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I Love All Wrestling
July 4, 2005 by Jeremy

Now I'm sure this column will draw some serious heat towards me, but I couldn't care less. I have surfed the net for quite sometime and have been to various wrestling message boards and talked to many different wrestling fans online. It has become quite clear to me that there are some fans that are ignorant and intolerant to any form of wrestling they "don't think is good".

These days, we hear a lot about "smart marks". Please people; think about this one for a second. "Smart Mark", it says it all. You so called "Smart Marks" are still just marks. The name even says it. There are quite a few people who rule out anything in wrestling that they don't see as being up to their standards. A few examples are probably in order. I myself am a fan of Combat Zone Wrestling, which happens to be an independent promotion in Philadelphia, PA. I've heard many different things about the company from many different people. Some say they're a decent company. Some call them "just garbage wrestling". What makes it garbage wrestling" Because once or twice a year they do some death matches" I'm sorry, but that just irritates me to hear someone call something garbage wrestling. There is no such thing as garbage wrestling.

Yes, granted CZW goes over the top with things sometimes. I can't and won't deny that. But to call it garbage wrestling because they have some weapons in there is just wrong. These same people that deem it garbage are the same people that watch WWE. The same people that say "Triple H using a sledge hammer is different from someone being hit with a light tube". Let's look at the facts here. If someone gets hit with a light tube, unless it hits a major artery, they'll get a cut. If Triple H really hit someone in the head with a sledge hammer... they'd be dead. I guess these types of fans just can't appreciate that someone is truly sacrificing their health and wellbeing to entertain them. But half of these claims about the company are found less. When was WWE at its most popular" When they were doing over the top things such as TLC, Hell in a Cell, Inferno, and Buried Alive matches. These people are just like the people that say "I go to watch the sport of boxing". No... you go to see someone get the hell beaten out of them. I won't lie... I go to death matches to see someone get the hell beaten out of them. I don't want them to get seriously hurt, but I want to see them in pain. Its human nature I guess.

Best of the Best, is quite possibly the highlight of the year for me. It is CZW's annual show that showcases some of the finest junior heavyweights in the world. Just months ago, Lightning Mike Quakenbush was named Best of the Best for 2005. He beat out some might stiff competition from the likes of Super Dragon, B-Boy, and Kevin Steen. It's a purely wrestling show. This is the majority of CZW's product. I'm sorry if this seems like an ad for CZW, but they are truly my best example of how wrestling fans will embrace what they like and shun everything else. I wish that all wrestling fans could respect all different styles and forms of wrestling. From Lucha Libre, to Strong Style, to the technical elements, to the over the top death matches, I love them all. I don't see how anyone can call themselves a wrestling fan and not love all wrestling. The hardcore guys put their body on the line to entertain us. Maybe they aren't the best wrestlers in the world, but they care that much about the fans to mutilate their bodies. That says volumes to me about how much they love the business. Please... for the love of god people... love all wrestling. It's the thing that gives us our escape from reality for how ever long we're watching it. No one form is better than another. Its wrestling and I love wrestling in all of its forms.

by Jeremy..

Eduver3 wrote:
you're right. when you say you love wrestling then understand you're saying all types of it. i truly do love all wrestling. now to be frank, i haven't heard of czw until your article but i agree w/ your opinions. i have nothing but respect for wrestlers that would put their body on the line for fans and pops. good article man, nice job.

Serafin Santiago Jr. wrote:
Well Jeremy, I must admit that you are absolutely right about a few things. I agree that the term "smark" or smart mark as you put it, is still painting those individuals with the same brush so to speak used to call people marks. That is an all around term and it usually applies to those who know stuff about the business.

Wrestling is something that should be loved with an unbiased heart. Yet telling people to do so will garner you very little. Sure wrestling is something that is great. We live vicariously through our favorite wrestlers on a daily basis. Every day we watch our favorite wrestling program we get our fill of unabashed violence without us personally getting hurt. As for people calling a form of wrestling or even a wrestling organization garbage is a persons opinion and they shouldn't be chastised for it. Just as I'm sure you think that some organizations are crap many others think the same about groups that you hold in high regard.

CZW to me is a group founded on a hardcore platform. They manage to put out great shows from time to time but I cant place them on so high a pedestal as you have. If you are going to use CZW as your basis to hold such an argument as your article will make, then you should be prepared to defend yourself. It seems to me that this column was written because someone said something to you that bothered you enough to say your piece.

You make good points and do well to stand your ground. Unfortunately, because of the fact that you only use one organization as your base, and have very little to say in the defense of other organizations like CZW, you are stuck in a way that will bring on some heavy flak. I can't express enough how biased your opinion is when it comes to this article. There are a lot of people that think the way you do and for good reason. WWE hasn't put out the best wrestling ever, but remember this. If it weren't for the fact that wrestling became so popular because of Vince McMahon and the things he did....the competition that exists today and the small groups that have come up to make their own brand of wrestling in their neck of the woods, wouldn't have a pot to piss in.

I can't say that I fully support WWE programming or all of its wrestlers. I am a huge supporter of the Indy circuit in this country and hope that it keeps pushing up guys that deserve a shot at the big time. What I don't support is a persons belief that by putting their body on the line the way many wrestlers do its supposed to make me appreciate them more than the guy who puts up an outstanding technical match. That type of thinking is what keeps them down and makes it hard to really respect the person and what they are capable of doing outside of that type of environment. Hence why Ric Flair and Mick Foley had their issues not too far back.

All in all I think the article has its good points and I'm happy to see that someone has taken the opportunity to make their opinions seen and heard. Thanks for the column bro.....give us more.

C Thomas wrote:
Finally, a person who feels the same way I do. When me and my boys are watching CZW or XPW, one of them can't stand the death matches because to him "it's just people getting beat with stuff" and that he'd rather see people get thrown through stuff. What I say to him is that "this ain't for everybody." What alot of these so called wrestling fans are "Smart Marks" is that you have to embrace all aspects of wrestling. CZW is known for giving us the gory side of wrestling. Ring Of Honor is known for giving us a hybrid of styles we all love. WWE is known for giving the true entertainment and soap opera stuff that makes them what they are. Violence, Athleticism, and Prestige. These are the things that make up PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING PEOPLE! These are, to me, three basic things you need to have in this business. And each organization can bring that if we only give them a decent chance. I used to be nothing but a WCW-WWE-ECW fan. I used to say screw Indy-wrestling. But since 2001 (my first Indy tape was CZW), i've been hooked and now I wanna see every promotion make it. This is the real love of wrestling. Not putting a promotion down (without just cause) because of a certain style they have.

Ditto Robertson wrote:
I think you're really onto something here. I mean, anyone who is willing to go days (and sometimes weeks) without seeing their families so that they can go risk their lives to entertain tons of people they don't know is truley respectable. I can admit to "hating" these wrestlers (everyone boos the heels; admit it!) But when you think about it, the last thing you should do is disrespect them. I don't care if you put on a shitty match; you tried. You put your well being on the line to entertain us, and whoever isn't entertained by it" Sucks to them. I think we should appreciate every match, from Shawn Michaels versus Kurt at Wrestlemania to Paul London versus Chavo Guerrero on Velocity. I like your point of view. Nicely put article.

Jeremy. wrote:
I read you say that Smarks are still marks. I am an independant wrestler in a small promotion in Liverpool, England (Our next show is September 9, 2005 if anyone is in the area :-D) and I just would like to know where you wrestle ... if the answer (as i strongly suspect) is nowhere then shut up, because you are a mark too.

wrote:

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