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Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Old news
The CBC's Fifth Estate has made cross-country news today with word that tonight's broadcast will show that Canadian pro wrestler Chris Benoit, who murdered his family and then killed himself, had suffered severe brain damage as a result of repeated concussions.
Sound familiar? It should. CNN aired a documentary in November saying exactly the same thing.
Posted by Terry O'Neill on February 6, 2008 in Television | Permalink
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Comments
Not totally surprising,this is the same program that loudly bragged to all who would listen that they spent 10 years of taxpayer funds investigating the journalistic ground breaking Mulroney-Schreiber goings on.
Posted by: bocanut | 2008-02-06 10:16:40 AM
This might not be old news. It needs a lot more research.
Concussions are nothing new in sport, but this rash of suicides and other violent acts is a new twist. I think it's a combination of factors.
I've had a number of minor concussions, mostly from frontal or side impact. Most of the guys I know, who've had similar injuries have actually mellowed. These pro wrestlers are constantly hitting each other on the back of the head with trashcans, chairs, etc. This is probably affecting a different part of the brain. Combine this type of injury with rampant drug abuse, and you have a whole new situation.
What were we talking about again? Oh yes, the concussion thing. If this guy's brain was as bad as they're claiming, then his memory would not have been working as the article claims. He would have been showing some very obvious signs of dementia.
Some guys who competed much longer than I are showing signs like slurred speech. Other than that they are mostly normal. This guy couldn't have simply jumped right past these early warning signs to the point of damage that some are claiming.
Posted by: dp | 2008-02-06 10:28:33 AM
Keeping this story in the news serves an important function. Governing bodies of amateur sport tend to shape their safety programs around the results of these investigations.
I can think of no sport that permits repeated blows to the back of the head. Not even the UFC, which is the most barbaric sport I've seen, allows strikes to the back of the head. Hockey is very strict, as is boxing. Football is a bit slack, but compensates by providing high tech helmets. Pro wrestling encourages all types of rear head trauma.
The international amateur boxing asociation is about to eliminate head gear from amateur competition. This type of ruling in this and other sports could be affected by any findings of this investigation. Boxers often get a double whammy from being knocked down by a punch, then hitting their heads on the canvas. This goes double for hockey players because ice is not so forgiving.
I say run this story until the facts are known. It could affect thousands of young athletes.
Posted by: dp | 2008-02-06 11:05:45 AM
I think someone else killed him and his family cause who else changed his wikapedia before it had happened. It just dont make any sense that he done those allegations. I believe it was someone else who killed them all someone very close to them.
Posted by: Jeff McNinch | 2008-03-24 6:18:28 AM
I think someone else killed him and his family cause who else changed his wikapedia before it had happened. It just dont make any sense that he done those allegations. I believe it was someone else who killed them all someone very close to them.
Posted by: Jeff McNinch | 2008-03-24 6:18:32 AM
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