Category: News and Views

Monday Night Raw

I truly apologize for being late with my recap of Monday Night Raw.  However this is my views on how things went down.

This Monday Raw came to us from England.  The show was all in all an average performance with John Laurinaitis continuing to show his dictatorship leadership style.  The return of Brock Lesnar to the WWE and his backing from the General Manager makes one wonder if Laurinaitis plan to make Lesnar the new face of Raw, replacing Cena.

In the match C. M. Punk VS Mark Henry; at the start of the match one could not help but wonder if Punk’s mind was in the right place after all his mental torment from Chris Jericho.  However Punk seemed up to the task.  It was a good match, ending with Punk jumping from the top rope and driving a chair into Mark Henry’s chest to pick up the win and retain his WWE Championship.  Jericho of course appeared on screen immediately after the match to announce that he will get another shot at Punk’s title at Extreme Rules.  Jericho will get his re-match in a Chicago Street Fight.  He showed a clip of Punk entering and leaving a pub, which the champion brushed off stating he was just out with a few local friends.

Santino Marella continued his winning streak once again beating David Otunga; who seems to be doing a better job of showing off muscles and acting like John Laurinaitis water boy, than winning matches.  In the meantime Santino is still The United States Champion.

The Match Kane VS Zack Ryder went down the way anyone would expect it to.  Ryder is obviously no match for The Big Red Monster.  Kane knocked Ryder out with a chokeslam before the bell even rung.

Daniel Bryan was not pleased to see Kofi Kingston talking to his ex girlfriend AJ .  He told Kofi just because he dumped her didn’t mean it was open season.  It is confusing why AJ continues to play the role of the beautiful girl with low self-esteem, still trying to get with a guy who is a total jerk and treats her like dirt; confusing isn’t it?    Well Daniel promised Kofi that he would make him tap out it a lock which he re-named the Yes Lock.   He made good on his promised and Kofi Kingston although putting up a good fight was forced to tap out.

One thing you can say for Rosa Mendes, she knows when to cal lit quits.  She tried to get her team members who were no match for the Great Khali and the Big Show, out of harms was.  However this was not to be as they were both thrown back into the ring and double slammed by their opponents.  The result was no surprise, this was an uneven match-up to begin with.

The main event of the night was John Cena VS  a mystery opponent who not surprisingly turned out to be Lord Tensai.  There is an on going campaign to make Cena look like a loser.  Tensai has returned and  for the past couple of weeks has being showing his dominance, so who else would be the likely candidate to give Cena a whopping.  However John Cena being the charismatic, no back down, no surrender kind of individual that he is, showed that he was equal to the task.  Lord Tensai soon realized this was no walk over, in Cena he was faced with some real competition.  The match was pulsing, exciting.  The end possibly would have been great but in true Laurinaitis fashion cold water was thrown over the finish.  Cena had to look like a loser at whatever cost so Otunga was sent in to make this wish of Johnny a reality.   The distraction of course gave Lord Tensai time to spray is green stuff in Cena’s face, distorting Cena’s vision and Tensai subsequently won the match.  One cannot feeling cheated.  There is the unanswered question.  Would Lord Tensai have beaten Cena had there been no interference?

 

 

Lifetime Friends {By Jill Lemming}

Special moments spent with you
Have meant so much to me.
We’ve laughed and cried together….
We’ve grown tremendously.

We’ve talked about our childhood
And discovered hidden truths.
We’ve solved some things between us,
Maturing past our youth.

I wouldn’t trade these moments
Or erase them, if I could,
For every step we’ve taken
Has been for our own good.

We understand each other
And accept what lies within.
God’s strength outweighs our weakness;
His grace has made us friends.

Tears are Not Intended {By Don Beckman}

One morning not so long ago
When nothing turned out right,
A little bird paused on the sill
To rest from it’s long flight.
‘Oh little bird,’ I said, ‘I’m sad;
Although we’re deep in Spring,
The bluebells planted at my door
just simply will not ring.’
And then I knew how senseless
It was to fume and fret;
That I didn’t count my blessings
Was a cause for real regret.
For with the beauty all about,
Despite what day might bring,
I knew the birdlet’s song was true;
‘Why cry when you can sing?’

Monday Night Raw

Brock Lesnar is back on Monday Night Raw and it seems he has a score to settle with John Cena.  The feud between The Rock and Cena was settled at Wrestlemania.  The focus therefore now shifts to Lesnar and Cena, both of whom have the fans rooting in their corner.  John Laurinaitis introduction of Brock was interrupted by Cena who entered the ring and slapped the man who had put him down with a vicious F-5 the previous week on Raw.  A brawl ensued which took  superstars from the locker room and the officials a couple of minutes to control.  At the end of it Cena was sporting a bloody mouth, yet seemed quite undaunted.  Well you could say things have gotten off to an interesting start leading up to Extreme Rules when both men will be facing each other.  In the next few weeks there will no doubt be a lot more confrontations between these two.  Who will come out victorious at Extreme Rules?  That we will all have to wait to see.

Alberto Del Rio who cheated to win his match against Sheamus last Friday on Smackdown was able to defeat Zack Rider this Monday on Raw.  Sheamus was so upset at the referee for making the wrong decision, that he super-kicked him.  It is not yet clear is disciplinary measures will be taken against Sheamus.

Cody Rhodes is getting a taste of his on medicine these days.  The big Show has turned the tables and he is now getting in Cody’s head.  Monday night he suffered yet another loss when he was defeated by R Truth.  Well Cody it seems what goes around comes around.

Can somebody please tell David Otunga he is not in the Mr. America Body Building Competition!  Well as it turned out all those muscles were no match for John Cena who with busted lip an all was able to get Otunga in a submission hold from which he had to tap out.  Cena however had no time to celebrated as he was attacked from behind with a low blow from Brock Lesnar.  Really now Brock that was kind of mean!

 

Friday Night Smackdown

John Laurinaitis is now General Manager of both Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown.  Not surprisingly he has started to abuse his power.  He offered Teddy Long a job then threatened to suspend his grandchildren education fund if he did not accept.  That is sinking a bit low.  Mess with the man all you want but when it comes to children’s education, you don’t mess with that.  He should be ashamed he even said that for the world to hear.  He is talking about people power, giving the people what they want but what he is displaying is Johnny’s power, getting even with the  people who supported Teddy Long.

He has already threatened C M Punk and tonight R Truth was his first victim on Friday Night Smackdown when he was placed in a handicap match with David Otunga and the world’s strongest man Mark Henry.  I do hope good sense will prevail and he will focus more on pleasing the people rather than pleasing himself.

Randy Orton redeemed himself after his loss at Wrestlemania by beating Kane in a No Disqualification Match.  It was a tough fight going back and forth but in the end Randy managed to pull off a RKO which won him the match.  No doubt Kane is going to want to return the favor.  We are going to see how this one goes.

Tonight Daniel Bryan displayed to the world that he really is a jerk.  I am not surprised that he blames AJ for his loss at Wrestlemania, sharing none of the blame himself.  As far as he was concerned it was all her fault. If he had won he of course would have taken full credit.  It comes as no surprise also that he would publicly humiliate her by dumping her in public, he never did care much about her in the first place, but calling her dead weight and shouting at her to get out of his ring?  That was taking it a bit far.

Big Show continued his winning streak by defeating Heath Slater.  He attempted a cat and mouse game with with Cody, however Cody got away.   Alberto De Rio returned to Friday Night Smackdown and was able to manipulated his way into winning the match causing Sheamus to lose his temper and attack the referee.  This of course will not go down well for Sheamus.

Wrestlemania 28 Results

Well the big day has come and gone.  For some it was filled with moments of triumph, for others disappointment.  Some left happy, others left sad.  There was no denying, it was an electrifying, fun-filled, exciting event.  So how should I start off?   “YES! YES! YES!” or should it be” NO! NO! NO!”   At least that is what Daniel Bryan should now be shouting after losing his title to Sheamus in a match which lasted only eighteen seconds; one of the shortest matches in WWE history.  I guess he learned the hard way never to turn your back on your opponent.  Well AJ was part of the reason he held the title so long and as it happens part of the reason he lost.    Bye, Bye, Daniel, no more “YES! YES! YES!”   Congratulations to Sheamus for winning the match and becoming the new World Heavy Weight Champion!

In the match between Randy Orton and Kane, Kane really got off to a good start showing dominance over Randy.  Randy fought his way back into the match.  Although he did seem quite on top of his game, he gave it all he got.  However it was just not good enough.  He was unable to pull of the RKO.   When Kane delivered the powerful throat slam, it was all over for Randy and Kane won the match.

Wrestlemania 28 was a big moment for the Big Show.  It also showed that Cody Rhodes is better at mouth talk than he is in the ring.  The Big Show was on top of his game from the very beginning, slamming Cody Rhodes all over the ring.  Cody regrouped and tried to keep the Big Man off his feet and on the ground.  However the Big Show would have none of that.  After weeks of being continually jeered, and taunted by Cody, it was time to teach him to have respect and he did just that.  He put the icing on the cake by delivering a powerful right hand.  Cody went to sleep and the Big Show picked up the win.  He is now the new WWE Intercontinental Champion.

The result of the Diva’s Tag Team match was somewhat of a surprise.  The team Beth and Ever were undoubtedly the stronger team.  Maria was suffering from injuries and that was quite evident from the start of the match.  Luck however was on the side of Kelly Kelly and Maria and they won the match, much to the disbelief of Beth and Eve.

“Hell in A Cell”  That was exactly what the match between The Undertaker and HHH was.  It was simply hell in a cell, one of the bloodiest and hardest fought match of the night.  These two men went back and forth, battling it out , taking blows after blows, writhing in pain yet not giving up, not calling it quits.  Will the WWE Universe ever experience anything like this again?  I doubt it very much if that was the end of an Era as it was said to be.  Shawn Michaels at one point was overcome with emotions. These three men are three of the greatest wrestlers the WWE Universe has ever seen.  At the end of the match HHH was motionless and the Undertaker could hardly stand.  The streak lives on 20-0!

Team Johnny and Team Teddy match got off to a good start. At the beginning of the match Team Johnny was in full control and it seemed like Team Teddy wasn’t going to able to pull it off.  Then things turned around Team Teddy got all fired up, bodies were flying all over the place the team seemed on the brink of victory; that was until Eve stepped into the ring and jinxed everything.  Zack got distracted, he turned his back and that was all The Miz needed.  One, two, three and the match was over, just like that. Team Johnny had won!

Well, well, well, who is the best in the world at what they do?  Chris Jericho has made the match leading up to Wrestlemania something of an ugly affair; constantly seeking to smear the characters of members of  Punk’s family.  At the start of the game Punk was letting Jericho get to his head, which was exactly what Jericho wanted.  Punk came close to getting himself dis-qualified, but at the last minute he showed restraint, he regained self-control and went on to get Jericho in a submission hold to which he was forced to tap out off.  Well done Punk.  You did it on the biggest stage of them all!

Dwayne Johnson “The Rock” WWE career

The match of the night, the match that was most talked about; that of course was the match between John Cena and The Rock.  This was a tough fight.  A fight where the chance of either men winning was equal.  At the start The Rock dominated Cena somewhat, then Cena reversed the role getting near-falls after near-falls.  At one point in the match The Rock was almost unconscious, but the fighter in him refused to call it quits.  This was one of the toughest fight Cena has ever fought, he gave it all he got, he just was not able to get that three count.  There were basically no looser in this match, however the rock was able to get that three count which technically made him the winner.

Wrestlemaina 28

Wrestlemania 28



Yes WWE fans it’s wrestlemania time again, just two days before the big event takes place in Miami Florida. This year’s wrestle mania is going to be another interesting and exciting one. Most of the matches are something to look forward to. I am going to touch on them in no particular order of how they will appear in wrestle mania.

First up is the match between Daniel Bryan and
Sheamus for the World Heavyweight Championship. To be honest Bryan has held the title much longer than many of us expected him to. Part of the reason is the way he is able to weasel himself out of certain situations, sometimes putting his girlfriend AJ in harm’s way, not that she seems to mind.
Come Sunday Bryan is going to do one of two things; defend his title like a man or get AJ to interfere in some way or the other so he can retain the title. I think Sheamus is going to come prepared and for this match I give Sheamus a win over Bryan.



Randy Orton VS Kane

This is a match that can go either way. Both of these men are tough competitors and are evenly matched. Neither will want to lose to the other. They are two of the most dominant forces in the WWE. Will Randy be able to win against the Big Red Monster?  If he is able to pull off a RKO he will.  This is going to be a tough one but I am going to give Randy the edge over Kane.


Big Show VS Cody Rhodes

While this is not one of the great matches of wrestle mania 28 it might turn out to be an interesting one as The Big Show has a score to settle with Cody Rhodes. For weeks now Rhodes has been a thorn in the Big Show side. He has been constantly mocking the Big Show, pointing out his weaknesses, trying to humiliate him.
A win over Cody Rhodes would no doubt be a boost for the big man, who has not been doing that great for a while now. Winning the Intercontinental Championship might just be what Big Show needs to get him back on track. If he is able to stay on his feet he should win this one. I predict a win for The Big Show.
Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos vs. Divas Champion Beth Phoenix & Eve

Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos VS Beth Phoenix & Eve
In this diva’s tag team match competitors on both team are evenly talented. However Beth Phoenix is usually very dominant in these matches and Eve Torres seems to have gained a lot of confidence lately. I pick the team of Eve and Beth to win.


Team Teddy VS Team Johnny

This such be an exciting match. Teddy’s team consist of Santino Marella (captain), R-Truth, Kofi Kingston, Zack Ryder, The Great Khali and Booker T. Johnny’s team: David Otunga (captain), Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, The Miz and Drew McIntyre, who replaced Christian after he suffered some injuries at the hands C M Punk.
Tension has been running high for weeks now between Theodore Long and John Laurinaitis as each seek to become General Manager of both Raw and Smackdown. The outcome of this match might surprise us all but I think team Johnny is going to win this one.


The Undertaker VS Tripple H
Once again the Undertaker and Tripple H will battle it out to see whether or not Tripple H can beat the Dead Man and end the streak. The question is does Tripple H really want to end the streak? Maybe not, but he no doubt wants to be the man to beat the Undertaker at Wrestlemania. For this match I am picking Tripple H to win.



C M Punk VS Chris Jericho

This match is a must see. The tension between Punk and Jericho is now at a boiling point with Jericho making personal attacks on the integrity of Punk’s family members. This is typical Jericho, he will stop at nothing to win a fight; whether it be trying to blind his opponent or making verbal attacks to gain psychological advantage. When he says he is the best in the world at what he does, he is speaking the truth. But does this make him the better fighter? I am predicting that Punk will win this one.


The Rock VS Cena

This match will be the main event at Wrestlemania 28. This is the match that everyone can’t wait to see. After all the talk for the past couple of weeks the two will finally be in action. Both men are going to give it all they’ve got. But I believe Cena is going to win this one.

Trayvon Martin

There has been a lot of talk since Travyon Martin was killed a month ago; yet despite the talk and the walks and the cries for his arrest, Zimmerman remains a free man.  This case is now filled with so much drama that it is not even easy to establish the truth of what really did in fact take place that night.  Let us therefore start with the facts that we do know; Travyon Martin was shot dead, George Zimmerman was the one who pulled the trigger to that gun when ended his life.  George Zimmerman said he acted in self-defense but shouldn’t this be a case for him to prove in court?  If he did act in self-defense he has nothing to worry about, he will walk out a free man or but then I forgot as far as the police are concerned Zimmerman does not have to answer to anyone, he said he acted in self-defense and his word is gospel.

A lot of the stories coming out of this incident seems to be fabricated and doesn’t really make any sense.  One of Zimmerman’s friend claimed he was badly hurt that night and went to the doctor the next day to be treated for a broken nose.  Strangely enough there are no photos or videos of Zimmerman looking as if he had been hurt at all.  I am sure if that did in fact happen Zimmerman and his broken nose would have been plastered all over the media.  There are no pictures, because it never happened.  There is no evidence to support his claim of self-defense.  So why are the police so reluctant to make an arrest even now after all the protests and outcries?  It as if they are saying it’s no big deal that’s just one less black youth that we have to deal with.   I don’t want to appear racist but I can’t help wondering, if Zimmerman was black Trayvon white, would the situation have been handled in the same manner?

What is also truly mind-boggling is how when a person commits a crime he suddenly becomes the victim.  Quoting from reports of what one of Zimmerman’s friend ”He hasn’t been to his apartment since that happened and he’s been treated for post-traumatic stress disorder, for depression, for insomnia” end quote.   Well big deal, the fact is Zimmerman is alive and will continue to go on living his life.  Trayvon Martin is dead, his life was unnecessarily cut short, for him there is no tomorrow.   For those Zimmerman’s sympathizers I want you to ask yourselves this question, would if it was my son, or brother, or close relative, or friend that was killed would I still feel the same?   Be true to yourselves and answer the question truthfully.

In ending I just want to say a life is a life.  You shouldn’t have to put a color to it in order to get justice!

Having Faith

We all have those days when nothing seem to go right no matter how hard we try.  Sometimes when problems come they all seem to come at once.  We sometimes get so pre-occupied stressing over our own problems that we  fail to realize there are people far worse off than ourselves.  At times when we take the time to reflect our problems might be minor compared to others.   Our problem could be the loss of a job, the breakup of a relationship, children giving problem or an inconsiderate neighbor.  Although it might not be easy, these are problems that can be solved.  Just think about the person who has just lost his or her mother, father, an only child, or a close family member?  What can you say to that person to make the pain go away.  Is there anything that anyone can do to fill the void that is left?   Death is so final, there is no tomorrow, no second chance to do things differently.  Therefore we must give thanks for life even if it may be filled with problems for at the end of the day it is the most important thing that we have.  Everything else takes second place.

Whitney Houston

Yesterday Whitney Houston’s family, friends and fans celebrated what was termed as her ”Homegoing”.  Whitney was a great singer and her music touched a lot of lives.  Her songs were ones that most of us could relate to; you never got tired of listening to her.  Her untimely passing is very sad indeed, especially at the point in her life when she appeared poised to make a comeback.

There are many who choose not to remember her for the great singer that she was but rather as someone who used drugs.  If I remember correctly there is a verse in the bible which says ”He who is without sin cast the first stone.”  Many of those who are quick to brand her as an addict are themselves guilty of worse sins than being an addict.  People rise and fall during the course of their lives.  It is a part of being human.  Problems comes along and we each deal with it differently.  Don’t judge a person until you have walked in their shoes.

We are a society of people who feed on negativity; we spend a day praising someone for an outstanding accomplishment but spend months if not years focusing on what they have done wrong.   Yes Whitney made her share of mistakes but don’t we all at some point or the other?   Whitney was a woman of class, she didn’t have to expose her body in order to sell her music!   She is gone but her music will forever live on.  You haters, please let her rest in peace!   R.I.P. Whitney.