Eddie Guerrero
1967-2005
Rest In Peace

I’ll admit it. I’ve been a fan of professional wrestling for most of my life. I grew up in a household where you loved all things Dallas Cowboys and wrestling Southern family dynasty, The Von Ericks. I also grew up watching Chavo and Eddie Guerrero. Thus, when Eddie died last Monday, November 15, from heart failure, it felt strange, yet oh so familiar.

It will be strange not to see him every Friday night on Smackdown…no more “Latino Heat,” no more “Lying, Cheating, & Stealing,” no more “Lowriders.” Yes, pro wrestling is entertainment; however, the beating these guys put on their bodies (inside and out) each day and night, is real…all for the sake of entertainment. Years of addiction, stressful working conditions, hardcore training in order to remain one of the top tier stars in the WWE, and just plain old “hard living,” finally cause Eddie’s heart to fail, as such conditions have done to many young professional wrestlers in the past few years.

No matter how you may feel about the sport, there are a great many kids out there aspiring to be like these modern day “Gladiators,” who beat the crap out of each other (scripted ot not) simply for our enjoyment. As Russel Crowe’s character in Gladiator, Maxximus, would ask, “Are you not entertained?” So many of these athletes go on stage night after night, peforming with all sort of debilitating injuries, but use drugs such as pain killers continuously, in order to keep performing in fear of losing their jobs, or star status, due to taking time out to heal. Such behavior is not just limited to the world of professional wrestling, yet transcends to other pro sports such as football, baseball, etc.).

Is this what we want for our future young athletes? Like it or not, especialy if you are in the good old U.S. of A., there is probably a kid or teen close to you, who desires to be a sports star. Why? Because that’s who the majority of we Americans love and place in the limelight. What child wouldn’t want to grow up and be a star? However, at what price is it worth for a young athlete to be considered a star, and remain as such, according to our high standards as ticket-buying fans? Instead of trying to create the next Jerry Rice, Michael Jordan, Mike Tyson, or Mark McGwire, we need to emphasize to our young athletes to just practice and learn as much about there skills and technique as possible, stop looking for the easy way out by using performance enhancing drugs, get ample rest, eat right, let injuries heal, and most of all, just have fun.

Athletes, such as Eddie Guerrero, should not have to die at such an early age in order to satisfy our thirst for insatiable sports entertainment. Yes, most of these athletes are grown men and are able to make there own choices. However, there are teens and kids who look up to and emulate these athletes, and think that these addictions are the only way they “will make it.” So as another young athlete is somewhere injecting Roids in their behinds, or popping pain killers in order to play injured as to not lose their starting position, for the sake of keeping you, the fan, screaming in the stands; ask yourself, “Are you not entertained?”