The MeeThinks Friday FreeThinks 09.19.08

Posted by John Meehan on 09.19.2008

Jeff Hardy Airlines: You'll Love the Way We Fly!



Welcome back, all -- and thanks again for tuning in for your regularly scheduled week end dose of intrawebz 'rasslin optimism. Not exactly the busiest of weeks around the usually wild and wonderful world of wrestling over the past seven days, for sure... but we've still managed to come across a few stories worth covering in closer detail nonetheless. And since we're short on LONG stories, we'll give some extra close attention to those handful of SHORTer stories that are just now bubbling their way through the "still developing" stages of the old rumor cauldron.

Let's get to it, si?

Rock & Roll.



In this feature, we'll make a quick note of those mini-news story items that have either already been covered in greater detail by other writers, or that haven't quite yet materialized into full-blown mega stories of their own. In either case, these items seem to warrant a brief mention nonetheless so that we can keep better tabs on what all's developing (and -- in theory -- end up with a better perspective in the long run) along the way.

The Doghouse
Chuck Palumbo (SD!) - Rumored to be on WWE's "endangered species" list
Paul London (RAW) - Rumored to be on WWE's "endangered species" list
Ryan Braddock (SD!) - Was supposed to play JBL's "cousin," but was too "midcard looking"

Notes: Palumbo seems to have found himself on the wrong side of Vinny Mac's fickle finger of fate, as the WWE honcho isn't all that impressed with WWE's resident biker dude. Seems as if Palumbo was brought back in from Japan with high hopes and a good reputation to precede him, but he's underperformed to the tune of "same old Chuck Palumbo" and has sputtered since his redebut with the company last year. Of course, it may have saved WWE the trouble of a fire-then-hire-then-fire hot potato if they'd actually done the due dilligence of scoping out Chuck's work in Japan FIRSTHAND (rather than just trading off of the say-so of his old friends)... but longtime fans may well remember that Palumbo was rehired at the height of WWE's "sign EVERYONE we can just so they can't jump to TNA" frenzy of not so long ago. Good thing the 'E has decided to ease up on that one and spend more attention on grooming NEW stars, eh?

Paul London, meanwhile, continues to do absolutely nothing of note while his former tag team partner in THE Brian Kendrick keeps working his way into the sub-main-event picture over on Smackdown. Word 'round the webs is that for as dedicated a performer as London tries to be, the guy just can't seem to emote any real "star power" or unique charisma to separate him from the herd. And in an age where high-flying antics are increasingly under scrutiny (we'll recall London's two previous strikes for busting out banned moves in the past), it seems as if superstars are going to need a lot more than a few high-risk maneuvers in order to keep their jobs with WWE.

Ryan Braddock is an interesting scenario in his own right, as he was called up to the main roster *despite* the fact that WWE's creative team really didn't have all that much of a direction in which to send the poor guy. The initial plan was to bring him in as JBL's "cousin" (since he'd been working a similar gimmick in the WWE developmental territories), but this idea was quickly given the kibosh after Bradshaw gave the kid a quick look and decided that he looked "too midcard" (read: generic) in order to warrant such a high-profile debut. Hate to say it for Braddock fans (both of y'all), but this is one of those rare cases where JBL's old-boy, bully attitude isn't actually all that far off the mark. Layfield is barely passable in the ring at this stage in his career the way it is, and saddling him with "just another guy" with a generic bigger man build and a sloppy moveset certainly wasn't going to do either man any favors in the way of milking what little life out of the JBL gimmick there may yet be left.

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The Debuts
Frank Trigg (TNA) - MMA star made in-ring debut at the No Surrender PPV
Jeff Jarrett (TNA) - returned to an onscreen role at the No Surrender PPV
Dolph Ziggler (WWE) - Nick Nemeth of the Spirit Squad

Notes: The less said about Trigg's in-ring debut for TNA the better, as his "MMA" contest against AJ Styles is already making the rounds as the early odds-on-favorite to nab "Worst Match of the Year" (dis)honors. Still, the guy has a great look and an impressive resume of real-life athleticism to boot, and so perhaps the future is not yet so bleak for this newcomer to the six-sided ring (at the very worst, it certainly couldn't be any worse than his in-ring debut)!

Jeff Jarrett, meanwhile, officially made his onscreen return to TNA programming and has immediately found himself back in a high profile feud -- this time against Kurt Angle. Though having an established veteran (and a career heel) like Jarrett certainly stretches the notion of "New Blood versus Old Guard" storyline that TNA has been trying to sell us over the past several weeks, we need only remember that Vince Russo and Jeff Jarrett are really never all that far from one "shocking turn that nobody saw coming!" away from ditching the new guys and siding with Angle, Nash, Stinger and the like (thus completely undermining months and months of mysterious Jarrett-attributed-babyface-assists, but no matter)... and so who knows where all the man will wind up once the dust settles in TNA's latest gang war storyline? Stay tuned on this one.

Dolph Ziggler is a good ten years or so too late for anyone to get the obvious Boogie Nights reference in his ring name, but perhaps he's no worse off than the groaner of a surname that was awarded to his fellow Spirit Squad alumnus in the form of Smackdown's resident losing-streaker, Kenny "Don't Call Me Lenny!" Dykstra. As for what all he can do in the ring (or as to *why*, exactly, WWE decided to drop him into RAW -- where he's likely to get lost in the shuffle -- instead of sticking with the "new superstar initiative" and placing him into the ECW ranks)? You're guess is as good as mine there. But if nothing else, it helps to spread talent around so as to avoid the notion that *ALL* of the "new guys" are being jettisoned to the C-show at once (Swagger, Ortiz, that guy who used to be a card-dealer who's name I've already forgotten, etc.).

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The Departures
Salinas (TNA) - No-showed No Surrender PPV and left the company for a movie offer

Notes: As "Ariel" the tarot-card-reading-vampiress in ECW, Shelly Martinez was a bona fide talent who brought a lot to the product. Heck, you might even say that she was the single biggest factor in making the Kevin "follower of vampirism" Thorne gimmick work in the first place. Once she showed up in TNA, however, the newly Christened "Salinas" did little more than stand around the ring apron, flash a makeshift gang sign and boast a ridiculously overinflated set of (ahem) las boobas. More to the point, she repeatedly put non-TNA commitments (including autograph signings, adult videos, fetish photo shoots, etc.) ahead of her obligations to the wrestling company who paid her regular salary, and so it seems pretty absurd that TNA would be willing to throw *any* extra coin her way simply to keep her on their roster. Word has it that she wanted an extra $200 per appearance in order to stay onboard with TNA, and for the ten minutes of booty-shaking and unintelligable "we all scream over the top of one another" promos that she was actually able to provide? There's simply no reason to throw good money after bad, and so TNA had no choice but to let her walk once this latest distraction came along. Hate to say it, LAX fans, but pretty faces and sultry valets are a dime a dozen in this business -- and so the departure of Salinas is no loss for TNA.

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The Drama
Jeff Hardy (WWE) - detained by police at Nashville International Airport
Booker T (TNA) - missed Sunday PPV due to Hurricane Ike

Notes: The Jeff Hardy situation is discussed in detail below.

If you watched TNA's No Surrender pay-per-view this past weekend, you'll notice that one major star conspicuous by his absence was none other than main-event attraction Booker T, who was unable to make the Canada-based PPV on account of his being stranded in the hurricane-afflicted city of Houston, Texas. A lot of folks have been giving Booker some serious shit for missing the PPV (especially because fellow Houston-area TNA natives in Hernandez and Shiek Abdul Bashir were able to make the trip without incident), but there's a heck of a lot more to this story than any of us could possibly know right now -- and so MeeThinks it's certainly well within the realm of appropriate behavior to give Booker T the benefit of the doubt on this one. Sure, he no-showed a PPV that he could have easily attended with some prior planning, but average Joe-wrestling-fans like you and Mee have no way of knowing Booker's reasons for staying behind in Houston in the first place. Perhaps he was sticking close on account of his businesses in the area (I'm sure many of us recall the looting issues in the wake of Katrina). Perhaps he wanted to stay close to family in the Houston area (and if so, can you really blame him?). Heck -- he may have simply been attending to business as usual hoping to catch a flight out of town at the last possible minute, only to find that the storm grounded the airports ahead of schedule and forced him to stay put at the last minute. WHATEVER THE CASE, even if you disagree with the man's decision, there's every reason to believe that he had a solid reason for making the call that he did -- and fans and critics alike can take comfort in the fact that Booker T and Sharmell are both safe and unharmed by the storm.

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The Disabled List
Bob Holly (WWE) - checked into a rehab facility for painkiller addiction

Notes: This one may well be a "last chance" effort, both to save Holly's health *and* his WWE career, as the guy is rumored to have checked into a WWE-sponsored rehab program in order to help kick his longstanding battle with perscription pain meds. Some will recall that Holly has been on WWE's "chopping block" (and off of WWE television) ever since he was dumped onscreen by Cody Rhodes just a few months ago, and that Hardcore's name was also linked to Dr. Phil Astin in the steroid scandal of last year. That's about as close to two strikes as WWE was comfortable with, and so this trip to rehab may well be the guy's last shot at winning over his employers with a newfound outlook and a clean bill of health. For Holly's sake, I certainly hope he can get the help he needs -- and even if his days with World Wrestling Entertainment are indeed numbered, it is certainly a credit to WWE that they offered him these rehabilitational services in the first place. Even if we never see Holly wrestle in a WWE ring again, this program could very well be the best parting gift available.




RAW Rating Takes a Big Hit
WWE's Flagship Show Only Draws a 2.6

Bad news for the RAW audience this past week, as WWE's "A show" only managed to draw a Nielsen rating of 2.6 -- well below its average. Invariably, this latest dip in the ratings has caused WWE critics to come jumping out of the woodwork, decrying everything from Chris Jericho's title reign to Kane vs. Rey Mysterio in a main event showdown.

But before we go jumping off of a rooftop here --

Obviously, a great deal of WWE's regular audience found themselves otherwise detained by ESPN's Monday Night Football, which featured a high-scoring shootout of a showdown between longtime NFC east rivals in the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles (both of whom came into Monday's game boasting unbeaten records). In fact, the audience for the Dallas/Philly game was the single largest cable television viewership in history, as it drew some 18.608 million viewers.

Still, "dream matchup" games like this don't tend to happen all that often, and so perhaps it's not the worst thing in the world that WWE's numbers would take a one-off hit when facing one week's worth of such high profile competition. After all, there's an old saying that "one week's ratings don't mean anything -- it's the overall ratings TRENDS that count."

That said --

It's a well-known fact that WWE's Monday Night audience throughout the fall and winter months is often plagued by those fans who'd rather watch football over on ESPN, and so perhaps now is as good a time as any to look ahead and see what type of ratings showdowns may well lie in store for Monday nights through the new year. Being a die-hard football fanatic, I've taken the liberty to run some numbers and throw in a bit of "speculative guessing" as to the relative drawing power of each of the Monday Night Football contests scheduled opposite WWE programming for the remainder of the calendar year. This way, we can size up the "good" games (on paper, of course) and separate them from the "bad" games (again, strictly on paper) -- and make an informed guess or two as to just how well (or poorly) RAW's ratings can expect to fare over the next several months.

Added bonus -- for your convenience, I've color-coded each week's matchup according to their relative threat to WWE's viewership. Games in RED mean that RAW's rating should drop, while games in BLUE pose little threat (which means RAW's ratings should rise on those weeks). And finally, games in BLACK are still "toss-ups," for the time-being -- meaning that the audience can go either way on that night, depending on any number of compounding variables as outlined below.

Here goes nothing:

Sept. 22: Jets at San Diego - Favre back on Monday night will always draw an audience, but the Bolts have started winless, and the Jets haven't exactly been setting the world on fire in either of their first two outings. Expect RAW's rating to rebound significantly from last week's drubbing at the hands of Dallas and the Eagles -- but let's not go so far as to suggest that WWE will be pulling down record numbers next week, deal?

Sept. 29 Baltimore at Pittsburgh - The Ravens are terrible, but the Steelers fans are ridiculously loyal, and the relative proximity between these two teams should attract a sizable chunk of the east coast viewers. It's early in the season that everybody will still be watching simply because they're getting into the habit of doing so, and so RAW could lose a few decimal points regardless of how lopsided the game turns out.

Oct. 6 Minnesota at New Orleans - The first week of October should be a big week for WWE. Niether of these two teams are particularly strong, and WWE should be able to ride some solid momentum off of the No Mercy PPV and their big move to MyNetworkTV just days prior.

Oct. 13 Giants at Cleveland - Unless Cleveland shows some serious improvement and/or the G-Men are still unbeaten by week six, don't expect this game to draw anywhere near the Dallas/Philly numbers. The Browns will receive a lot of national exposure in prime time this year, but they're nowhere near as viable a nationwide draw as teams from the NFC or the eastern conferences. Still, an unbeaten and defending champion Giants team (which is a very real possibility) on a Monday Night stage could draw a crowd.

Oct. 20 Denver at New England - This is shaping up to be WWE's next big hurdle for a Monday night audience, simply because both teams are credible AFC franchises and have started the season with matching records of 2-0. Don't expect a battle of the Unbeatens by Week 7, however... but this one is going to hurt WWE's fanbase for sure.

Oct. 27 Indy at Tennessee - Another tough night of competition, as we're looking at two teams with a legitimate shot at the playoffs in the Colts and the Titans. It won't draw Dallas/Eagles/Pats kind of numbers, mind you... but it will draw nonetheless. WWE has Cyber Sunday the night before, but an off day from Peyton Manning is still a bigger draw than a B-level WWE PPV even on its best night.

Nov. 3 Pittsburgh at Washington - On the eve of the presidential election, chances are good all eyes in Washington will be directed elsewhere than football (though FedEx field will still play host to a sold-out crowd). Regardlesss, expect *both* the NFL and the WWE audience to dip a bit due to last-minute election coverage.

Nov. 10 San Franciso at Arizona - Barring a contested election (ala Gore/Bush 2000), things should have returned to normal by Week 10, and so audiences will begin to fall comfortably into their traditional television viewing patterns. A weak Monday Night Football game should translate to big numbers for RAW this week.

Nov. 17 Cleveland at Buffalo - By Week 11, playoff talk will be all the rage. Sadly, at least one of these teams (likely both) will probably be well beyond any hope of clinching their division at this point -- and so we're probably looking at an outside shot at a Wildcard contest, at best. Should be another strong week for WWE.

Nov. 24 Green Bay at New Orleans - Two solid, middle-of-the-pack NFC franchises means that this one should have playoff implications written all over it. Problem is? Green Bay will be Favre-less for the first prime time showdown in ages, and Americans (George Bush?) seem only to care about New Orleans when it's under water. Expect a nice RAW rating on this, the night after Survivor Series.

Dec. 1 Jacksonville at Houston - Though the Texans are improving with each new year, they are still a young team with a tough schedule, and so MeeThinks there's little chance that they'll still be in the hunt for a playoff berth by Week 13. Jacksonville should come in the favorite and leave with a win here -- and sports fans know it, which should make tuning into RAW a no-brainer.

Dec. 8 Tampa Bay at Carolina - As the NFL's regular season reaches its end, expect football fans to pay close attention to *any* and all games where a shot at the playoffs are on the line. The Bucs and the Panthers are both very good teams, and either one of them could easily be fighting for their postseason in Week 15. Expect RAW to take a hit.

Dec. 15 Cleveland at Philadelphia - With the Giants and the Cowboys looking strong in the NFC East, the Birds could well be fighting tooth-and-nail to maintain their momentum all season long. Armageddon is the night before, which should help RAW's viewership at least at the outset -- but if there's even so much as a shadow of a doubt as to whether or not the Eagles will miss the playoffs, then this game will draw some solid numbers.

Dec. 22 Green Bay at Chicago - Barring a midseason miracle, I'd fully expect at least one of these teams to be well removed from all talk of postseason play by Week 16 (I'm looking at YOU, Chi-town). Still, there's wildcard spots to be filled, and so this sucker could draw a decent crowd.

FINAL SCORE:

6 "blue" games (where RAW's rating will likely rise from the previous week's number)

4 "red" games (where RAW's rating will likely drop from the previous week's number)

4 "toss up" games (kinda like swing states, really)

All told?

WWE won't be setting any records this season, but they should manage to keep ratings well inside of the "comfortable" range in the long run despite the traditionally close competition that's soon to be offered their way by Monday Night Football. Critics and naysayers will continue to freak out at each sign of weakness and suggest all sorts of changes and championship switches at each new sign of failure, of course, but this should give the more well-reasoned among us a better idea of the "big picture" of the season that is to come. Sometimes you've just gotta' hold on tight and weather the storm, ya' know?

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Jeff Hardy in an Airport Scuffle
Smackdown! Star Detained, Escorted by Police at Nashville International

On the "still developing" horizon, word has it that WWE's resident prodigal son in Jeff Hardy may well have once again found himself on the wrong side of a disciplinary infraction. This time, he was pulled aside by airport security while flying out of Nashville International. Though details regarding the incident are still sketchy and forthcoming, rumor has it that he was removed from his flight for appearing to be intoxicated at the time of his boarding. As such, even the biggest of Jeff's apologists have simply got to face the fact that this latest flap-up certainly cannot bode well for the younger Hardy boy's chances at winning the WWE Title at No Mercy just a few short weeks from today.

Again, the details are still forthcoming -- and so there's no reason to go flying off the handle with wild conspiracy theories as to why, exactly, Jeff may have caught the attention of the local law enforcement with little more than your standard "too drunk to fly" excuse. Yes, he has a history of drug use and substance abuse (Hardy has quite famously failed two separate WWE Wellness tests since re-signing with the company less than two years ago), but no reports have yet been published that this latest brush with the authorities has anything to do with such matters... and so perhaps it's best to let full details emerge before we go condemning the poor guy for having "fallen off the wagon yet AGAIN" or any other such nonsense.

All that said --

The fact remains that Jeff Hardy is a victim of his own actions, and the guy certainly has no one else to blame for his first two Wellness strikes but himself. And while drunkeness in and of itself is certainly not grounds for an arrest (or indeed a dismissal from WWE), it's certainly a slippery slope for a man who's clearly demonstrated that he has trouble with addictions and "personal demons" in the past. Regardless, all accounts up to this point seem to indicate that the guy has been working EXTRA hard since his second suspension in order to re-establish himself in the eyes of his peers and employers alike, and so perhaps there's something to be said for giving a man the benefit of the doubt in spite of controversy -- writing it off as an "isolated incident," perhaps... even if his track record might lead us to believe that he's certainly capable of making a mistake when he can least afford it, largely on account of the fact that he's made some pretty bad decisions (and high profile ones at that!) in the past.

For now, let's file this one under "developing" and see where the chips fall as new details emerge. If Hardy's latest scandal turns out to be nothing more than an overblown misunderstanding or an errant, everyday run-in with "Local Johnny Law Makes News with Celebrity Arrest" (see: Ric Flair, Road Rage) then who knows? Vince & company might just take this as an opportunity to reward the guy for sticking it out in spite of "false persecution" (see: Bradshaw, Nazi salute)... which could translate to a WWE Title run in the very near future (because let's be honest here, folks -- there's a HUGE difference between flying drunk and *driving* drunk -- and I'm sure there are plenty of us out there who have done the former who'd never so much as DREAM about doing the latter). On the flip side, of course, Hardy's latest flare-up may well be all of the ammunition his employers need to lose faith in his dependability and send him walking in short order -- but in either case, MeeThinks that the company will ultimately make the decision that is best for all parties involved, even if it's the least appealing of all the options available to them. If Jeff really is battling his addictions in such a public manner, then there is absolutely no reason for WWE to aggrivate the situation by placing him squarely in their company spotlight.

Didn't work for Eddie Guerrero.

Didn't work for Kurt Angle.

And if Jeff Hardy is anywhere near a vulnerable state of succumbing to "personal demons," it's certainly not going to work for him.




Kevin Nash Re-Signs with TNA Wrestling
Big Sexy to Stick with Orlando Promotion

Good news for Nash fans this week, as Big Daddy Cool officially inked a new deal with TNA that will keep him on their roster and *away* from World Wrestling Entertainment at least for the immediately forseeable future. Apparently, Nash was considering a jump back to WWE, and some inside of the company had even begun speculating that he might make for a nice onscreen limited-run companion for his longtime friend Shawn Michaels (taking on Chris Jericho and his also-ran sidekick Lance Cade). Obviously, this didn't ever pan out, and so Nash decided to stick with TNA -- where he is currently engaged in a pretty noteworthy lynchpin role in the burgeoning feud between Sting and Samoa Joe.

Here's why this is good news for three big reasons:

1) Keeping Nash in TNA allows the Sting/Samoa Joe storyline to reach whatever conclusion that has naturally been set in motion based on the events of the past several months. Nash was booked as Joe's onscreen mentor and has long been hailed as Stinger's offscreen friend, and so his involvement in their rivalry (which seems destined for a one-on-one PPV showdown in short order) has made perfect sense throughout. Had Nash jumped to WWE, TNA would have lost the ability to play off of these two men's mutual connection through Big Daddy Cool, which could have severely limited their already-suspect storytelling abilities by stealing away one of their key characters.

2) Putting Kevin Nash back on the RAW roster would have done little (if anything) good in the way of the up-and-coming talent who've recently been carving out a respectable niche in reinventing the face of WWE's next generation of stars. It's no secret that Nash isn't a big fan of putting the younger guys over at his expense, and RAW is absolutely brimming with performers who will absolutely need some high-profile wins if they are ever to be taken seriously as breakout stars in their own right. From Ted DiBiase to Cody Rhodes to Manu to Kofi Kingston to CM Punk, *nobody* on RAW's "next gen horizon" can afford a burial at the hands of a "too cool to get booed" old guard star like Kevin Nash.

3) With the newly added twist of a World Title in the mix, the Shawn Michaels/ Chris Jericho feud needs absolutely *nothing* further in the way of supporting characters or bit players in order to bring this rivalry to a head. Each man has managed to score one major victory over the other, and the storyline has developed in a beautiful (and BELIEVABLE) fashion from the Ric Flair retirement at WrestleMania all the way through the ladder match that's scheduled to settle things once and for all at No Mercy. There was a time when throwing Kevin Nash into the mix would have worked, no doubt... but that time has past, and just about everybody *not* named Lance Cade seems to be faring all the better as a result.

Bottom line?

Nash has a good thing going for him in TNA, and TNA has a good thing going for them in Kevin Nash. He'd only upset the apple cart by hopping to WWE, and so MeeThinks it's good for all parties involved that this one worked out the way that it did.

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Kurt Angle Files for Divorce
Life Imitates Art as Kurt Splits from Karen

A bummer out of TNA this week, as real-life husband and wife Kurt and Karen Angle have filed for divorce, mirroring their onscreen disagreements and officially putting an end to their ten-year marriage. The couple has two children.

Through addictions, injuries, infidelity, and a wide array of the typical fare of pseudo-celebrity gossip and indiscretions, it's been no secret that Kurt and Karen's marriage has long been on the rocks. Readers of Angle's WWF-authorized autobiography will remember that Angle spoke openly about the possibility that the couple had considered splitting up shortly after getting married in the first place, and WWE fans may even recall that Kurt made public mention of the wrestling business having "cost him [his] marriage" shortly before departing the WWE ranks.

The good news, however, is that Kurt and Karen have been interacting backstage at iMPACT! tapings over the past several weeks, and are widely reported to have been getting along without incident -- so perhaps the particular details surrounding their decision to divorce are not nearly as unfortunate as so many others like it. For the sake of Kurt, Karen and their two children, here's hoping that the Angle family can continue this trend, and remain as cordial and closely knit as possible.





Sonny Siaki Announces Retirement
Ten Year Veteran Sacrifices Career to Save his Brother's Life

This week, former WCW/WWE/TNA superstar Sonny Siaki officially announced his retirement from professional wrestling, as he has decided to donate a kidney to his brother, Bernard -- who is only 35 years old -- who has been suffering from a particularly devastating illness in the form of Renal Kidney Failure. According to his doctors, Sonny's decision to donate his kidney (which may well save his brother's life) will force Siaki into a position of medical necessity where he has no choice but to retire. The following announcement was made via his MySpace page late this week:

I just want to say a few things before I close this chapter of my life. The last ten years, I've seen, heard, watched, and learned a lot about myself and the wrestling business. Being a professional wrestler has been one of my dreams since I was a kid. I've had some of the worse and the absolute best times of my life in wrestling... "If you think you know, you have no idea".

Being in the wrestling business is the hardest job in the world. You have to be mentally, emotionally, and physically strong to be accepted into it. If you've never been a part of the business, you have no clue what we (the boys) deal with. In my opinion, the only good part about being in professional wrestling is being in the ring. This business is about filling up arenas, ratings, and drawing money. Are there politics involved in wrestling? Of course there are; politics are a portion of any job. The creative team and agents in WWE and TNA have been in the business for years, and they've seen it all. Opportunities are not given - you got to take what they give you and find a way to turn it into money. You got to take chances and think outside the box in this entertainment industry. Bottom line, if you have the potential to be a profitable asset to WWE or TNA then you'll be put on TV. The question you have to ask yourself is: How can I make Vince money?, or How can I make Jeff money? For me; Did I ever make it in pro wrestling? My opinion: No... Was it my fault? Yes, because the first seven years of my career, I didn't get it. I wanted to do what was best for me, not for the match. In the locker room, I was known for being arrogant, cocky, conceited, etc. I took advantage of being a called a pro wrestler. I was VERY selfish... These last three years, the wrestling business became a learning experience. Having good psychology was an adrenaline rush. I started respecting the boys and pro wrestling. Telling a good story in the ring was exciting, wrestling became fun.

Well unfortunately, two years ago while still with WWE, I received some bad news from home. My brother Bernard who's only 35 yrs old, was diagnosed with Renal Kidney Failure, a situation where one of his kidneys has completely shut down and the other is functioning at 35%. For the past two years Bernard's rare situation has turned against him. The functioning capability of his one kidney has decreased from 35% to 10%. Bernard seeks dialysis three days a week for 15 hours and lives on a strict diet. Everyday he perseveres with pain, discomfort and more fatigue than one person can usually endure. Bernard works full time just trying to pay his medical bills and on-going medications. We are in the process of providing a kidney transplant at a very high cost for BERNARD SIAKI by raising awareness, fundraisers, and getting people like you involved. Bernard who just by his kindness alone, contributes to a better society. A tender-hearted man, a gregarious friend, a beloved man. He's the type of person who cares more about other people then himself. I've decided to be the Kidney Donor for my brother which means that the doctor says I can no longer wrestle.

From 1998 to 2008, I was under contract with WCW, TNA, and WWE, and want to thank each organizations for giving me the opportunity to live one my dreams. It was a privilege and an honor to work with some of the best talents in the world.

To all the boys with WWE, TNA, ROH , the talent in developmental, all Indy workers, and the divas - I know what you put your bodies through, and from the bottom of my heart, I wish you the best. If you believe in faith, please pray for me and Bernard as we get our surgeries that will potentially save my brother's life. To all wrestling fans, thank you for your support of pro wrestling. Without you, there would be no Sports Entertainment.

My family have paired with the 1st church of the Nazarene in Wilmington, NC to support Bernard's transplant activities. The first church of the Nazarene is considered a non-profit organization. This charitable organization union will help us organize our finances with an official treasurer and allow all donators to receive a tax benefit for their contribution to Bernard's fund. PLEASE HELP US SAVE MY BROTHER'S LIFE at www.savebernardsiaki.org. I greatly appreciate your cooperation and concern for my brother's life.

Thank you and All the best, Sonny Siaki--please visit www.savebernardsiaki.org & www.myspace.com/savebernardsiaki

On behalf of myself and the entire 411 staff, I'd like to extend my thoughts and prayers to Sonny, Bernard, and the entire Siaki family in this most difficult of times, and I'd kindly ask each and every reader out there to take a quiet moment in his or her own time and fashion to do the same. Though you may not be a fan of Sonny Siaki the professional wrestler (and truth be told, even in his own estimation, the guy never really quite "made it" in the squared circle), there is a lot to be said for a man who's willing to sacrifice everything if it means that he can save a loved one. As the old Biblical saying goes, "No greater love is there than to lay down one's life for a friend."

While Sonny Siaki may not have been called to lay down his life, the man has most certainly proven willing to lay down his life's work, his livelihood, and his lifelong passion. In such a heartwrenching predicament as this, it seems only right that we fans who've enjoyed his performances (even if only on a limited basis) over the past ten years take a moment to express our thoughts for him and his family. Please consider taking a moment to visit www.savebernardsiaki.org today.


And With That, I'm Outta' Here

That'll do it for Mee again this week. Thanks again for reading, and enjoy the hell out of the weekend as we officially say "so long" to summer and roll out all the glory of fall. After all -- if those Bud Lime commercials are to be trusted, there's nothing different about the two seasons, right? Same tunes, same grill, same... fruit-flavored Corona knockoff? Only in America, I suppose. 'Till next time, stay tuned for another rousing TEAM victory from my beloved New England Patriots (sorry Chad... a spiffy new jersey just doesn't change the fact that you can't throw more than 15 yards at a clip), and always stay positive.

- Meehan

The National Domestic Violence Hotline : [phone]-SAFE.