Chavo Guerrero tweeted the following in regards to the incident: "I stand behind @CMPunk for sticking up for himself & refusing to be bullied. Yes he was bullied, watch the video."
That tweet is a joke, first and foremost. The video doesn't show that to be true (as I stated above), plus it's such a manipulative choice of terminology using "bully" to describe the situation.
Secondly, it's an example of this "Us vs. Them" mentality that too many wrestlers (and celebrities, in general) believe in. They don't care about facts; they only care about protecting their own. When it comes to "marks", wrestlers must unite as one to rid the world of evil! (Did anyone imagine a "THIS IS SPARTA!" moment right then, with a group of ripped, blown-up wrestlers sporting kendo sticks and shouting to the heavens? That's kind of what I was going for there.)
The videos online are simply inconclusive as to what happened exactly and who all was to blame for starting the physical part of it, but in either case, Punk and WWE are the ones wrong. Period.
Punk should have IMMEDIATELY went somewhere else as soon as it started getting physical and he realized there was no security in sight. And before you say something like, "He was in the middle of a live show, Chris!", let me respond by asking you when the right time would have been for him to make that decision.
Was it after the first shove? Second? After the third "hit in the rib"? After someone said "Let's push him down the stairs!"? YOU tell ME when the "professional" should have removed himself from the situation.
It's ridiculous and, quite frankly, pathetic to see a grown man not be able to take responsibility for his own actions. Unless you count the mandatory apology included in that same statement to WWE.com.
"But what about the fans, Chris? They have no right to touch the wrestlers!"
So what? Let's say that you're right and they aren't "supposed" to touch the wrestlers. THEY DO! Experience and history has proven they will do just that. They are predictably unpredictable, as I stated earlier, so if Punk can't handle that fact any better than he did Monday, he should have never been put in that position.
Yes, that makes WWE wrong too, but they should be able to trust their professionals to be…professional.
Did Punk make a mistake? Yes. Should he be crucified for it? Absolutely not, and that's not my intention with this written diatribe. But for him and WWE to try and spin this thing with excuses and manipulation, rather than take TOTAL RESPONSIBILITY, apologize, correct the problem, and move on — it's unacceptable.
Yet, a lot of us aren't just accepting it — we're defending it as well.
The guy that got his head rocked off its axis is not the victim, he's a "p*ssy". I guess you'd say the same thing if it had been you?
The mother looking out for her son is a "media whore"? And speaking of…Del Rio taking the sign was nothing out of the ordinary, but once it's became OBVIOUS the 8-year-old kid was crying and the mother was upset in defense, they should have backed off. Rather, they continued mocking and ridiculing them. And THAT is exactly what she says it is: bullying. As a father of a four year old daughter, I would have reacted negatively as well.
I'm no saint. I'm no martyr. I am simply a guy trying to take you back to a basic, fundamental practice we were all taught a long time ago. And that is, do the best you can and when you fall short — we all will sometimes — OWN IT, correct it, and learn from it.
It's no longer about a "character"; it's about actual character.
Hear more of what I have to say about the situation this Monday night on the Voice of Wrestling, from 6:30-7:30 est. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @RealityofChris and you can email me at chris.cash@wrestlezone.com. I'm looking forward to the reactions!
