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Submitted by Degenerate on Tuesday, July 3, 2007 at 3:06 PM EST
Hello everybody, and welcome to yet another edition of Struggle For Power. I'm the usual host for this gig, Degenerate, with a column that's surprisingly not about some wrestler who snapped. I already got it out of my system last time, so hopefully I will not mention Chris Benoit again any time soon. Yeah, that's old news to me already, and I'm sure you readers are sick and tired of reading about it. The world moves along, and we must move along too. I received a large amount of feedback for last week's column, which was expected, seeing how fresh the news was in everyone's mind. However, the overwhelming positive responses I received were not expected at all. When I posted the column, I truly thought I would get the verbal smackdown from readers. But those comments were kept to a minimum, so that was sort of a relief that so many people agreed with my point of view, as I thought I was the only one at the moment to think that way. In any case, to everyone who took the time to send your thoughts, both positive and negative, I thank you. Seeing that life goes on, so does this column. I'll return to the regular format from now on, and hopefully it'll be a very long time before I have to break the format again. * Well, it seems that with last week's tragedy, most people have forgotten to talk about the Vengeance Pay-Per-View that aired two Sundays ago. I was able to catch the show, and I truly liked it. Maybe it was because all championship titles were on the line (although some were barely qualified to be classified as a "match") made this show seem above-average. In any case, there were nine matches all together. I don't remember the last time a three-hour Pay-Per-View had so many damn matches. This year's Wrestlemania, a four-hour long event, had the same number of matches. So while the match time had to be short in some instances, the rest of the action was solid. To me, it should be a good idea to have one of the WWE Pay-Per-Views a "Night Of Champions" deal on a yearly basis. I'm sure they'll have more buys than the average show. * I think the WWE Draft that happened a couple of weeks ago is paying off big time for Raw, with three of the show's four draft picks immediately making an impact on the Main Event scene. Unfortunately, I think it's only a matter of time for the fourth draft pick (Snitsky) to make an "impact" as well. Anyway, I always love the "Beat The Clock" style matches. They bring a lot of excitement during the entire show, as you're wondering who the person's opponent is, what their time will be, and even if they'll make it. Hell, Kennedy's loss to Super Crazy was surprising, to say the least, and very enjoyable too. I hope they keep using this format from time to time, especially when the stakes are high. Now we'll see if Lashley has the goods to step up and, along with John Cena, have a kick-ass match on a normally sub-par Pay-Per-View. * I have to admit that this is the first time I've enjoyed ECW on Sci-Fi this year. Admittedly, I tuned in simply to see what comments Vince McMahon had after Raw's Tribute Show. But I stuck around, and I liked what I saw. Johnny Nitro as ECW Champion seemed to breathe a bit a fresh air into the brand. CM Punk seems to be progressing nicely, even though I still classify him as over-rated (save the hate mail, please). I even found John Cena's appearance in the show refreshing. This show seems to have potential. I don't know if the one-hour limit, or the lack of secondary titles isn't helping the show much, but from what I saw last week, ECW has some good players on the team and can do some nice things. Let's see if they get the chance to develop before they get shut down. I'm sure that'll be around the time the Extreme Exposé girls are fired. Hey, that's virtually the only segment that I'm guaranteed to like every single week. * I don't know if it's because I'm way too tired on Friday nights after a long work-week, or the fact that I normally record the show to watch on early Saturday morning after returning home after a night out with my buddies, but Smackdown seems to be dragging down a whole lot lately. It's not getting my attention at all. It's weird, because I'm liking a lot of individual performances. I love Edge as World Heavyweight Champion. I'm liking Matt Hardy's ring work a little bit more every week. MVP's progress is nice to see. I like Deuce and Domino as a tag team. The mid-card seems solid, as most of the "dead weight" (a.k.a. The Boogeyman and The Miz) have been shipped out. But I find myself fast-forwarding a lot, basically uninterested in the complete show. Maybe Smackdown is best viewed 100% sober or something. I'll try that out this week. * I didn't think TNA had the balls to air a one-match show that lasted the entire broadcast, but they did this past week. And to my amazement, I enjoyed it. While the match seemed like a total clusterfuck at times (Samoa Joe, A.J. Styles, Tomko, Sting, Abyss, Chris Harris, James Storm - They all interfered at one time or another during the No-DQ match), it was done well enough to go for an entire hour. Kurt Angle, Rhino and Christian Cage did their best to extend this match for an hour, and it came off good on television. I hated the ending, as it sucks that some weak interference ends a 45+ minute match. But now it brings the attention to the two men who will undoubtedly be at each other's throats for months on end - Angle and Joe. I'm pretty sure this feud will extend to the end of this year and beyond. I just don't want to read people bitching that this feud is old and stale, after wishing that feuds took more time to develop. * While I said I wouldn't mention last week's tragedy anymore, there's something that's really, really bugging me this past week, and it's these old, washed-up wrestlers coming out of the woodwork to give their story on how bad having a wrestling career is on someone's life. This week I've read comments from Lex Luger, Bret Hart and even Chyna. I think we already have an idea on the dangers of being a wrestling superstar, and the toll it takes on their bodies. We know that professional wrestling is far from a clean sport. But the thing that really gets me pissed is the fact that these people have made a small fortune off wrestling. They have their fame and fortune (if they actually have any left) thanks to wrestling, yet they still take the chance to bash it whenever a tragedy arises. If professional wrestling is so damn evil, why don't they fucking do something about it, and help those who are in the business now? It's as hypocritical as anyone can get. Note: This column is written from a first-person point of view. I've made it. I'm one of the very few people who have reached the top of this profession. Every year, there are many, many people all over the world trying to get where I'm at, and they all fail. Not me. I busted my ass, worked as hard as I possibly could, never lost focus of the dream. And I'm here. I did it. I can look back and be proud of every single thing I did. Once you're here, you think that you'll get respect from everyone. Your peers, your fans, even others who don't care about what I do, they normally show respect for other's in my position. However, that isn't the case at all. Even though you reach a point that many others fail to get close to, you don't get that nice welcome you think you're going to get. It's like whatever you do, you still aren't worthy. I don't ask for preferential treatment. That's not why I worked hard to reach the top. However, I wish I could be treated the same as everyone else. That doesn't happen at all. I see others around me who are my peers, my equals in this game, yet they're treated way better than I can ever imagine. Maybe it's because I don't speak outside of my realm too much or something. But it's like what I'm doing isn't worth much, even though I know I can do this job the same, even better, than anyone else. Just like every other profession, our careers and dreams are born because we idolize someone, and we want to emulate them, be just like them. So we try as much as we can. Our dreams grow as we realize we're closer to being like them. Then, one great day, either by luck, fate, or just sheer determination, you get the opportunity to show what you're made of, in the exact same place those idols, even in their own company. I had those same dreams. I had my own idols. I'm even in the same place that they are. I should be happy, right? Well, of course I am. I'm where I wanted to be all along. But it's rather difficult when those same people you're eager to work along with don't even seem to acknowledge your own existence. It's not that I want to work with them all the time, but I think that since we're in the same place, we should have some sort of bond, something to make us know that we're one of the lucky few to make it to the top and that we can rely on each other, no matter the circumstance. While teams can be made and can be successful, this is, and always has been, an individual sport. You can do great things with a teammate, and you can be remembered for that. But our legacy lies with what we do on our own. I've worked with others before, and I've had a great time doing so. I will even do it again if I can. But my individual work is what brought me to the big dance. I wasn't brought here because of my work with someone else. I was brought here because I can stand on my own. So if I say that this is an individual sport, why do I look for some sort of approval from others? Well, it's not really approval. I think my approval came when I landed here. That's enough for me. But everyone in the world needs some form of acceptance in what they do. It makes us feel good. It makes us know that we have the support of others. It makes you know you're doing well. Above all, it makes us want to go on. How many of you people have had a situation where you felt completely unappreciated? I'm sure most of us have had this experience before, at least once. It doesn't feel too good, does it? In those cases, all I feel is the need to quit. Maybe it's my inner rebel that wants to give all these people a big F-U. But I know that won't do anything. In any case, yet another person will come along, take my spot, and the same thing could happen. If they're lucky, they can have the appreciation I don't seem to have being here. I know I'm not completely under-appreciated in this business. I still have my fans, and I constantly make new ones through my work. That's what truly keeps me going, and that's why I'll continue to move forward with this. Still, it would be nice to be appreciated by those before me, and those who are still here with me. Being put on the same level as your peers, maybe even a bit above their level, is the best type of honor anyone could have. In a world of individualism and selfishness, it's not a bad thing to have to support of your peers, the ones who go through the same thing that you do every single day. It takes more strength - more balls, if you will - to accept the fact that while we can do this on our own, it's good to know that there are others who have your back, who let you know how well you're doing your job. A simple sentence can really go a long way. It's just a matter of letting it out. This isn't a call for attention. I don't need your sympathy. I just want some respect - The one I've earned by getting here. Before anyone starts guessing, this isn't about any particular wrestler. I'm sure there have been many of the top wrestlers, past and present, who have felt like this at one time or another. But this isn't only about professional wrestling, though. If you look at it from a different perspective, this can probably not even have to do with wrestling at all. This could be anyone in life. I'm sure many have experienced similar feelings somewhere. It's just something that can apply anywhere, to absolutely any profession, from wrestling to column writing. There's a hint for you if I ever saw one. This week, I'm really proud to present my picks for some additional reading from the Columns Forum. These past two months have seen a sharp increase in both quality and quantity of the columns posted there. While I'm selected only three, there are many more that deserve your attention. This time around, though, I'm only picking Benoit-free columns. There are some that offer some great additions to what you've already read, so by all means, if you want to read more opinions, head on down to the forums. The Non-Benoit Benoit column By dayunggun3r Okay, I lied, but only partially. While this column by my fellow Boriqua speaks about the tragedy, it's actually different. While last week's tragedy is all over the news, people seem to have forgotten that this sort of tragedy has happened before. Does "Von Erich" ring a bell? When in Rome XIII - Lashley Talks Back By romans_3:23 Did you know that Bobby Lashley roams the hallowed forums of LordsOfPain.net? Not only that, did you know he responded to a particular column that spoke about him? Well, that happened to my homie romans, and he posted the entire conversation online. Note: Bobby Lashley didn't actually write romans. But you should still read the column. A View From the Rafters #77: Dirty Little Secrets By Stinger Admit it: We all have our secrets that we don't want anyone to know about, either for fear of being prosecuted, or simply to avoid being called an idiot. Not for our rafter-dwelling writer, Stinger. He airs out his little secrets for all to see in this column. That'll do for the fifty-fifth version of this column. I thank all of you readers for tuning in every week, and I hope you are entertained by my writing every time you click on a 'Struggle For Power' link. As always, if you want to talk about this or anything else, feel free to send some messages to my direction at dennmart@gmail.com. Also, if you're a member of LOPForums.com, you can also send feedback my way at the Struggle For Power Feedback thread. And if you're not a member of the forums yet, may I ask why? The forums don't talk only about wrestling, but other things as well. I'm sure you can find something good there to keep you busy for a while. Thanks for reading, Degenerate ***DIRECT LINK*** MUST SEE! Very Rare Photos of KAREN ANGLE Over the Years!
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