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WM tat ( x t (leNICLE - Wednesday. Math ll. zoos - a f f ~ ~~ ~ - a ~~â€"â€"s~'ffl ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ f ~ L. . . . . l i lel “th l() THE CHRONICLE J . o H_ ,.__ “_ Â¥ME A r Anyway, Health Canada has firm» i first ;;' ';"~‘,.’:““’ ‘ i 3x wrestllng Wlth Where S the pm?f ly stated that lawn pesticides are s ‘ "if” ‘ z;;Ȥ'_,; j for new COsmetlc safe to the public. I ,: it; y in“ f?“ , T, l I 1 ‘ F d ’ ° ' Other internatiottallv known ,, - ‘ 7 3 "’ a f PeSUCIde Ban research grotips agree that pesti- \ “if m ' e -W0r ant appalled when i tlunkofthe “(kllsrfirlitiz’e'r ._,. h' .. ‘l ‘ V ‘ ‘ "4 l l _ Istupid people that we have elect- ‘ 5“ “PM“, d.“ no red " x . t. [king into l‘airView Park Mall last week, I was greeted ‘ ed to rule us. "Ngfizlh [0 dispztuhls . _ . ’ . $2; fig-$3,“ ‘ . . 7 ‘Afiy a giant advertisement tor New York l-‘rtes. depicting \\'e have politicians iii tlte 'l 1‘s ”1.53mi! f“ cravirortmtn- wtwmlfian- ' two professional wrestlers grappling over art in er~ Ontario liberal gtiternntent that (d groups d.” yang to I, L govern mammmm stuffed container of frertcli fries. lt read "Real fries itt a fake outright lie to us or are lust too stu~ I??? “If it)“ I know what they are turn, 16th ind Who!“ world." pid to shut tip when the) don‘t “I PM“ “It; . , mm ‘ . , ’ As a life-long fan of wrestling, I've never understood the all- know what they are talkingabout. “WW?" 0.1" g"‘_°”?¥“““ has ‘ “drama and telephong‘ toovcommon public perception of the scripted spectacle. and These same politicians will allow m" been dorng “5 due diligence ls rumba: In wow it“. the need to label it "fake." Fake what? Fake sport? i themselves to be coert ed into mak- researthtrgg the reasons for thtglaw onion m Mum not u To call pro mestling a fake sport is a two-fold misnomer. It's l ing policy that atlects the people of lh‘“ Wl“ d ect thousands ofyo 5 m f ‘ in 3; not a sport. But it's quite real, if you look at it for what it really is: Ontario. lTnddichioerle health Of otir home . m will at)! be M a highly athletic. ifa little crass, form of escapist entertainment. lant talktn ‘alilitll tlte cosmetic ‘ .‘ . . “m" ‘ the b.“ 7 ‘ :_" If ro wrestlin is fake, then ractically all forms ofentertain- pesticide hank like I édldgamel'flfh? weare We; MW? mentpdeserve 015531118 label. like Cirque du Soleil or a magic The provthcial government has niled by “Upld pOImems or liars ‘ f - i V " ’ ‘4’ ‘M‘gfi‘v‘fziéi show by David Copperfield, wrestling requires a willing suspen- been lied to by the so called "emi- that Y‘f"”'d have us believe pestt- ‘ ‘ a. A' 4 L’ ' r (2... sion of disbelief. And if that makes it "fake." then every action ’ ronmental groups” and has been “d“ are unsafe. M a? t l ' "A?“ 1m ; movie and television show is fake too; every actor and every led to believe that lawn pesticides f A g a" la a»; . a ' stunt person a liar. are harmful to the general public, ":l “a, “$5115 “ i The fact that pro wrestling is choreographed is not news, and it - ' .f' ‘>‘"a..’zz‘. ", t , . a . By the way. environmental ’ » at: 5 . ‘ y w _ .. . 4 “fl: it hasnt been for a long time. Seeing group"isjustanicewayofsaying u Al‘?’ ”pf: ' -7 I the New York Fries poster. l was l \| \l,\l l \l l environmental fanatics that believe .. " 4. a“ I if $7543; 3. ’ it; reminded of my childhood discovering \- , anythingnot natural is harmful to $55.6.“ “if ': j? wrestling on television for the first \“ I S the earth. ivafiszj“xpfi‘ If": ; time. and my mother telling me about Um. maybe they belong in the Fred Snider ‘7 Wgfigflvkg” ft. x“ ' the legendary Whipper Billy Watson stupid people category also. Kitchener \ if'“""‘”<*;"‘"' ‘ ~.. ”5“ y " ' ‘ and seeing him wrestle at Maple leaf Gardens in the 1940s. . “It was real back then." is what my 3 ‘ . 2 mom would say. if by “real" she meant ' ' 1C groups S 0 we n . a legitimate competition between two ‘ athletes. it wasn't and hasn't been since . ‘ I'm sure it's a difficult job wading through the appliâ€" that. arts supponer. you are guilty ofexactly what the turn of the century. wrestling histoâ€" l . cations for grants from the City ofwaterloo. you might be planning to accuse me of. rians will tell you. ‘ ‘ . One ofthose exercises where a lot of people end The argument for public funding of many cultural Reading about Whipper Billy Wat- - tip disappointed Including this particular taxpayer. organizations is pretty common.We're told they need son recently. whose name is synony- MARSHALL lhe city goes through this process every year. it to be funded because they are integral to the fabric of mous with wrestling in Canada. 1 real- i WARD has a pool of money. and invites cultural, sports, and the community. But M10 makes that decision? ized it was 50 years ago this week on “a r' ' ' ' ' . r’ - " other organirattons to apply. Then a Perhaps there's a significant number March 12. 1959, one of the most famous matches in history took I group of people get together and make ' of pimple Who are Very good at spin- place at Maple leaf Gardens. It was Whipper Billy Watson versus decisions on whogets how much. l’l |( l ( H ning plates on top ofwooden poles. Gorgeous George in a match where Watson would retire if be [his year the city had more than ‘ r , When they perform lots of people enjoy lost. and George would have his head shaved if he was defeated. $460,000 to dole out and not surprisingly “(lll Rl\l'. it. Should we fund that? ”re show drew l2.000 fans, and the next day, headlines in the there were more requests for money than 1 If not, please tell me how that partic- Globe & Mail read: (Xl's locks are Shorn as Whipper Triumphs. there was cash. lhts is a common prob- * ular performance is any less enjoyable Whether it's Whipper Billy Watson versus Gorgeous George. Ieni when one hands out money. Very a . the symphony. it may not beyour or the Undenaker versus Shawn Michaels at Wrestlentania 25 few people want to tum it down. . ‘ . favorite bit of culture but it's still cul- next month. wrestling is fantasy: it’s escapism, and it‘s ftin. Perhaps we need to have a bigger « > lure. Everyone knows how Hamlet will end. but they pack theatres debate about exactly what we as taxpay- W It's a different set Of rules fOr arts to see it anyway. ersare willing to fund 4 organizations. Attraction an audience And although pro wrestlers don't legitimately compete to lhcre's a wide spectrum ofgroups is? 4‘ doesn't seem to matter. win matches, the wrestling business itself is highly competitive. looking for money and there's no doubt . ;; And anyone who mentions that â€" and wrestlers perform exceptionally to achieve fame and for the) need it. When l was involved with ‘s ‘ right here, if you're looking â€" is told tune. the best wrestlers are among the top athletes in the world, minor sports. we often took advantage of ‘ “3“ they don‘t understand the important performing in hundreds of shows a year. With no off-season. it BRIAN economic contribution ofall the arts. injuries are frequent - albeit accidental - and sometimes cripâ€" But should that really be the case? BOURKE Yes, 1 do, But I also thlnk It 5 fair to pling. Municipalities already provide facilities ask the question, And if by "fake." wrestling's detractors â€" like the ones who and in many cases allow for community . While the symphony. and various came tip with the new advertisement for New York Fries -â€" grotips to rpm at a reduced rate. other groups got their money. another mean the outcome of a match is predetermined. and the soap Should we hand over cash for arts and cultural agenty was left out in the cold. The Working (bntre opera-like storylines are scripted. well. duh, I know it's just an groups? (lr shottld we perhaps look more to social had askEd for 58.0“) to help residents with mental advertisement for french fries â€" hardly something to be taken agencies trying to help those in need? health problems. seniors with medical issues and the seriously, (ase in point: the K~W Symphony (no stranger, l homeless. But it irked me. like the countless times people have said to might remind you, to infusions of public cash) Cambridge and Kitchener are helping, but Water me, "You know wrestling is fake, right?" received another $68,000 from the city loo opted out. I guess those people aren't "integral to To wrestling fans. “fake.“ is the other lfiwonl. lwill do a little bit ofdeflection here, before you the fabric ofthe community." Wrestling fans know it's a staged athletic exhibition. And send me a raging email of how lam a cultural clod guess what â€" we don't care. We wouldn't have it any other way. with no appreciation of the finer points ofclassical ‘“ music or the great changes that have come to the Brian Bourke. a member ofthe 1015.3 KOO], FM symphony morning crew. can he Whl’d hyemat'l at Marshall Ward it a visual artist and independent filmmaker THIS! me. you don't want to go there. Bydoing Miourkefi‘kmlfmfom. ' Email it welcome a! marshal] wardfi’hotmailcom, '