Cancel Culture and The Disgruntled's Women's Real World Championship Part 2

*Title history comprised on 6/19/20. Intro started on 6/22/20.

Wrestling made the last weekend pretty awkward for me. It sucked because I had to process the entire #SpeakingOut not because I felt betrayed by any wrestler. I felt it was just started unfairly. Since I may be empathizing with a potential predator, does that make me an awful person and a hypocrite. The timing of this and me writing content may lead to you deciding that. Here is to coming out the other side and being better for it.

I have written about #MeToo and wrestling on numerous occasions. My first opinion pieces were about COVID-19 denier Ian Rotten and IWA-Midsouth downplaying Michael Elgin's covering for one of his students assaulting a woman and the IWA-MS supporters condoning such actions. It was in March of 2018, so five months after we started hoping Harvey Weinstein would be locked up. These posts discussed how Rotten would still book Elgin because no one deserves to be cancelled, and how I thought it was fair and that time and Elgin's use of the time will determine a return. Get this man a scarlet "A" at the very least.

When I was a Patreon to "The Wrestling Compadres Slamcast", their hotline was used by me to express my displeasure with the Impact Wrestling coverage and positive opinion when they had hired Rich Swann, who had been arrested for domestic battery, and Elgin who, at the most, was a year removed from his infamy. That portion of my call was cut for either allowing me to get out a Targaryen amount of titles (The Student of the Game, Podcat's Favorite Caller, the Concise Contrarian...the Double-Dipping Dandy) or for lighter portions of the call. There was not much support for my stance then and Facebook let me know that. The reaction was much like that of my so called friends did after my July 2015 blog, "Racism Can Play in Peoria. What About Your Local Wrestling". Sometimes it sucks to ahead of the game on social change (in the Heart of Illinois).

Some of those who were upset about me attacking the Confederate flag's perceived meaning may tell you that I was ahead of the game in terms of Rich Swann's indescretions. Perhaps I should be silent since I had been arrested over a domestic dispute. If things were fair, I should have been cancelled before I went on to become the Peoria's lone trained professional wrestler.

Pinterest

My innocence was not in doubt to my colleagues and family, and the other party's source on income wrongfully discredited her. Bite marks on my back and a broken nose did not help her case against me. From a karma standpoint, if I was guilty of anything, the next closest friend I had forced me into bankruptcy by holding the memory of my best friend over me for heroin. It lead to the circumstances that fueld my depression which stopped my three-day a week pursuit of indie-wrestling glory, so who is to say that it did not cancel me?

Social media was not around to cancel me, but I was out $2,500 in legal fees to not have the charges pursued and to have the arrest expunged, I spent two nights in the Peoria County Jail, and I lost my booking for the weekend. It may be argued that I got punished more than anyone facing accusations in the #SpeakingOut movement. We just got to be better and encourage addressing the issues sooner.

Sadly we are not at that point, and we maybe decades from there. So the confusion comes to how we speak out. The movement is great, but again my issue is how it started. At least through typing this, I am getting a further understanding of my feelings. Hopefully, I can wrap this up in the next post. But now to the pandering and a reason some will just scroll past my attempt to be enlightened.

The 15th Disgruntled's Real Women's World Champion:

AJWPW's Manami Toyota (12/4/1995 to (12/8/1996)

Check out the rest of this blog and the indie/correct view on wrestling at The "Disgruntled's Real Championship Wrestling"

The Future: Stress, Cosplay and Food Trucks

Evangelion X Queen

It has been an exhausting week. I cannot say that I have had a non-taxing week day since the sixth of August, but even that one had its drama (doctor appointment, swallowing pride, etc). Since that Wednesday, everyday has had hours dedicated to the man's wealth. The 13th was not a scheduled day for earnings, but that was the start of a trifecta of interviews over the next three days. With the need to get my weekends back to settle down and eventually go to an Ebertfest, you know there was stress.

And then there was Taste of Champaign. It was not that bad except for the humidity and my girlfriend to afraid to be proactive in her canopy set up (you can pick up the directions instead of seeing how far I can wing it). She also let my Furiosa Funko Pop go for five dollars less than I wanted, but it still left me up three bucks on what I paid for it and it was only right for being the only one to sell anything at HER craft tent on the first day. Still, the event was going to be stressful on her and since I was involved and did not want to let her down despite having to punch the clock both days, a little stress was to be expected for me.

Adding in fried and boiled meats as your only sustenance options, my body is teasing me since it has not left me bed/toilet ridden yet. That is probably waiting for the next day off.

But, the bills are paid, so no more running daily to Bloomington for a couple of weeks and Tuesday should actually be a day off this week. It will soon all be about Wizard World and letting my older sister and her boyfriend down to not partake in the "Earthbound" cosplay. There is only one girl in the game, and I do not think I can talk my girlfriend into shaving her head to portray Poo.

And do not tell me to man up and take the razor to my head. I am 39 years-old. My hair may be thick, but I do not want to know what will happen to it if I removed it. My hair follicles is not going to be a lesser appreciated Stephen King title with a young Hilary Swank.

Sadly, my girlfriend does not seem to be paying attention to any video game that I think she may like, so I cannot go and counter program the high end "Other Sister". With how busy we have been (and how anti-Amazon fulfillment that I am [sorry it took the "Last Week Tonight" to tell me how bad Bezos was instead of taking Matt Stone and Trey Parker's word on it]), my steampunk Darth Vader will not work out and Squirrel Girl was a pipe dream. The latter is sad because we could have cosplayed her excessively furry cat as a Squirrel. If those nerds do not have their inhalers present at all times, their asthma-related death are on them.

If the tickets were not already bought, I should have just said screw it and planned for Madison, Wisconsin's addition of the comic-con. It is closer to Halloween, so I can just count on Hot Topic and the pop up stores to meet all of my cosplay needs. A break after homecoming might also be something that I need. Does anyone know the booth rental fee so we can sell under-priced accessories and reasonably priced Pops?

Between jumping around from what seems to be a conclusion and guests requests (Do big glass microwavable bowls exist? You want two queen beds, but cannot have a tub?), it just dawned on me that this week may have been lost. I may have watched a "The Daily Show". My Jeffrey Epstein theory is that he bribed the right people to hang himself, so I probably tuned out the rest of the news.

This makes me think that I am just getting old. Falling asleep before all the late night information gets to me, it has to be aging right? Or it is dealing with coworkers who want me to book their hotel at our discounted rates instead of going to the websites themselves and following instructions.

It is just stress. Here is hoping that it will all pay off with a new job and fresh stresses to boot. Or an ADHD diagnosis. Does anyone need a new job annually?

Hard Candy and One Act Films

We are not in Japan, England, or any other decent place in Region 2. If we pay $7 to $9 buck on a film (damn, $5 if we are at the den of temptation that is a Screw the USA Mart), we expect at least 90 minutes of entertainment.

"Hard Candy" starring Ellen Page of "Juno" fame's Amazon.com's synopsis "After a flirtatious encounter in an online chat room...the apparent pedophilic seduction morphs into something else entirely." And you wonder why it didn't go beyond FearNet TV.

If they wanted to make money on this title, the ad campaign should have been, "In a world where men avoid Chris Hansen, the pregnant chick from that movie with the none-McLoven skinny "Superbad" kid, is out for their balls."

Since it takes 30 minutes to get to what might be the money shot, I'd imagine the ADD public would walk out. They'd be so easy to distract, one could easily make them forget to ask for their money back.

Hollywood would have made this movie totally pointless if they were out to make money. Now that I think of it, how did "Misery" make any money. Kathy Bates wasn't big from a fame standpoint, and Stephen King's name doesn't sell movies.

FYI, it was John Carpenter, Tom Hanks and Morgan Freeman, whose names have successfully sold Stephen King movies...as for "Cujo", as long as it is not cast opposite of Ally Sheedy (Molly Ringwald fan over here), a mutt can sell anything.

Almost makes me want to throw puppies into toilet paper to really test the durability and softness of the product, but my puppy brutality blog will come later.

Back to the point, once Page has drugged Patrick Wilson, we then see him wake up in a chair, and we know what we want to see happen, we've already blown our wad (it isn't a sexist line, it's an MMA line...oh for the days of cussing and headbutts).

What happened when my exgirlfriend and I got to this point in the movie? I said, "it would be so much cooler if it was Michael Cera in the chair, and that would have been Diablo's true vision of her Oscar winning picture." Then I started to write this blog and she started to prep for bed.

Too bad this movie is not going to make us breakfast after this experience. Fortunately, no arms were gnawed off if the making of this blog.

Honestly, I can't say the film is bad. The dialogue up to the buster (I am referring to the John Hurt scene in "Alien" instead of the proverbial nut) is good, even clever, but the only thing different from this and "Serendipity" is that we might have a pedophile or the "how old is 14 really argument." Page's taunting of Wilson is cool, but we are kind of put in a weird position.

If he's a pedophile, "well your already pregnant what trouble can you get into," but if he isn't, are we going to cheer her on...I mean how much can we endure watching the innocent in pain.

Perhaps this was the director's point, but we'll need to comeback to it. No wonder FearNet put their commercial here. They at least gave us a piss to think about it.

In Japan, land of 45 minute long Anime Motion Pictures (be careful when you are buying bootlegs for $20 buck at conventions), this is all the crowd would have needed to justify 2000 yen. I refer to "Evangelion: Rebirth" and the original "Blood: The Last Vampire." People will still pay 15 bucks for "Un Chien Andalou" and that's only 17 minutes long...and French.

I remember asking a movie theater attendant during a midnight flashback film series, "What are you going to do with "Blood"? It's only 45 minutes long."
"It's three buck."
"Yeah, but last week was "Goodfellas"s for three bucks, how will you stop the violence?"

I didn't dare go that night. I doubt a crowd of college posers and anime fans would listen to the argument that there are one act plays.

From what I know, the movie theater experience is still a lot more special in Region 2, so perhaps they have more respect for art. In the meantime, I think only those who can appreciate great writing are willing to tolerate a one act play.

Funny, "The Simpsons" still gets good ratings when we only get 10 good minutes. I wonder if Fox will split the premier of the movie into a three night event.

Why go on and on about how we don't appreciate great art no matter how short it is? Because as a "Star Wars" fan, I can justify Episode 2.

We all wanted something bad ass to happen, and when Yoda whipped it out, the place exploded. Then it was straight to the ending. Kinda like the first "Hostel."

David Slade, if you want to make money and quit doing the Zach Braff thing from "Garden State" take some pointers from Lucas and Roth. I love Ellen's voice, why not make put "Hard Candy" an anime.

The Elite Disgruntled's Real World Heavyweight Championship Title History.

How have I been since I finished my intense post (two/three days have passed in that time)? It is almost like I need to put out spoilers. Am I NXT, ROH, NJPW on Axs? Or am I Impact?

Acknowledging my trauma from sexual assault in regards to the wrestling business was therapeutic. I will have probably given the post at least one more proofread, more time to work through it, relive it, regret it. At least the expectations are known...except for  a significant loss of @maineventzombie Twitter followers (80 to 75, guess I am as insincere as those saying my anti-Southern Pride blog claim). As long as Kavanaugh has not made any decisions between now and then, my outlook should not be any more dire.

With that thought, placing our cats in suspended animation when we are not at home to extend their lives should be a technology to explore and to patent. We can use my girlfriend's cat, a cooler and some dry ice to start. Then there will be no more need to inquire my readers about helping me out in finding a way to promote my B-movie pro-wrestling zomcom, Main Event of the Dead, I would be happy to send you a treatment if you e-mail me at russthebus07@gmail.com.

Placing a plug there reminds me that Redbox may need my film. "Black Water" with Jean Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren amused me, but was 15 minutes too long to warrant any more coverage a submarine B-movie that was filmed on one sound stage deserves. Sound stage may be too generous. It may have been whatever floor in an office building the production company claims to be their's.

With "Main Event of the Dead," there are no illusions that there will not be a variety of sets. Trying to convince us that the same control room desk is on opposite sides of the sub will not be an issue. But, with the next rewrite, maybe we could set it in a submarine instead of Don's in Donahue or The Eagles Club in Berwyn.

"Black Water" shows me that finding the perfect length for a project is important, so since this is the end of my "Disgruntled's Real World Champion" blog, I worked on a summary of the past four entries' lists to fill up any empty space. Hopefully, my last ditch effort for discussion, will not be like that film.

See the conclusion to this blog series at Rip 'Em System Tumblr.

#MeToo and the Disgruntled's Real World Champ Part 4

Damn, it has been a tough week. Joe Madden may have over thought the Cubs last two games. "Venom" is a so bad it is good movie which leads me to fear the fate of the Sony franchises. I seem to be getting ahead of my blogs by one week, hence I may be working too much.

And then you have the all but certain demise of the country with the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation. How do you tell a happily married man who takes you to sporting event and respects his Nike-boycotting wife that there is no way I want to stand for a flag that represents a dead country. But I respect the man, so I should not embarrass him despite his wife has said that we cannot fault powerful men for abusing their power, unless they were communist revolutionaries.

I never got away with anything growing up. Being too honest has plagued me. Striving for decency deters me from a negative path. The point is, if I screwed up, I paid, and have always paid. If we have learned anything from the Me Too Movement, is that everybody should answer for their indiscretions. It is not vengeance, it is a means to encourage protecting those whose safety is the target of those in power.

Thus, I am pondering if I should make this rant relevant to the current theme of the blog by exploring the incidents of sexual assault and harassment that I have experienced from my time in professional wrestling. You could call it hazing bullshit, but the fact of the matter is if I broke these guys faces, I risked never being booked again by that promotion. What really hurts is that the promotion never used me again. To their credit, I was booked and wisely ended up being a healthy scratch on my last trip to Southern Wisconsin for a last minute appearance by Silas Young, so at least the promotion remembered me.

It was 14 years ago. I was victimized. You cannot hold it against me if I was bumped from the card for someone less prestigious that The Last Real Man in Professional Wrestling (do not hold the gimmick against him). The culprits and facilitators are remembered, especially those who boasted about it. The stories were something I laughed off with the guys in the business like it was just a permanent marker stunt on my face, but when normal people ask for crazy and obscene stories from the business, you realize that the ones that come to immediate mind demonstrate behavior that is not acceptable. You realize that you were abused and you feel you can only blame yourself since you still want to be a part of the business. You cannot blame the sport.

But, these guys (for the most part) are friends and a couple of them have kids. There is a slim chance their life could be ruined since I am already wrestling's persona non grata south of I-80. Why be afraid of going national? Should I wait till I hear about their next job opportunity? I have not killed their present, but why do I feel like I have paid for their constant happiness I have perceived?

I suppose I should just be happy not having post traumatic stress in regards to this issue, or am I just now showing that I suffer from these stunts? Time does not heel all wounds. If this would have been realized when I was in therapy in regards to abusive relationships and and failing to prevent a gas station suicide, perhaps the Supreme Court fulfilling the wills of sex offenders for the next 20 years would not leave me considering snuffing myself (I really needed a better therapist, so probably not).

Hopefully, Ronan Farrow gets wind of this blog and helps me decide if I will name names. Provided that we get over the mess of me being a Woody Allen apologist of course. Time wears away, it does not heal. So I guess the moral is not to wound in the first place.

With that said, I would like to apologize to "Lauren" at Big Al's in Peoria (2015) if I was too handsy to begin with. It was me testing boundaries, and regardless if I stopped when told, I did wrong to begin with.

I gotta at least answer for my indiscretions, before I get this blog back on track. If only I could hold off on the posting till WWE's Evolution for the sake of cultural relevance. But, releasing this a week later may be too much time from when I wrote this.

Anyhow this blog has all the stuff marks want in bold, so the intro and transition do not matter to anyone besides me I suppose. More reason to try and be brave about abuse and the regret that people may have givien a shit about me if my struggles were more relatable than just being in my head.

See the conclusion to this blog series at Rip 'Em System Tumblr.