While on their tour of Europe yesterday, Vince McMahon announced a new drug/health policy to take effect "soon".

How soon?  We don't know.  But according to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer, both the testing and the punishments will be done by an independent arbitor.  All performance-enhancing drugs along with recreational drugs will be banned, along with routine cardio health exams and tests for high drug levels that could indicate addictions.

Considering the problems the WWE has faced over the last month; their transition to the USA Network not going quite as successful as they wanted, the strength of both TNA and UFC providing reasonable competition on Monday night, the injury of Batista, and the failure of Taboo Tuesday for the second straight year, the last thing WWE needed was the death of Eddie Guerrero.  To make things worse, wrestler Nick "Eugene" Dinsmore passed out in a hotel lobby after taking some somas and was taken to the hospital.  The WWE, which is a public trading company now, has their quarterly conference with shareholders coming up in the next few days, so that makes things worse.  Linda McMahon will have a time trying to explain the goings on as well as the financial outlook, as WWE is expected to report a loss for last quarter.

All of these things make the new drug policy a very tender subject, one that will be very difficult to get off of the ground without pissing at least one party off.  The WWE had a drug policy in effect before, in 1991, after Vince was acquitted in the federal steroid trial.  But once the company went into a complete downturn, shortcuts were used, wrestlers figured out how to get around the testing, and the WWE ended up scrapping the plan in 1996.

But the WWE of 1996 is a lot different than the one of 2005.  First, WWE was still privately owned by the McMahon family in 1996.  Now, the WWE is publicly traded, and they are accountable to shareholders.  If times get tough, it's going to be a lot harder to scrap this plan - nearly impossible even - and difficult for McMahon to personally maneuver around in order to keep his depth chart intact.  For example, Batista has a back injury right now, which by all accounts is a torn muscle (OUCH).  By all accounts, not only will Batista be out until his injury is fully healed, but he could be out until the drugs have passed his body.  That could change a 4 month rehab into 7, and three months is a long time in professional wrestling. 

Think this won't hurt the roster?  Here's what Meltzer said about it in a fair and informative essay about the current situation, and he cited what happened in 1992:

Using 1991 as an example, McMahon made a similar announcement to talent in July, after a damaging steroid trial. In November, months after everyone was told to get off steroids, 50% of the wrestlers in the company (and that percentage included both male and female talent) tested positive on the first test. The company policy became that those wrestlers had to show decreasing levels of steroids in future tests or be suspended. That policy was criticized at the time by some leading steroid doctors who stated to us that levels of steroids when it comes to being in tests fluctuate up and down, and levels themselves could increase even upon cessation of usage, but still, there were not a lot of policy violations, although numerous big stars, both in terms of bulk and stature in the industry, quit that year.

Now it was a good thing, and really a smart one, to allow these guys to have time to wean themselves off of the drugs.  While I doubt that wrestling is on a bigger downturn than it was headed in 1991 (Hogan and Warrior eventually left within a year, and several other stars did as well), the fact is that Vince and Linda aren't the only bosses anymore, and they have to answer to stockholders.  Does anyone believe that, in the wake of Eddie Guerrero's death and the media following it, that stockholders will support anything less than no tolerance?  Are they willing to wait another quarter - or even longer in some cases - before Vince says the drug policy is in full effect?

I don't think so.  And I think that upcoming conference won't be a good one for Linda.  Seriously.

If Vince tries to delay the drug policy, it's going to piss off the shareholders, and possibly the media if they stay on the wrestler death beat.  If he doesn't, and he ends up punishing guys who have not been given adequate time to get rid of the drugs out of their system, he's going to suffer from an even-thinner roster as well as locker room morale. 

There are going to be wrestlers, just like in 91, that will lose their jobs over this policy, and I can think of a couple off the top of my head that are prime targets.  But as Meltzer mentions, this is only part of the problem:

The only true cure is this. Promoters can't push people based on physique, and judge talent for jobs based on physique. The public can't be impressed by talent with better physiques in thinking that helps make them bigger stars. The talent itself has to no longer care how their physique looks. All three are impossible in the business as we know it. There is no true cure, only an attempt to do the best possible on all accounts. The fact there is no cure does not mean steps shouldn't be taken to help, and this appears to be a giant step, as compared to two weeks ago.

And we pretty much know that's not going to happen; at least not anytime soon.  While there are a number of fans, particularly on the internet, that go to bat for some of the smaller wrestlers in the company, the bottom line is that size sells, and has been selling ever since Billy Graham was WWWF Champion.  We all like Jushin Liger, but does anyone really believe Sid should job to him?  We like Rey Mysterio, but who would really put the Smackdown title on him rather than Batista?

If you are sane and have any kind of business sense, very few would.

It was one thing to see Tazz beating Bam Bam Bigelow in ECW, but it was a lot different to see him looking like a dwarf in front of Triple H.  And then look at the guys that were specifically got over in wrestling because of their physiques:  Lex Luger, Scott Steiner, Ultimate Warrior, Davey Boy Smith (who McMahon fired for using growth hormone, but was rehired in 95 and became a main eventer), and currently, Chris Masters.  I like the guys that can fly and execute great matches, but the fact is that they are only looked at as midcarders or guys that you can pencil in to give you a great main event match.  They aren't guys that you can headline, at least not with a company as big as WWE.  That's not simply Vince's view; that's the view of the public.
I'll have more on this later this week.