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Will Young Boys Be Playing With WWE WEEs??
Merrick here...
I suspect that most parents will either by excited by, or terrified, by the following. Although, as a father, I find this new more surreal than anything else.
Seems WWE will begin pursuing a new demographic in the future...like immediately. Specifically, kids.
A website will soon launch (http://www.wwekids.com/), a magazine (targeted for kids 6-14) will hit stores next month, and there's talk of a possible television series.
Kids are already being seduced by WWE via collateral merchandising like action figures based on franchise personalities & T-shirts. However, unless I've missed something, this is the first time WWE has acknowledged an aggressive pursuit of a younger audience.
"A large percentage of children in America get introduced to our brand from 6 to 10 years old," said Geof Rochester, exec VP of marketing for WWE. "We said, 'We have a strong kids audience; let's embrace that.' We want to have a lifelong relationship with these kids."
THIS ARTICLE in Variety.
Curious as to what this content will be like...that would make a big difference on how its accepted. SMACKDOWN BABIES? Maybe not. But, there are other avenues they could explore.
What do you think?
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how could this not be good?
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Haha...I don't like wrestling but I'd watch that.
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Merrick wasn't aware that the WWE markets itself to kids??
really
maybe this is 'news' to others, i can't think of any one older than 10 who would find pro-wrestling credible in the first place.
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or as kid friendly as wrestling can get back in the mid-80's to mid-90's (remember Koko Bware, Doink the Clown, Hulk Hogan, etc..). It wasn't until the attitude era that it became way too adult oriented for children (Austin, Necro Kane, DX, Divas stripping, etc.).
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was about as shocking as adult oriented as they got in the 80's.
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i thought they were making something like smackdown vs raw for wii. somehow using the controllers so little kids can kick the crap out of each other. could be marketable.
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Those hairy-palmed little heathens.
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I thought it was going to be wrestling matches between preteens. like that backyard brawls thing a few years back. this just sounds like they'll continue doing what they always did.
besides, toddlers fighting each other would be way better -
They need to just re-use the formula from that awful WWF cartoon that they had in the 80s. You had Hogan, Junkyard Dog, Hillbilly Jim and the other "good" wrestlers against the Iron Sheik and the other "bad" wrestlers.
And yes, I do realize how tragic it is that I still know this after all these years. -
Mar 24, 2008 10:40:02 AM CDT
Wrestling has always been geared towards kids...and the lowest c
by hitchcock'n'balz
I was watchin Rock'N'Wrestlin when I was about 6 years old..loved me some Jake the Snake, and Rowdy Roddy Piper...they have always marketed to kids...and as you can tell by watching it for 15 minutes, kids are most likely the only demographic (with the exception of Rednecks) that will belive and fall for all the stupid shit the "writers" have them do and say.
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sorry...also it's Believe
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I don't want to hear anyone talking about how "entertaining" wrestling is. I've seen it on TV...it's not entertaining unless you are mildly or fully retarded.
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...Hulk Hogan's Rockin' Wrestling from the early eighties? Cartoon with animated versions of Hulk, Roddy Piper, Marvelous Mula, and others. Loved it when I was a kid.
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How is this news? You gotta love a talkback where named "HitchCock'n'Balz" can rip on the lowest common denominator.
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Mar 24, 2008 10:46:32 AM CDT
It used to be about as kid friendly as you could get
by reel american hero
Back in the day. Hopefully this doesn't mean that the actual programming themselves isn't going to go back to the old school days though. Though the return of the classic red, white, and blue ring ropes would be a nice touch.
I think it is possible for educated people to be fans of wrestling, we know it's not real, but it's still fun to watch though. Is there something wrong with that? Seriously. -
This might end up like the WWF from the late 80's-early 90's. Back then the WWF was like a oomic book come to life. There were gimmicks a plenty, the product was actually fun, no profanity, and there were clearcut good guys and bad guys. If they were to do away with the three current brands, and just offered a kid friendly oldschool division, as well as Raw for the big kids, it would make a lot of people happy....not just the youngins.
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and repressed gays
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wwe, wcw, whatever the fuck is going on now, is still suffering from the post grundge rap rock kid rock nickleback korn clown posse style attitude and shit music as when it died as wwf. do people still watch this shit and believe it? is it soap opera for men? i don't get it. but i do miss the wwf i grew up with as a kid. you had clear cut good guys and bad guys, and sometimes they switched up, but now, every wrestler is an oily angry asshole,and i can't even pretend to be concerned with their motivations anymore. even when he was the 'bad guy/dick' roddy piper was more entertaining than these pornstar reject douchebags.
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Mar 24, 2008 11:32:40 AM CDT
The Undertaker... The slowest walk to the ring in history
by pizza the hut
Seriously... He could start walking out to the ring at the beginning of the show and maybe get there by the end of it.
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This is iffy. WWF/WWE was more family friendly.
Today there are more adult themes in the shows and it's definitely not appropriate for people under the age of 13. -
How can you say with a straight face that HHH getting into a coffin at a funeral home, simulating sex with what is supposed to be a dead girl's body, and proclaiming to "screw her brains out" as he holds a chunk of her brain in his hand is KID FRIENDLY? I'm no prude, but come the fuck ON.
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Mainly the end of Kane's biggest face push ever. He will now forever be jobber to the stars...or at least HHH. I actually enjoy reading about the backstage politicking going on more than the actual show itself. Anyone try watching TNA? I can't watch with that octagonal ring bullshit. MMA is getting over with WWE's former fans in a big way and they better step up to compete or they'll lose their audience entirely.
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That octagonal ring IS some unsightly shit. And I have abandoned WWE in favor of MMA.
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Compettion brought out the best in WWE/WCW. It was a moment in time that will never be duplicated. I remember back in the Marines we'd fill up a barracks room with 'rasslin fans and pizza and watch every pay per view. That was the late 90's. Now I barely pay attention to Wrestlemania even.
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Mar 24, 2008 12:59:25 PM CDT
Bring back Ken Patera and Dave "Redneck" Schultz
by the winged doucheman
Best promos EVER!!! If anyone hasn't watched the drunken Lex Luger indie promos do yourself a favor and look that shit up on youtube. You won't be dissapointed.
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Hell, if their parents are dumb enough to let them get in on this, chances are they're exposed often enough as it is.
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Mar 24, 2008 1:00:58 PM CDT
Growing up, WCW was an alternative to Sat. morningCartoons
by george newman
There was the FOX Kids cartoons, and ABC cartoons, and WCW on the UPN UHF station before it was UPN. That was exciting. Sting had a blonde flat top. BIG VAN VADER was a thrilling bad guy. I loved it all. I'd watch it while I waited for X-MEN and Power Rangers to come on.
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exactly. that's what i assume anyway.
redneck closet cases in awe over the size'the big show' while imagining that his schlong must be as big as thier own thigh.
(at least andre the giant was almost retarded, harmless fun) and then they have the fighting part, which gets them in the mood to go beat somebody up to prove to themselves they aren't gay.
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Amazing how far we have fallen! Now we are going to target something that is clearly an act for six year olds. What a stupid idea. People in kindergarten? These kids are into Clifford the big Red Dog, not Ric Flair! Really dumb idea.
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Ugh.
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This is clearly an attempt to bring the WWE back to the times when children adored their characters who went on to bring phenominal exposure for the company. Hulk Hogan was the primary one I am sure everyone recalls. He even spoke out to all of the "lil hulkamaniacs" to eat their vitamins and say their prayers and what not.
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(stupid enter button so close to shift!!)Wrestling was absolutely aimed at a large kid audience . . . the characters were over the top, there were genuine role models in Hulk and Hitman, etc, and the bad guys were downright cartoonish at points.However, this was still when a LOT of people thought wrestling was real. When the WWF got so big that enough people were realizing it was a show, two things happened concurrently: the action got ramped up, so emphasize violence and action, and more importantly, the generations of kids (myself included) GREW UP . . . it was TIME for the attitude era, when all the little Hulkamaniacs were becoming teenagers, and the time was right for Stone Cold, Rock, and the insane ride that was ECW.Now, with WWE pretty much getting stale and TNA not really drawing the numbers, the business needs a pick-me-up, and they're gonna try what worked before . . . problem is, it most likely won't. Some kinda of new energy/thought/business competition needs to be injected for wrestling to get anywhere NEAR where it was around 97/98.Oh, and for the couple of posters on here talking about how homo-erotic wrestling is, grow the fuck up . . . if you need to randomly re-asert just how 'red-blooded American male' you are and that you're 'definitely not a gay,' go do it somewhere else . . . kinda suspicious that no one ever ASKED about your sexual orientations, though you felt the need to bring it up on your own . . . good luck!
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Mar 24, 2008 2:01:05 PM CDT
From a business standpoint, this is a great move.
by detective_fingerling
Like everyone has already said, WWF used to rule Saturday mornings. I was a young kid, and had the ring and all the action figures. I'd have loved to have had more shows that catered to me in those days. I've grown out of it since then... well, ever since Stone Cold left.
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Mar 24, 2008 2:08:08 PM CDT
if they re-do Pee Wee's Playhouse with Lanny "The Genius" Poffo
by realdoublej
money in the bank
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He is the closest thing to old skool Hulk Hogan out there right now. WWE will push him down the kids throats and have him shilling kids multivitamins and doing milk ads. It's not like they could sell a living dead mascara wearing biker or a long haired musclehead that talks about his "cock" and crotch chops everyone as the standard bearer for childrens TV. Cena is as family friendly as it gets. Too bad, he used to have some edgy promos.
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With his straight edge attitude, no drugs, alcohol, or cigarettes he'll be one of the superstars I'm sure that they'll start marketing towards the kids. Which isn't a bad thing, as he's a pretty talented wrestler, just hopefully they'll get him on to one of the two main shows at least now. -
back in the attitude era you could get stone cold lollipops for your kids and a stone cold condom for your missus. There were Mr. Ass teddy bears!! Gregory Helms was made a wrestling superhero for 4 years just to sell masks to kids. Rey Mysterio was put back in a mask for marketability (that and he looks 8 years old without it)
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What with the rednecks and little kids in the audience! HYUCK! Nevermind that D-X shirt you wore there for about 4 years after 1997. Or that Stone Cold catch phrase you still yell while diddling around on x-box live while your kids whine that they can't play. YES! Damn those rednecks that watch their rasslin! Damn them to hell for making our lives stupider. Why, they should be spending too much money on remade movies and watching superior lawyer drama on tv! OH YES. HO HO! Please die, nerds. :D
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Mar 24, 2008 2:39:04 PM CDT
How is one form of mindless entertainment better than another?
by rev. slappy
I think it's pretty hilarious when people rip on wrestling for being fake or stupid and then love the films of Michael Bay. The fact of the matter is any type of performance can become compelling if it's done well.
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The action is back for him and he needs it. As for the Cena superhero thing (comparisions to hulkster) he's done shilling out subways and it works just good with the kiddies.
As for me, I see pro wrestling as the circus is in town, good stuff, while eating some pizza with friends.
As for those with the "gaydar talk", get a life. -
who always bash it for basically no reason so thanks Merrick. I don't know why WWE having a kid's website is actually news, when haven't they marketed towards children?
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this is going to really help boys get healthy attitudes towards girls and vice versa. Can't wait.
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There are some dumb ass hillbillies who pack the stadium to cheer the faces and boo the heels, but the smarts and smarks are the main audience for contemporary wrestling today. The casual fan that was the bread and butter of the attitude era is long gone. The current product caters to the first type of fan. I could give two shits about a big man wrestler who gets over because Vince wants big bodies in the squared circle and flashes the applause sign for them (I'm looking at you Lashley and Batista). I want to see a guy who knows how to rock a mic and create "moments" with genuine charisma. There has not been a guy like that since Stone Cold or the Rock. When the attitude generation finally retires its last superstar, wrestling is in for some low...low...moments. You think its bad now? Some day Wrestlemania will be headlined by the jackass from the real world and Dusty Rhodes' son. Dark days ahead.
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The smarks make up about %3 of the audience. I don't really get the hillbilly comment when wrestling has been huge in Japan, Italy, and had matches in fucking Afghanistan. I'm not talking WWE shows, either. Atsushi Onita THE hardcore legend did a show there.
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Yes, a lot of rednecks watch wrestling, but there are a lot of rich people that do too. Wrestling was the thing during the WCW-WWF era. I don't know of anyone who wasn't into it. So, when the popularity died down due to the lack of competition, people come out saying how it is stupid. I bet they are still sitting in front of the tube on Mondays watching RAW.
Wrestling is not real, we all know that. It is a form of entertainment. It isn't for everyone. -
You're right. Wrestling has some serious legitimacy in Mexico, Japan, etc... But for whatever reason the domestic WWE shows use a lot of toilet humor and cater to low common denominator. House shows aren't bad. Its 3 hours of straight up wrestling entertainment. I watch WWE hoping for a spark of the attitude era, but it's just not there. The smark audience is much higher than 3%. The wrestlesite internet junkies are a huge portion of the fan base today. Unfortunately the interweb hastened the decline of wrestling as keyfabe was broken by bloggers who blew the lid on backstage politics and spoilers. Casual fans will see the ocasional local show, but they won't be loyal viewers until the bandwagon looks good again.
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You'd have a crowd at WWE shows that are similar to Ring of Honor. But a lot of WWE's audience is made up of women and kids.
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watch ring of honor! they don't insult your intelligence with the bullshit the E does, and they consistantly have better matches on every show than WWE can put together in a year. www.rohwrestling.com
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...I've ever seen. You've probably gotten 20,000 hits from Michael Jackson and that creepy Jon-Benet Ramsay dude alone.
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As a casual fan/smark hybrid I will agree with your point since you seem to know more about this than I. So I will rephrase and say that WWE's main fanbase are marks and casual fans ("rednecks" and non-rednecks alike) but smarks/smarts are all up in there too buying merch and collectable DVDs. One of the worst things to happen to WWE was the whole Edge/Matt/Lita/Kane thing that once again...screwed Kane (my sentimental favorite). This was an instance of internet smarkism bleeding into the WWE storyline and no one had any idea why Matt hated Edge for getting with Lita when it was Kane's "character" who had supposedly married her. It wasn't Katie Vick bad, but it was another bad break for the K-man.
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Everything interest that exists that I am not currently interested in is dumb. Subsequently, all people interested in those things of which I am not interested in are also dumb. Additionally, it is my perogative, nay my duty, to inform these people that they are dumb and their interests are also dumb.
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I am a college student studying to be a teacher, have read many, many books including Plato and Aristotle, have an IQ of 144, and am willing to bet have had more pussy than 95% of the people on this site. And since I was in 4th grade, I have absolutley loved pro wrestling, and the WWE in particular, to the point of haveing attended two WrestleManias. (When everyone was watching WCW, I was ALWAYS tuned in to Raw. I would check Nitro on commercials). I truly think that it is a brilliant artform at its core, albeit with some ridiculous moments (ie Katie Vick). When you watch an action movie, you have talented (fake) actors, (fake) CGI, (fake) multiple takes, and (fake) storylines. Wrestlers get in front of millions of people on live TV and have ONE TAKE. Go to a live wrestling show, it is the same atmosphere as a rock concert. The wrestlers dedicate their lives to the business, and beat the hell out of themselves. I think that, at its best, it is a form of entertainment on par with Shakespere. There, I fucking said it. As for the rampant homophobia on this talkback, when I watch wrestling, I see two guys beating the hell out of each other for the benefit of the audience, you see two oiled up men in tights rolling around on the ground. Who is the closet homosexual in that scenario? Its OK, I am a Liberal, and in no way homophobic. If you want to bash wrestling as "gay porn" for straight guys, and then go onto movie sites and obsess about it, then I think a good, long, look into your own sexuality is needed. Alas, my point is this: go watch a (fake)Broadway play with some sword fighting or some kind of action setpiece. While you are watching it, ask yourself if professional wrestling is in any way different. I think you will be suprised. BTW, I can't wait for WrestleMania 24 on Sunday!!
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Mar 24, 2008 4:47:54 PM CDT
"I get pussy" guy always represents in talkbacks
by the winged doucheman
Not always the same person, but the same statement.
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I know that sounded pretty egotistical, but I just wanted to make the point that all wrestling fans are not lonely, redneck, gay, and losers with childlike mentalities. I actually haven't gotten laid in a couple of weeks!!
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ironic_name is a moron if he thinks rednecks and kids are the only ones who watch wrestling. Is that why it sells out shows in California and all over the oh-so-much better "North"? Seriously, dude. The Civil War was over a long time ago. Wake up and smell the Starbucks. Oh, and the comment about repressed gays watching was...gay.
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Mar 24, 2008 5:30:25 PM CDT
As long as you have 95% more pussy and an IQ of 144...
by iamjack'suserid
...I am going to say I own and currently run the Death Star and have a nice collection of socks.
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Mar 24, 2008 8:55:56 PM CDT
one fuck is all it takes to pass 95% percent of the people on he
by suckitdorks
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"I'm on the internet, the same geek site as you, AND I get laid as well!!! HAH! CHECK AND MATE!"
Fuking retards. -
Hasn't wrestling always been marketed to kids? I seem to remember something about Hulk Hogan and Macho Man action figures in the 80s. Wasn't there a Hulk cereal at one point? Plus who can forget Sgt Slaughter on GI Joe, not matter how hard they try...
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Mar 24, 2008 9:30:13 PM CDT
If BRATZ can encourage young girls to dress like TRAMPZ...
by kongmonkey
Then WWE wee's I suppose can encourage young boys to closeline their younger siblings until they suffer a cerebral hemmhourage or crushed air pipe or broken neck, etc.
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Did I read that right? Oh wait, wrestling? Nevermind.
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What the hell era are you talking about? I don't know how many times I saw Flair or Rhodes covered in blood when I was a kid.
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It is more adult oriented but I think it's cooled down since the Attitude. Every now and then they'll try to relive that like in 2002 and the retarded as fuck DX skits.
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Funniest and most accurate post all week.
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...always seemed like an easy joke that uneducated people would find funny. Kinda like the Bush Bashers."
There are so many unintentionally hilarious things in that post. -
...merely the fact that someone would call making fun of things as simple and dopey as wrestling and Bush something "uneducated" people would do.
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McMahons ideas seem to be in another universe. I still cant believe that he commissioned the Mr Ass cartoons. WWE seems to be the anit -ritalin for kids everyhere. 5Mins of that and they are putting their heads through walls and jumping off the roofs like mental.
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And take WWE's take on ECW into serious bloodletting territiory.
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Put some theme music behind that shit and I'm there.
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I use to be obsessed with DX, Stone Cold, the undertaker, macho man,and early rock. Remember "Oliva. Oliva. I love you?" - i'm actually happy it won't be so god damn smutty. Although stone cold did make me want to chug beers and knock them together like a bad ass.
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You guys are funny-I own stock in the Death Star, so you don't completely own it. I love AICN, and am a geek, too. I'm gonna fuck some more pussy and try to elevate my IQ now...and watch ECW tonight.
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I've watched the current RAW, and tell me that's not who John Cena and all the dick and poop jokes are aimed at.
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Alot of you thought it was a sting I bet.
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Having followed pro wrestling for more than 20 years, I have to admit that this idea does not seem to be a good one. It akin to demanding Congress to make a more intensive investigation on steroids in pro wrestling... which would not be wise. It just seems as if there are too many ex-strippers and juiced-up workers running around--- on the average WWE broadcast--- for Congress not to be aggravated by such an announcement. I'll admit that it makes sense for WWE to try *something* that could give them an angle with the audience their losing to MMA shows. Still, there looks to be too many potential pitfalls with this effort. Paradox... when one draws an analogy between pro wrestling and George W. Bush, one makes certain tacit admissions about Bush.
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