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| No | 54% | 66 votes | Total: 122 votes | |
| Yes | 46% | 56 votes |
No
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Add to FavoritesTo attribute the murder/suicide of the Benoit family to steroid use is just another way that people have to 'blame' something in order to make them feel safe. I do not condone steroid use. In fact, for the year that my boyfriend took steroids, I was angry and not very supportive. I have, in fact, dealt with what is commonly called "roid rage". It isn't a fun situation to go through and am ecstatic that part of my life is over with. Steroid use, though, can not be blamed for the Benoit tragedy.
"Roid rage" is an exaggerated form of anger. From my experience, it comes in spurts. Steroids have been known to make someone "depressed"... but depression doesn't murder wives and children. If, in fact, Benoit murdered his family, Benoit and Benoit alone is the reason such a thing has happened. For a man to plan out an act that spanned a weekend can not be attributed to "roid rage". That is premeditated murder.
We can not continue making excuses for people. Alcohol doesn't make a person beat his wife. Losing one's job doesn't make a person steal. Stress levels can not be blamed for a mother shaking her baby. Steroids do not make a person murder his wife and child. We have to start being held accountable for our actions. Once we start allowing people to hide behind such covers as "roid rage" and "depression" we become enablers. What are we to do the next time such a heinous crime happens? Slap that person with a "temporary insanity" tag and give them counseling? People who commit crimes are who should be held responsible.
Learn more about this author, Melinda Blount.
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Yes
From preliminary police reports, and with the arrest of Benoit's physician, many authorities have concluded that "roid rage" was the cause of the tragedy. However, until all the medical and drug investigations are concluded, no one really knows if steroids were responsible for the insane, murderous acts by the wrestler. There is even the possibility, put forth by the desperate pro wrestling community, that another person or persons may have killed the Benoit family.
That said, we know from the history of steroid use by athletes that there have been many severe mental and physical problems caused by that group of drugs. From the records of pro wrestlers, weightlifters and others, statistics reveal the steroid user's lifespan is from ten to 20 years less than the American average. In addition to the fake rages the audience sees on TV, many pro wrestlers and other athletes suffer steroid-fed bouts of anger and depression. It doesn't just affect American athletes.
When the East German women's swim team won all the gold medals at the 1960 Olympics, there were many jokes about how big, husky and masculine they looked. The women said later that the coaches told them they were taking vitamins, when the medications were actually powerful steroids. Their lives since that year have been affected by inability to conceive healthy children, severe arthritis, liver damage and sudden heart attacks before the age of 40. Years later, one of the swimmers confessed she had seven miscarriages. Two others lived out their lives as males. More telling, most of them confessed that they couldn't have normal relationships because they constantly suffered depression and uncontrollable fits of anger.
Whether it was Benoit's "roid" rage that caused his family tragedy, or if further investigation proves other people were involved, only time will tell. However, the records clearly show that those drugs, whether legal or not, too often have a history of causing mental and physical problems with tragic consequences.
Learn more about this author, Ted Sherman.
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