Welcome, Dreamers, to the Seventy-Third Edition of Enter The Dream Realm. I am Morpheus, Master of the Dreaming, and I will be your guide through this land of Nightmares and Dreamscapes. It's been a busy few weeks in the life of Dr. M, but all in all I would have to say I can't complain too much. My little girl is starting to smile at her Daddy now, which is pretty much the awesomest thing that has ever transpired in the history of the solar system. I was going to say galaxy or universe, but that would be overstepping, I fear. I want to take a quick second here to send a quick and hearty thanks to those of you who dropped a line to the Dream Master after the last Dream Realm column. It was truly nice to be welcomed back with open arms. And to that one guy who sent the hate mail, I have one thing to say: Fuck off, SkitZ. I kid, of course. SkitZ and I are tighter than… Nah, too easy.
I also want to give a big thanks to all the people who read and responded to the latest edition of FACT or FICTION. It seems that most of you were glad to see it rear its ugly head once more, which is good since I've got about half the people lined up already for the December edition. FOF even gave the good folks over at The Teachers' Lounge some good discussion material, so two birds right there. In addition to the next FOF, there's something else I've got in the fire for the coming weeks that I'm really psyched about, and I hope you guys will be too. I'm not saying anything more, but I'll be marking out like a little bitch when it drops. Anyhow, that's more than enough banter. Hopefully you will find this Seventy-Third sojourn through the Dream Realm both enlightening and entertaining. So, without any further ado, let the Dreams begin!
Totally Negligent Attitude
There was a news item that broke on the site here a few weeks back regarding TNA Wrestling and the drug policies they have in place. At the time, I remember just shaking my head and chalking it up to just more bad decisions by the heads of said company, but I saw something very recently that brought it all back to the front of my mind. I saw a video on YouTube where a whacked out Jeff Hardy shoots all over CM Punk. Now this might come across as even more Hardy hate spewing forth from my fingertips, but in all honesty I assure you it is anything but, as you will soon see. For those of you who haven't watched the video, or for those of you who have and just need a refresher, here it is:
This video is disturbing to me for a few reasons. First of all, Jeff, Matt, and probably the rest of their little Hardy Crew are chilling in a diner of some sort, late at night, whacked out on something. Now, don't get me wrong, there was a time in Dr. M's past where he also used to like to get fucked up and hang out with his friends at the local diner at like 3 in the morning. The main difference? I was 16 at the time. These dudes are in their 30's, and on top of that, Jeff just had a kid of his own. It just might be time to reevaluate your lives, guys. Not in a "Finally Free from WWE, lol rox0rz!" kind of way, but rather a "Am I really this much of a loser?" kind of way.
And for the record, no, I am not straight edge or anything like that, nor do I endorse such a lifestyle. Any of you Dreamers out there who know me even the slightest bit knows that Daddy needs his whiskey from time to time. But damn, man. When you're on trial for drug related offenses, try not to release videos on the fucking INTERNET that clearly show you in an altered state. That's just bad form.
Well, bad form for Jeff. Good for the People of the State of North Carolina.
What else bothers me about this video, you ask? Well, let's ignore the fact that Jeff is currently the World Champion for TNA and has made videographic evidence of his drinking/drugging available to the public for just a moment. No, wait. Let's not ignore that. Let's focus on that instead. I think that sentence sums it up nicely. He's a World Champion; the measuring stick, as it were, for the rest of the guys in the company. Instead of the awe and mystique that is normally found surrounding people in such a position, we get a guy who is open and honest about his affinity for shooting smack into his eyeballs and throwing light switch raves in Shane Helms' basement. Classy guy.
Before moving on to the real meat of the column, I also want to point out two other things that I have a problem with in this video. First, somehow Matt Hardy inexplicably manages to make the end of the video all about Lita. Way to show us how over her you are, champ. Secondly, and this one is perhaps the most grievous crime in this entire clip, is Jeff Hardy thinking that he made ANYONE a Superstar, let alone someone like CM Punk. Punk's skills were and are more than enough to get him over all by himself, Nero. Punk getting himself over at your expense, and you getting him over are two completely different things. Go back to humping the air and shooting things with your laser hands.
Ok, so that little part was just some Hardy hate on my part. My bad. But am I wrong? I thought not.
This column is not about Jeff Hardy specifically, or anyone else in particular, but rather it is about TNA as a whole. There are many things that I could sit here and rant about regarding TNA, whether it be their creative direction, their propensity for dropping storylines with no real reason or payoff, their use of old WWF/E stars instead of their young, homegrown talent, or perhaps even most especially, the fact that they are allowing Hulk Hogan to once again be a force for suck in my life. However, this column is not about any of those things. This column is about something far more serious:
TNA's Totally Negligent Attitude.
It all stems back to the news item I hinted at briefly at the beginning here. To give some more detail, it was reported on this site a bit back that TNA had held a round of drug testing for its performers at a television taping. Now, I've heard different numbers, and I'm not sure which ones are accurate, but some reports suggested that upwards of 50% of the talent FAILED these tests. Moreover, no punishments were delivered by the company in light of these results, and they continued forward with business as usual.
Now, I am pretty sure that the 50% figure is at least a tad exaggerated (at least I hope it is), but that is beside the point. The fact of the matter is this: by not punishing or taking some sort of action against the people who failed these tests, no matter who they are and how many there were, they have essentially blown up their own spot and said "Our Drug Policy is a fucking joke," for all the world to see. If this were single isolated incident or something that came out of the blue, it would be one thing, but unfortunately this only serves to reinforce the pattern of negligence that TNA has exhibited for years when it comes to the issue of drugs and their own Talent Wellness Policy.
This history is a lot longer than some people might think. When the WWE was tightening its reigns on its talent regarding things like performance enhancing drugs, TNA seemed to take the opposite approach. WWE was shedding itself of guys like Test (R.I.P) and Scott Steiner, two guys whose physiques obviously contained more juice than an orange grove, and TNA snatched them right up and gave them a home. We can look back and see so many examples of steroids and other performance enhancers being so detrimental to wrestlers who have taken them, which is one of the reasons the WWE put the Wellness Policy in place to help curb the problem. Instead, it seemed that TNA was perfectly fine with their talent partaking in these things, as well as a plethora of other chemical pleasures, despite their documented harmful effects.
TNA has been Tacitly Nurturing Addiction.
It's not just performance enhancers that are the problem, but prescription medications and illegal drugs of all types have also found themselves a comfortable home in TNA. Forgetting about all the undercard guys who like to toke on an ounce of herb a week like Mr. Spanky, let's move higher up and focus solely on the top of the card for a bit, shall we?
Up first are two guys who used to work for the WWE: Ken Anderson and Kurt Angle. Let me preface this by saying that I truly like both of these guys. I think they are both incredibly talented, and I enjoy their body of work as a whole. However, there is no denying that both of these men have had issues with drugs in the past. I truly hope that is where they stay; the past. Kurt Angle has been very vocal about the problems he faced with addiction in the past, and the more hell he puts his body through, the easier it is to turn back to that. In my opinion, the Wellness Policy may be one of the main reasons he is not pursuing a return to the WWE. I'm not saying he's doing anything wrong now, but if he goes back to the much heavier schedule, the issue may rise again.
Anderson is an interesting case. A couple years back, he made a point of publicly commenting on the internet that he does not, never did, and never will take performance enhancers, and he made derogatory comments about people who did. Of course, Karma being the bitch she is, shortly thereafter he was snagged as one of the players in a prescription drug scandal and had to eat a healthy helping of crow for his comments. Now, again, I am not saying that Anderson is presently doing or taking anything he shouldn't be. I think he and Angle are more than likely on the straight and narrow, and more power to them for that. However, they have both been publicly linked to drug use in the past, and occupy fairly prominent roles in the company. If they were the only two headliners with that kind of background, no worries.
But they're not.
Let's look at the Junior Past TNA World Heavyweight Champion: Rob Van Dam; another WWE Alum. I am sure that I won't be surprising anyone here with the statement that RVD is a publicly outspoken marijuana enthusiast. He has been in High Times magazine, and his love of the original herbal supplement was incorporated into his character back in the original ECW days. He joined TNA and was immediately pushed to the top of the card, winning the gold from AJ Styles. In the days since he left WWE, his advocacy of smoking up had continued to be very public, and continues to be so even now. This shows the true dichotomy between TNA and WWE. When RVD was busted for possession in the WWE, he lost the ECW Title, the WWE Title, was suspended, and eventually ended his tenure there. In TNA, he's given the top title and told to run with it.
The biggest glaring example of this problem, as I am sure we are all aware, is the former WWE World Champion and current TNA Divas Champ, Jeffrey Nero Hardy. The man, in addition to being one of the more obvious druggies I've ever come across, is currently facing drug charges in an open case. That's right, folks; we are unsure whether or not Jeff Hardy will be convicted of these charges yet. So, his punishment for breaking a bunch of laws is a repeated delay of his court date, and a run at the top of the second largest national wrestling company as their poster boy. Awesome.
I understand these two men made names for themselves in the WWE and therefore have a built-in fan base, but there is a certain level of ridiculousness to this. Sure, it's ridiculous that TNA immediately scoops up and pushes anyone who was anyone in the WWE, but that's not even the biggest issue here. TNA has taken the belt off of one of the most vocal potheads in wrestling history only to put it on someone who is currently facing narcotics charges. Between the extremely poor booking decisions, the presence of Hulk Hogan, and all the drugs going around behind the scenes, they might as well change their name.
TNA has become Terry's Narcotics Asylum.
Keeping these guys at the top of the card sends the wrong message to the locker room, in my opinion. "Not getting ahead? Try taking some of these, man. You'll be riding the fast train to the top in no time."
TNA has made it very clear in the past that the company and those that run it are obsessed with competing with WWE. Apparently they feel that the best way to do that is to bring in all of the WWE's has-beens and cast-offs, and push the ones linked to drugs on the fast track to the top. This is, quite simply, bad business. Simply from a public image standpoint, ignoring the results of drug tests and having someone who is standing trial for drugs as their champion is a P.R. nightmare waiting to happen. WWE has been doing its best (arguable, yes, but I stand by it) to address these drug issues and shift to a more family-friendly product. TNA has stepped in the opposite direction by condoning, and seemingly even promoting at times, these problems. Every time I watch TNA, I see people in the crowd dressed like Hardy, and with the record this guy's building, I cringe at the fact that the company has him in a position as a potential role model for America's youth.
Furthermore, I think it's a huge mistake for TNA to be so flippant about their drug regulations, especially now. Over the last several years, we have seen an inordinate amount of wrestler deaths associated in one way or another with drug abuse, and many of them far younger than they should be at their time of death. Treating their Wellness Policy like such a joke is just wrong in the light of such things, and it's insulting to the wrestlers who work for them. They are basically saying they don't care about their employees' health and well being, but they want people to THINK they do, and it's the thought that counts. It proves that TNA only instituted their drug policy so they could say that they had one, thereby "competing" with the WWE in another way.
TNA wants to compete with the WWE so badly that they are willing to risk the health and lives of the people working for them. I, for one, honestly hope that they do compete with the WWE. I hope it happens very soon. Once they elevate themselves to being close to the same level as the WWE, they will have no choice but to clamp down on their drug policies, because you know who will come knocking?
Congress.
And that's a battle that in its current state, TNA simply can't win. After the dust settled from that encounter, Panda Energy would be forced to change TNA's name once more…
Totally Nonfunctioning Asset.
TNA is playing a dangerous game by Tacitly Nurturing Addiction and sending out the wrong message with their Totally Negligent Attitude.
The Dream Master encourages you to check out three particularly outstanding columns in the LOP Columns Forum:
This brings to a close this edition of Enter The Dream Realm. Any feedback you have, as always, would certainly be greatly appreciated and can be sent to me via email at morpheus@thedreamrealm.net, or you can take the lazy way out and drop the Facebook Comment below. I hope that those of you that haven’t yet will take the time to check out some of the great writers we have in the LOP Columns Forum. Oh, and watch the fuck out of this video. It's just plain awesome.
Until next time, Stay Metal, sleep well, and I’ll see you in your Dreams!
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