When I learned that promoter, legend, and WWE Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff was going to be in town, I naturally jumped at the chance to see him.
Mr. Bischoff was acting as the guest judge for "WCW Trivia Night", which was held on Wednesday at "The Blind Rhino" bar in Norwalk. Sam Roberts of Sirius XM and WWE was also in attendance, serving as emcee for the night (1).
Wrestling trivia, good food, AND an opportunity to see one of the greatest ever? For a long-time fan such as myself, this was a "can't-miss" event!
Arriving at the venue just after six PM (for a seven thirty start time), I found that the bar was already packed to the gills. For a few moments, I worried about whether or not I would find a seat. Finally, a spot opened up at the main bar, which I took without hesitation.
Then, I saw the man himself; clad in a black leather jacket, Eric Bischoff was signing autographs in meet and greet. Seeing him just a few feet in front of me proved quite surreal; I had to pinch myself to make sure I was awake.
Moments later, who else should make an appearance but Bruce Prichard. Prichard, a legendary commentator, manager, and all-around wrestling guru in his own right, is tough to miss. He's a big, jovial-looking guy who some fans might recognize as "Brother Love" (of mid-90s WWE). I was somewhat surprised to see Mr. Prichard, as he showed up completely unannounced (2).
At this point, there was still some time before the night's festivities would get underway. I passed the time by enjoying a burger, and watching the first few minutes of a New York Knicks game.
Eventually, seven thirty rolled around; it was time for the main event.
Five rounds of trivia questions were asked; they dealt with "Monday Nitro", tag teams, the "New World Order", and other occasions in the history of World Championship Wrestling (WCW). Mr. Bischoff, in his guest judge capacity, provided insight and commentary about some of the events that were mentioned.
For the first two rounds of the game, I was able to make a decent showing on the scoreboard. Nevertheless, the stumpers of the last round ended any chance I had of winning. In the end, there was a two-team tie for first place. This was resolved by means of a dance-off. I'm not sure who the first dancer was, but he "busted a move", and thus was the big winner.
Of course, the purpose of the night didn't entirely involve fun and games. You see, I've been looking to promote my wrestling podcast (entitled "Totally Wrestling") and hoping to schedule interviews with one or more of the distinguished guests (3).
With this goal in mind, I gave out business cards to Bischoff, Roberts, and Prichard. Mr. Prichard came off as uninterested, but Bischoff and Roberts both cheerfully accepted my presentation. Could they, in the near future, be appearing on "Totally Wrestling"? We will see!
The entire experience on Wednesday night was a very enjoyable one. I chatted, ate, drank, had dessert, and rubbed elbows with legends, all in just one night. If there's something more you could want from a social outing, I don't know what it is!
You may have heard that during the past week, Fox News fired popular conservative commentator Tucker Carlson. At the moment, the reason for his dismissal is not crystal clear.
That said, I think it could have something to do with a recent speech that Mr. Carlson made on air.
On the April 19th edition of "Tucker Carlson Tonight", the pundit opened with this monologue:
“Sometimes you wonder just how filthy and dishonest our news media are. You'll be in the shower, and you'll think they're bad. But how bad are they? Ask yourself, is any news organization you know of so corrupt that it's willing to hurt you on behalf of its biggest advertisers?What would that look like? That level of corruption?
If Fox News did that, what would you think of Fox News? Would you trust us? Of course, you wouldn't. Thank heaven, Fox News never did anything like that; but the other channels did. The other channels took hundreds of millions of dollars from big pharma companies, and then they shilled for their sketchy products on the air.
And as they did that, they maligned anyone who was skeptical of those products. At the very least, this was a moral crime. It was disgusting, but it was universal. It happened across the American news media; they all did it. So at this point, the question isn’t ‘who in public life is corrupt’? The question is, ‘who is telling the truth?” (1)
In the news media, “them’s fightin’ words”. You see, the “powers that be” don’t like it when you say certain things; that hurts their image, and their bottom line.
For comparison, let’s look at what the Honorable Judge Andrew Napolitano said in his last broadcast on Fox Business:
“What if you needed a license from the government to speak, to assemble, or to protest against the government? What if the government didn't like what you planned to say, and so it didn't give you the license?
What if you were not secure in your papers, in your person, and in your property? What if federal agents could write their own search warrants, in defiance of the Constitution? What if the government could take your property whenever it wanted?
What if the government could continue prosecuting you until it got the verdict it wanted? What if the government could force you to testify against yourself, simply by labeling you a 'domestic terrorist'?
What if the government could torture you, until you said what the government wanted to hear? What if the government tortured your children to get to you?
What if government judges and government lawyers intimidated juries into convicting the innocent? What if the government could send you to your death, and your innocence meant nothing, so long as the government's procedures were followed?
What if the people had no rights, except those the government chose to let them have? What if the states had no rights, except to do as the federal government commanded? What if the government could write any law, regulate any behavior, and tax any event; the Constitution be damned?
What if you could love your country, but hate what the government has done to it? What if (Thomas) Jefferson was right? What if I'm right? What if it is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong? What if it is better to perish fighting for freedom than to live as a slave?
What if freedom's greatest hour of danger is now?” (2)
The two speeches are similar to an extent.
In the former, Carlson implies that the news media is massively corrupt, being bought and paid for by major companies. In the latter speech, Judge Napolitano suggests that the federal government is not only corrupt, but “wrong”, and antithetical (see definition) to the cause of individual rights.
In Napolitano's case, he was summarily fired by Fox News/Fox Business just after the airing of this episode. It seems he ran afoul of that unwritten rule: “never criticize those in charge”.
Could the same have happened to Mr. Carlson? Something appears to be a bit “sketchy” at the “fair and balanced” network.
