, the WWE Chairman alluded to the fact that right now, we ought to go on with our lives, and allow those in his stable to do what they do best- entertain the heck out of us. This does bring into the spotlight, though, the need to accurately define what “entertainment” is. Where do we draw the lines on things being there for “entertainment value”, and things existing as a matter of them being rooted in debauchery? It’s difficult to say, consider all the intrinsic factors involved, plus those of an external nature, stemming from the right of every person on the planet to his/her own personal opinions. I believe that it is the right of every media consumer, and furthermore, that of every media stakeholder, to listen to what is in demand, but at the same time, be able to filter what is given out in response to those supposed “demands”. Is what is in “demand” what merely what the people “want”, and not what they “need”? Can’t there be equilibrium, in the sense that the people get something which is a synthesis of both concepts of giving, and receiving?

Many have questioned the sports entertainment business for a long time, and so they should. The fact that anyone bothers to question the quality of sports entertainment, for me, is indicative of a 3-prong reality:

-People are pro-active. People, despite all of the mean stunts they can pull, want peace of mind at the end of the day.

-Those in power tend to get blinded by wealth, and, invariably, blind to the real requirements of him/herself, and those of his/her fellowmen.

-Those who are “forced” or “coerced” into carrying out deeds which lead to corruption can be both forgiven, and condemned. The median in terms of responding to frontliners in this case would be to simply doubt. Doubt is a powerful thing. The moment you doubt, you neither burn, nor absolve. You neither make yourself open to purging, nor chastizement. You simply nudge the foundation of what is accepted as real, and hope, and pray, that it will gravitate over to a moral side  not only by popular demand, but also in accordance to the whims of the common good.

What do YOU think? Whatever you happen to believe, I will respect your view. That’s what our lives should be about anyway- respect due, and respect accorded to.

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