Wrestling will be wiped off the map! (perhaps)

So, it seems this new Darren Aronofsky film, The Wrestler, has raised the ire of the benevolent Iranian regime.

The film, which stars Mickey Rourke as a washed-up, old 'rassler, apparently contains a scene where Rourke's character, Randy 'the Ram' Robinson, squares off against "The Ayatollah", another wrestler whose gimmick is being an evil Iranian patriot (anybody remember the Iron Sheik from the WWF, pictured above? What was his catchphrase? Oh yeah: "Iran #1! Russia #1!! America... haacchhh, PTOEEY!" Classic.)

This has greatly cheesed off the ruling folks back in Tehran, who claim this is yet another example of Hollywood's (read: the Western infidels) "anti-Iranian" world view. Read the full article here at the Telegraph.

Um, uptight Persian folks? Relax. This is a movie. A movie about FAKE WRESTLING. Have you ever watched "professional" wrestling? It can be damned entertaining, true. But c'mon, an insult to Iranians? Chill. And also, please stop threatening to wipe Israel off the map. Talk about insulting.

Still, I think I know what this is all about. If my inner 12 year old memory serves, I believe Hulk Hogan beat up on the Iron Sheik (and Nikolai Volkoff) back in 1983 and really hurt their feelings. It's possible a young and impressionable Mahmoud Ahmadinejad never got over this stinging upset.

Listen, Mahmoud, Hulkamania ran wild on a lot of folks back in the day. Heck, I think he even beat up on old Sargeant Slaughter. And they don't get more American than him.
Let it go. Have some mint tea and a piece of baklava and enjoy the spectacle. What you should be more disturbed about is the mug on Mickey Rourke. That guy's gone through some serious scarring. Yowch.