Wrestling Rumblings #51
January 22, 2010
By: Jose Marrero of WrestleView.com
Last week while writing this column I mentioned how having fame and fortune is not a right but a privilege to be earned. I was really strong in my feelings as I am right now. As someone with a little bit of infamy due to this column I take the statements I make here and in public very seriously; after all I don?t know who is reading this and who may be hurt or offended by any comments I make. I can?t simply run around with the ?It’s my opinion? defense that so many tend to do these days. Whether it’s 50, 500, or 5000 people that read this column every week I feel that it is my responsibility to be as responsible as I can in what I project here every week. My column this week is for one person and one person only and that person’s name is Todd Alan Clem or as some of you know him Bubba ?The Love Sponge??you?re reading “Wrestling Rumblings.”
Dear Todd,
I address you as Todd because it is my opinion that Bubba ?The Love Sponge? is a work, a cartoon character, a fabrication created for the sole purpose of making money. Todd Alan Clem is the person who gives that character life. I don?t know you Todd and I won?t go out of my way to insult you as many of my colleagues in the internet wrestling community and pro wrestling media have. Sorry no fat jokes or Bubba ?The Cum Sponge? references or any other form of attack is going to come from me. As I said I don?t know you and for all I know if met you maybe I?d like you, maybe you would be the kind of guy I could hang out with. I doubt I will ever get to know that.
So what do I know? Well I know you?re a ?Shock Jock? and you make your living by pushing the envelope and being as controversial as possible. I have never categorized myself as someone who is politically correct and I will be the first to say that in today’s society people are too easily offended. Hell, I am even a big time fan of your boss at Sirius Howard Stern and would even go as far as to call him a Media Icon. I found the Opie and Anthony ?Sex for Sam? segments to be hilarious and I am Catholic. I guess what I am trying to say is I?m not a prude, I have sense of humor and I like many respect the freedom of speech and expression that we as Americans enjoy. While that freedom is to be treasured I don?t think it is to be abused, your public statements on Twitter last week were reprehensible and should stand out as an example of what we as human beings should not ever aspire to become.
I?m not going to lie to you Todd I am not a super patriotic person but at the same time there were parts of your statement that I echo wholeheartedly. This country has found itself in a ditch for the past few years and there hasn?t been enough done about it. I would like nothing more than to see America take care of its problems so that there does not have to be any suffering in this great nation of ours. When it comes to your direct attack on the nation of Haiti; well that’s when we stop agreeing and I find myself wanting to pile on you like everyone else.
I?m not like most wrestling fans, writers, wrestlers, or the so called smarts. You?re presence in TNA never really bothered me. After all if any fan was in your position and had a friendship with a wrestler the stature of a Hulk Hogan and could parlay that into a job in wrestling I doubt anyone of them would turn it down. As a matter of fact there aren?t many people in general who have never benefitted in receiving a job or a favor based on who they knew not what they knew and no one ever blinks an eye about it. That’s just the way the world works, furthermore there is not a wrestling fan who doesn?t think that they could do a better job in creative than those in power in any wrestling company, so why would I fault you for thinking any differently? If anything I had high hopes for you Todd. In spite of the obnoxious personality you display as Bubba ?The Love Sponge? I know Todd Alan Clem is a fan of wrestling and I really gave you that chance to help TNA and bring things to the way I know it needs to be. Make no mistake about it I wouldn?t have bought you on but then again who would bring me on or anyone that writes a column for wrestleview? The point was you were there and I was going to give you the chance to sink or swim and boy did you sink.
I really wish I could sit here and say you were horrible on TV but I would by lying as I found you to be OK in the role that you are in at the moment and who knows what kind of character you could ultimately wind up on TV. I don?t know if we will ever find out. I have to tell you Todd I don?t know anyone in Haiti, I live in New York City which has the biggest Haitian population in this country and I don?t even have a Haitian friend but what happened on the island of Haiti was a tragedy. This is not a ?Save the Children? commercial or anything that you would see on an everyday basis in America asking us to help another country but something much more severe. 3 million people have had their lives affected one way or another, 200,000 and counting dead. I don?t know how well you sleep Todd but I can guarantee you that there isn?t a single Haitian person that has had a good night’s sleep since January 12th. There are many that are homeless, starving, wounded, trapped and scared out there. The situation in Haiti is not about nations helping others to curry political favor but about human beings giving of themselves. America was founded to be the shining beacon to all people and America is shining brightly at the moment as it leads nations in the call to aid Haiti. This is an example of what we should all do for each other, regardless of our race, gender, class or country we are all human beings. What if it was your mother, father, daughter, or son that was trapped under that rubble? Would it still be ?. Haiti??
I?d like to sit here and say it’s funny that you were attacked at the Impact tapings this past Monday but it wasn?t. I was raised on the philosophy that two wrongs do not make a right and while seeing you punched in the mouth and assaulted by a woman may have been humorous and gratifying to others I will not excuse it. I would hope that the anger shown by Kia Stevens (Awesome Kong didn?t attack you, Kia Stevens did) at your comments would show you how deeply your words affect others because I would say that there were many that felt as hurt by your words as you were by Kia’s fists. I am not going to sit here and advocate for you to be fired from your position in TNA or from your radio show. Everyone has the right to provide for their family and it is not for me to determine how anyone does that. I will say that I am saddened by your initial refusal to back off your statement and only to half heartedly apologize later when it was apparent that you could not use the ?Shock Jock? defense to weasel out of this one. I?m somewhat disgusted that the situation with Kia could be turned into an angle for the company as this is not something I would like to see made money off of.
Maybe I am wrong Todd and maybe that apology was sincere. Maybe you realized what a stupid comment that was to make and maybe, just maybe you are not the asshole that everyone thinks you are right now. If that is the case I offer you this olive branch and this challenge. We have seen on TV all week the public service announcements to donate to the Red Cross who are helping deal with this tragedy. With a text message you can donate money. I challenge you to not only give a public apology on your show but also on Impact and I challenge you to make a sizable donation to the Red Cross. I know there are many of my readers who would feel that would appreciate that gesture, even if they don?t appreciate you. Maybe it would be something insincere on your part but at least the money can go to a great cause and maybe, just maybe it would show you that there is a line and it can be crossed and hopefully by this gesture you are allowed to cross back to the good side of the line.
In closing Todd, I am going to wish you the best of luck. I am a big believer in redemption and second chances and I feel that we as human beings are a forgiving lot. I hope that you can redeem yourself and that everyone can find it in themselves to forgive you but most importantly I hope you can find it within yourself to be happy with the man you wake up to every morning. As I said at the start of this letter Bubba ?The Love Sponge? is a fictitious character but Todd Alan Clem has to wake up and look in the mirror every morning and deal with the ramifications of his absent minded alter ego. I hope you can do that and that we all can someday look past this.
Sincerely,
Jose Marrero
I?m sure this will get a lot of responses and those of you who have read this column before and emailed me know I am not shy about getting feedback. Of course you can do that by emailing me at wrestlingrumblings@hotmail.com next week I will try to do better and until then I am out.
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