Rob Van Dam posted a new blog entry on his MySpace.com page today. In it, he addresses the largely debated issue of health insurance and wrestlers. While I do not normally offer opinions in my news posts (because many of you yell at me when I do!!!!), he makes an excellent point here. Here is what he wrote: “If you haven’t heard any of my interviews on the subject of wrestlers being taken advantage of, I offer an honest but probably different opinion than most. Forget the wrestler’s union. It’ll never happen. Wrestlers are all replaceable and have nowhere else to go anyway. Are you surprised when you hear that wrestler’s don’t get insurance benefits? Big deal. We are independent contractors, just like the guy you paid to paint your house. If the painter signs a contract that says he will work for you for 3 years, and work for no one else and give ownership of any plans or ideas created or used on the job to you, and he gives you the right to amend the contract on your side to implement dress codes and fines and wellness programs and whatever else you decide along the way, that’s the deal he made. If you are paying him enough money so he can get his own insurance, set up his own retirement funds, and you take care of getting him to the job and back home, what’s the problem? He’s not an employee. He’s self-employed. Would he rather have less pay, but get insurance through you? Probably not, especially since he’s covered if he gets hurt on the job anyway. Make sense? I hope I cleared some questions up for you and gave you a different angle to see the situation from. I admit as quickly as anyone that the job is way challenging, but it’s a challenge we agree to. That’s why I finished the agreement that I made and now I’m done. For the moment, anyway.”
WWEShop.com recently put up a Mr. Kennedy Inflatable Microphone for sale. The item has since been pulled for some unknown reason. It’s still listed in the New Releases section of the site, but when you click the link, the page simply says: “The product you have tried to access is no longer available for purchase on this site.”
WWE.com has put up the synopsis for WWE 24/7 in November. November’s theme is called ‘Thanksgiving Feast’. The month will feature Survivor Series ’90 & ’95, a 1985 Boston Garden card, a 1990 card from Madison Square Garden (featuring appearances by the Gobbley Gooker, Saba Simba and Warlord; Hogan & Tugboat vs. Earthquake & Dino Bravo, Mr. Perfect vs. Roddy Piper, and Greg Valentine’s face turn), Saturday Night’s Main Event from 11/26/88 featuring Andre the Giant vs. Randy Savage, The Most Powerful Families in Wrestling DVD, Piper in the HOF feature, and Jim Ross hosts the Shorties section his BBQ Restaurant. The Shorties section will feature matches on football players-turned-wrestlers such as Goldberg and Brian Pillman. And for those wondering, the Legends Roundtable show will be returning in a few months. J.R. noted in a recent blog that he’s going up to WWE’s TV studios in Stamford, CT to films episodes this Thursday.
Lilian Garcia will be signing copies of her music album ¡Quiero Vivir! this month in Bronx, NY, Los Angeles, CA, and Hialeah, FL. She will also be appearing at the Knitting Factory in New York City next week on Thursday, October 11 for the official ¡Quiero Vivir! album release party. Tickets for the show are available at www.knittingfactory.com.
