Governator Under Fire

The Arnold Classic Show took place over the first weekend in March and was another great success for this show. There were 15,000 athletes and 125,000 visitors for this event, which showcases so many sports that struggle for publicity and recognition. Although it was widely expected that Arnold S would not show up this year he was there for the weekend as he has always been in every previous year.  The governor has severe political problems in California with his popularity at a serious low and he has received much criticism from a collection of very sanctimonious, hypocritical old farts — ie, politicians — about his continuing support for this show and the bodybuilders who take part. Californian State Senator said the the governor “Should be ashamed of himself” for visiting the show. Quite why is not clear.  But Arnold showed that he had his priorities in the right order by suspending for the weekend all discussions on the state budget of $222 billion and sending everyone home so that he could come to the the great event in Columbus, Ohio.

The show is now — as the LA Times reported — “the largest event in the world devoted to worshipping the body.”   Certainly all the top bodybuilders in America were there and all the supplement and body product manufacturers had stands there.  I was particularly impressed with a “Stress Terminator” which “attaches” to the body and shakes it 117 times per minute with beneficial effects on weight loss, diabetes, migraine, and attention defecit disorder.  I am sure that if I was shaken 117 time per minute an attention defecit would be the last thing that I would suffer.

The Pro contest was won for the second year by Dexter Jackson, though I have to say that I would have given the decision to Branch Warren.

Tarek Elsetouhi

As I was searching the Internet I came upon some pictures of Tarek Elsetouhi [below].   Frankly, I had never heard of him but he has been a competing bodybuilder for 10 years.  He was born in Egypt. He is now a German citizen and has won the HW Class in the German Championships.  At present, he is working as a personal trainer in one of the leisure compexes in Dubai. He has a real quality physique and those abs are like the Rockie Mountains.

Big H performs and abdominal vacuum at the Charlotte Pro Show

Chocolate is good for You

Beware of dodgy research. A recent research report tells us that chocolate is good for us.  This research was paid for by Masterfoods — owners of Mars Bars!!!!!!!!!

If you want the hardcore facts about bodybuilding you have to read Muscular Development.   It is a heavy read with over 400 pages every month but it gives you the real facts about training, nutrition, drugs and competitions

Free Speech

A few weeks back, we received an irate e-mail from USA complaining of our making political points on our gym website In particular we were attacked for daring to criticize President George Bush and his War on Terror.  We had no right to do such a thing and if it had not been for the Americans in WWII we would have been defeated by the Germans.

Now I would never attempt to underestimate the part played by America in WWII — once they had got started — but I think the War on Terror is a completely different matter.  My criticisms were linked to the story of Pat Tilman and to President Bush’s war on steroids, which affects all bodybuilders and which I regard as a diversion.   Pat Tilman played American Football and was rather good at it. He had just been offered a professional contract worth $3,000,000 per year.  But he turned this down, signed up as a National Ranger at $18,000 per year and went off to fight for his country in Iraq and Afghanistan. This inspirational story of sacrifice was used by the government and the military for recruiting young men into the armed forces.  In the end Pat Tilman made the ultimate sacrifice when he was killed in Afghanistan.   He was toasted as a war hero and only a year later was it revealed that he had been killed by friendly fire.  This does not in any way diminish Pat Tilman’s sacrifice, it only underlines the waste and the vapidity of American policy.  The truth had been covered up because it was inconvenient.   Now there is to be a full enquiry.

Americans are intensely patriotic — there is nothing wrong in that — but Bush and his cronies — none of whom has ever fought in any war — have, on the basis of lies and propaganda, set out to take advantage of this patriotism to pursue an illegal war with no chance of success, which has already cost the lives of 2500 Americans and tens of thousands of others.

At the same time Bush instigates a witch hunt against bodybuilders for the appalling crime of using anabolic steroids to help them build extra muscle.  The campaign has started investigations by congress, much harrassment  of competing  bodybuilders, arrests, imprisonments and much waste of public money. Like the War on Terror it is a campaign based on lies,  innuendo and being economical with the truth.

Gym member James Wright is now concentrating his energies on American Football

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