- Triple H is a complete and total moron.
- Ring of Honor Wrestling is just like World Wrestling Entertainment and TNA Wrestling when it comes to television.
- Realignment and super-conferences will be the death of the student-athlete.
- And, I’m Aaron Goins. All my thoughts on these topics and so much more (including why I firmly believe in measuring twice and cutting once)… in The Highlight Reel!
NEWS and NOTES
**Did you ever think you would see the following image in your lifetime?
Yeah, me neither. Yet, at Night of Champions on September 18th, Mark Henry became the latest “overnight sensation” in World Wrestling Entertainment to rise up the ranks and defeat one of the chosen ones for a world championship when he pinned Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship. Frankly, I should be angry by the notion that Mark Henry, an immobile and worthless lump of garbage inside the ring, is now holding a championship never held by men like Arn Anderson, Roddy Piper, Curt Hennig, or Ted DiBiase. I should be sickened that he will have a longer title reign than more deserving men currently on the roster like CM Punk, Alberto Del Rio, Cody Rhodes, Daniel Bryan, Wade Barrett, or Drew McIntyre (to name a few). But, I’m not really upset about it. For one, it got the strap off Randy Orton. More importantly though, it was WWE finally using the logical conclusion to one of the many pushes Mark Henry has received over the years.
Since 2003, Mark Henry has received no less than five major pushes in which Henry was booked as an indestructible monster inside the ring. In every push, I have said that Mark Henry has looked terrific in the spot. Yet, he’s either gotten injured, turned into a jobber for The Undertaker, or turned face and had those pushes prematurely ended. So, it was actually refreshing to see Mark Henry finally get the culmination to a storyline and push that has been dangled in front of him for almost 15 years. Mark Henry’s title reign in 2011 is this era’s version of John Bradshaw Layfield.
John Bradshaw Layfield was primarily a tag wrestler destined to never amount to anything serious as a single’s star when known as Bradshaw from the APA. A haircut, wardrobe change, and monster push later, John Bradshaw Layfield became the most dominant WWE Champion in SmackDown history with a nine month title reign. More importantly, he created a legacy nobody expected yet the majority of fans loved and respected. It all came from finally getting a chance.
Mark Henry is in his final years as an active wrestler. The WWE has pushed him as a monster since April and they finally culminated it with a dominant win, a clean victory, over Randy Orton. It actually makes sense and is a rare case of logical booking instead of the ‘E pulling the rug out from under Henry like in years past when he’s gotten a monster push only to be jobbed out to The Undertaker, John Cena, or Batista. While I have hated him for years, I must say I don’t hate this nearly as much as I thought I would.
Of course, the WWE can not have their world title picture without at least one member of the two-man power trip. The legit main event run of Alberto Del Rio ended 35 days after it began when John Cena defeated Del Ro for the WWE Championship. However, it was not just that Del Rio lost the title that had me calling his run over. It was the way he was buried in the process. Cena stole his car, ruining his trademark introduction in the process, and then forced Del Rio to tap out to the STF. While it may have been a good match, the little things all add up to one prompt burial for another “potential main event talent.”
As for the other major story out of Night of Champions, all that occurred was something I called a month ago: Triple H defeated CM Punk. CM Punk got himself over by playing hard ball to get a contract and delivering a worked shoot that breathed fresh life into a stale program. Then, he got to defeat the Golden Boy in Chicago for the WWE title. Then, Punk got jobbed out to Alberto Del Rio, saddled in a feud with Kevin Nash that, because of Nash’s poor physical health, was turned into a feud with Triple H and Kevin Nash, and ultimately became the same jobber to the main event stars that he was before June 27th, 2011. The only thing I honestly didn’t call in this whole scenario was the timing. I thought Punk had more time. I thought he’d job to Triple H at WrestleMania; not the meaningless Night of Champions event.
Everything else that occurred at Night of Champions… you know, who cares? The championships mean nothing in the WWE and a night about those titles is a night of sheer nonsense much like any other night of WWE programming in this day and age.
**Three weeks into the NFL season and most of my predictions for the NFL season that I firmly believed in are blowing up in my face. Who thought the Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions would be among the handful of 3-0 teams? I mean, really? Who thought the Atlanta Falcons or Philadelphia Eagles would be 1-2 while the Washington Redskins and San Francisco 49ers both would be strong 2-1 teams? Through three weeks, the NFL has been tremendously entertaining and, once again, full of surprises.
Thus far, the biggest surprise in the league has been the Ryan Fitzpatrick-led Buffalo Bills. The Bills shocked the New England Patriots with a come-from-behind 34-31 victory this past Sunday to show that they are for real (for the moment anyway). But, the biggest story of the young season has been injuries and their affect on many in the league. Indianapolis (currently 0-3) are missing Peyton Manning as their quarterback is out for the year with a neck injury. Kansas City running back Jamaal Charles is out with a torn ACL and the Chiefs have went from a division win in 2010 to an 0-3 start in 2011. Green Bay (currently 3-0) have lost safety Nick Collins to a potential-career ending neck injury. The New York Giants (currently 2-1) have saw injuries deplete their secondary and receiving corps, most notably losing receiver Domenik Hixon again to a torn ACL. The San Diego Chargers are 2-1 but have lost perennial Pro Bowl kicker Nate Kaeding (torn ACL) for the year while tight end Antonio Gates has been dealing with foot issues. Plus, the Philadelphia Eagles (currently 1-2) have gotten a banged up Michael Vick (concussion and injured hand already) three games into the season with no relief in sight.
For my teams, injuries have hampered both the Dallas Cowboys (2-1) and Carolina Panthers (1-2) as well. Tony Romo is currently playing excellent football after suffering a cracked rib and punctured lung at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers defense during a week two victory while receivers Miles Austin and Dez Bryant have hamstring issues and running back Felix Jones has a shoulder injury. In Carolina, Cam Newton has played great as starting quarterback with record-setting performances in the first two games of the season. However, Carolina’s already-weak defense lost linebackers Thomas Davis and Jon Beason with a torn ACL and ruptured Achilles tendon respectively.
While we are only three weeks into the 2011 NFL season, there are a few safe bets already. The Kansas City Chiefs will not repeat at division champions while the St. Louis Rams will not live up to the hype and win their division. The Miami Dolphins apparently are the new Buffalo Bills (i.e. AFC East bottom dweller). The Indianapolis Colts are nothing without Peyton Manning, the Green Bay Packers and New England Patriots are still elite, the New Orleans Saints will easily put up 30 on anyone in the league, and the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys are both still over-hyped media darlings who will struggle to win anything important. Of course, the beauty of the NFL is that these same safe bets today could be blown apart with one bad week. The parity that lives within the National Football League is what makes even the most set-in-stone laws as fragile as Joe Theismann’s leg against a coked-up Lawrence Taylor.
**TNA Wrestling is heading towards their biggest event of the year, October’s Bound For Glory, with a fresh face in the main event picture and the culmination of a year-plus long angle on the horizon.
At No Surrender on September 11th, Kurt Angle retained the TNA World Championship with a win over Sting and Ken Anderson. Meanwhile, Robert Roode of Beer Money won the Bound For Glory Series to become the number one contender for the TNA World title. So, on the biggest stage of the year for TNA Wrestling, Robert Roode will go from one half of the best tag team in the world to a main event spot against one of the greatest to ever lace a pair of boots. While the WWE would never allow a fresh face to main event WrestleMania without a major push first, TNA is allowing Robert Roode to main event Bound For Glory because of the potential that lies inside him. It shows a lot of faith in the future and it’s a move I like.
The other major news to come from No Surrender came in the form of two new champions. Winter defeated Mickie James to win the TNA Knockouts Championship for a second time while Austin Aries defeated Brian Kendrick for the X-Division Championship. Meanwhile, the Impact Wrestling events that followed have laid the final plans for what will hopefully be the finally meeting between Hulk Hogan and Sting inside a ring anywhere.
October 16th will see Bound For Glory emanating from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As mentioned earlier, the main event will see TNA World Champion Kurt Angle defend against Robert Roode. Also, the longest angle in TNA today will come to a head (hopefully) when Hulk Hogan returns to the ring to face Sting with the control of TNA Wrestling on the line. Also, Winter will defend her Knockouts Championship against Mickie James, Velvet Sky, and Madison Rayne in a four-way match while Mexican America defends the Tag Team Championships against Ink, Inc. Plus, Rob Van Dam faces Jerry Lynn in a Full Metal Mayhem match, Ken Anderson faces Bully Ray, and Crimson battles Samoa Joe and Matt Morgan in a three-way match. With weeks to go before Bound For Glory occurs, this already-loaded line-up will only get larger as TNA is sure to deliver an awesome show in Philadelphia. No pointless celebrity cameos and matches; just the professional wrestling that wrestling fans want.
**I feel like I deserve a championship ring. After all, it was the good mojo that I brought to the Greensboro Grasshoppers on May 9th that helped carry them through a miraculous run that ended with the Grasshoppers winning their first South Atlantic League Championship since 1982. The Greensboro Grasshoppers defeated the Savannah Sand Gnats, three games to two, to win the South Atlantic League Championship.
Unlike my Atlanta Braves, who choked a Wild Card lead in the majors at a historic level, the Grasshoppers won 13 of their last 15 to earn a playoff spot. Then, Greensboro defeated Hickory Crawdads in the opening round before beating the Sand Gnats to claim their first title in 29 years. While I may have nothing to do with it, I am choosing to claim that my attendance at one home game in May was the key to the Grasshoppers winning it all. I’m awesome like that.
**Yes, I said my Atlanta Braves. Considering the levels of post-season heartache they have given me over the years, I feel like they belong to me and they are the family members who disappoint me more than anybody else because I know they are so much better than they choose to be. The Atlanta Braves were 8.5 games ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Wild Card race on September 6th. A mere 22 days later, the Atlanta Braves found themselves on the outside looking in as the St. Louis Cardinals caught and passed the Braves for the Wild Card on the final night of the season when Atlanta “manned down” and completed the choke-job with another loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. In true Atlanta Braves fashion too, this disappointment is being ignored by the sports media because somebody “manned down” even better.
While Atlanta was stinking it up in the National League, the Boston Red Sox and their second highest payroll in all of Major League Baseball collapsed in a historic manner. Leading the American League Wild Card race over the Tampa Bay Rays by nine games on September 3rd, Boston ended the regular season with a 7-20 record in September and another loss to the Baltimore Orioles. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay defeated the American League-best New York Yankees (again) to overtake the Red Sox in the Wild Card race. Boston, a club known for historic collapses, now has a collapse greatest than any previous disaster in Red Sox history on their hand as it is the largest collapse in Major League history. While Atlanta’s choke-job was epic and one of many choke-jobs they have done over the last two decades, the Braves are still minor league even at their greatest achievement. The choke-job Boston Red Sox pulled off was historic and the kind of choke-job that makes fans forget two World Championships and call for organizational implosion. If Atlanta only had that kind of panicking and passionate fans, I would not feel so apathetic towards Atlanta’s collapse. Sadly, I don’t think things will change in Atlanta because nobody really cares about what was a collapse almost as historic as Boston’s “man down” effort.
**College athletics is in the midst of a change that will ultimately, in my opinion, kill the idea of student-athletes forever. No, it is not the idea of paying students for their athletic endeavors. It seems as though students will continue breaking their bodies through athletics to earn universities and their coaches millions of dollars while the students can not afford a sandwich from the local Quizno’s. The latest change to college athletics that will ultimately destroy the idea of the student-athlete is the creation of the super-conference.
It was recently announced that the ACC will be adding Pitt and Syracuse from the Big East to the ACC with rumors flourishing that Rutgers, Connecticut, or Notre Dame may also join the conference in the next year or two. Meanwhile, Texas A&M is joining the SEC on the heels of Nebraska leaving the Big 12 to join the Big Ten Conference. TCU (Texas Christian University, mind you) is joining the Big East next season as conference realignment in order to create spectacular conference tournaments and championship games appears to be the biggest goal for administration everywhere within college athletics.
I am not a fan of the realignment and the creation of the super-conferences. I am a fan of tradition and these traditional rivalries within college athletics will die with the realignment of regional rivals into opposing conferences. Also, I am not a fan of these super-conferences because, once again, the rich will get richer while the students will remain poor. Not every student-athlete goes pro and earns millions. Yet, every single one of these student-athletes put their blood, sweat, and tears into their respective sports without making a dime while the coaches and university officials make millions. As if playing a sport while getting an education is hard enough, factor in now the travel of a professional athlete into the mix. Students at TCU in Texas will travel to New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania regularly for games and vice versa. When do these young men and women study? When do they attend class? It is hard enough to believe student-athletes actually study as it is and now we add the travel schedules of professional athletes to their workload. It’s unbelievable. If these student-athletes are going to be treated like professional athletes even more than they already are, it is a complete injustice that they are not paid for their endeavors.
Of course, the more things change the more they will stay the same. Student-athletes will make schools millions, sporting apparel companies billions, and won’t have enough money for a McDouble. But, at least the conference championship games will be amazing. That’s what really matters, right?
**On September 24th, Ring of Honor Wrestling debuted with a new television deal on the Sinclair Broadcast family of networks. After hearing from countless wrestling fans about the greatness of Ring of Honor’s previous show on HDNet, I was very intrigued to see what Ring of Honor would bring to the table for their largest audience to date. What I saw was a mixed bag of results.
In one hour, Ring of Honor offered two matches. The in-ring product was terrific. The matches featured very old-school, athletic-based wrestling matches that fans of wrestling in the 1980s would appreciate seeing today. Plus, the commentary from Kevin Kelly and former ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness was a throwback to the glory days of wrestling commentators like Gordon Solie, Jim Ross (15 years ago), and Bob Caudle. Plus, Ring of Honor abandoned the red border around their ring that made it look like a toy ring in favor of a traditional black ring.
However, Ring of Honor did one thing in their hour that I absolutely loathed. I hated the hypocrisy that came from the mouths of Ring of Honor management and their fans. For months and years, they have bashed World Wrestling Entertainment and TNA Wrestling for talking too much and not wrestling enough. Yet, in one hour, Ring of Honor only offered two matches while spending 30 minutes in pointless interview segments and self-promotion. For a company where wrestling is first, they showed as many ads, pointless talking segments, and time-killing video packages as WWE and TNA. Ring of Honor proved itself to be just like the other companies only without the budget or name-recognition of their counterparts.
I will be tuning into Ring of Honor Wrestling a lot. I appreciated the in-ring product and am enjoying it more than WWE already. I just hope that they lose the “holier than thou” attitude they give off through their die-hard fan base. That can be a major turn-off to a company needing to turn on as many fans as possible.
**On September 12th, ESPN2 unveiled a brand new line-up with the focal point being the always awesome Michelle Beadle and SportsNation (Colin Cowherd is still there but you know who the star is). After watching the new line-up for a couple of weeks, I must say that I like some of the new shows, hate some of the new shows, and find influence in ESPN’s most popular shows all over these shows.
First, the positives. I have to admit that Dan Le Batard is Highly Questionable is growing on me. Columnist and radio host Dan Le Batard finally has his own show and it reeks of the same quirkiness that people have seen for years on Le Batard’s guest hosting spots on Pardon the Interruption. His father, 81-year-old Gonzalo, serves as his co-host and adds a charm that is undeniable. Plus, the show has taken the “Five Good Minutes” segment from PTI and perfected it as Le Batard’s interviews are among the best sports TV all day.
The same can not be said for Numbers Never Lie. I liked a lot of this show the first time I saw it, when it was called SportsNation. Clarissa Thompson is a good hostess. She seems to have a nice personality and she’s attractive. But, she doesn’t seem to have an opinion on anything. Co-host Michael Smith runs roughshod on the show while the revolving door of guests honestly bring nothing to the table. The key segments they use, including a word-for-word rip-offs of the SportsNation segment “Don’t Shoot the Messenger,” are just bland and boring. While the format seemed like a sure hit, Numbers Never Lie has been a complete dud.
SportsNation moved to 5PM with the new lineup. While I have heard nothing about ratings, I have noticed that the SportsNation replay that used to air on ESPNNews at 6PM has been replaced by Around the Horn and PTI replays. It seems as though fans are choosing to watch SportsNation in the head-to-head competition so the network is offering a replay of the once-top sports shows from the worldwide leader in sports. Judging from the new lineup, SportsNation must have really done something special. Plush spot, imitation via spin-offs. But, one thing is for certain. There is only one Michelle Beadle (sorry, Clarissa), one Colin Cowherd (thank God), and one SportsNation. Paired with Dan Le Batard is Highly Questionable, you have a tremendous duo of sports, entertainment, and excellence.
**On Halloween night, WWE RAW will jump the shark for the 1000th in the last five years alone. But, this time is special. Not only will RAW jump the shark, they will also pull the shark out of the water, stab and shoot the shark, rape the shark, and force the shark to watch Knucklehead on a continuous loop until the shark commits suicide. On Halloween night, The Muppets will guest host RAW.
Yes, those Muppets. Kermit, Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzy Bear. Nothing says the best in professional wrestling quite like the Muppets. What pains me thought about this is that I appear to be in the minority when it comes to expressing outrage at this news. It goes back to the idea of having standards I suppose. If I want to see the Muppets, I’ll watch them on the big screen when the movie opens Thanksgiving weekend. I tune into wrestling for... wrestling. Shocking concept, I know. It boggles the minds in the WWE’s brain trust on a consistent basis. But, apparently a growing amount of wrestling fans are perfectly okay with the Muppets taking away valuable time from a show that lacks wrestling as it is. I just don’t get it.
**About three weeks ago, Triple H conducted an interview with Moviefone.com regarding his latest WWE Studios (sarcasm alert) masterpiece, Inside Out, when he made some controversial statements regarding mixed martial arts. When asked what the WWE needed to do to compete with and become as relevant as UFC and other forms of MMA, the new face of WWE management said that MMA needs to become more like WWE. And, the wrestling world all did their best Booker T impression as they said, “Did he just say that? Tell me he didn’t just say that.”
“I don’t see us needing to evolve to what UFC does because quite frankly sometimes the fights are long and boring, guys lying around and sometimes the fights are fast and over in five seconds. I’ve always thought one of the things about us, if you look at us solely from a sports standpoint, is that we always give you a good show. We’re never going to give you a crap game.” - Triple H
Really? Really?!? So some mixed martial arts fights are merely guys laying around? Well, what do rest-holds look like, Doofus? What is 80% of a Randy Orton match? And, while we’re at it, when have you and the WWE given the fans a good show lately? I’m not talking about a good moment or good match. I’m talking about a good show from top to bottom. For my money, World Wrestling Entertainment has not done that in almost five years. It is definitely NOT an always situation, Hunter.
“I think if anybody needs to evolve, it’s them. Give more of an entertainment standpoint. Give more form; they just have fighters who walk in in T-shirts and shorts and just stand there and then they fight and then they win and then they go ‘thanks, I’d like to thank my sponsors’ and then they leave.” - Triple H
They need to evolve? The UFC and mixed martial arts, the sport that is among the fastest growing sports in the world, need to evolve? With their huge deal with FOX, UFC is now on network TV and will do a whole lot better than the last Saturday Night’s Main Event on NBC did. MMA draws more fans to arenas and more viewers on television and PPV. Big fights fill up bars with people watching and partying every other weekend while WWE pay-per-views are only shown once a year in a majority of these establishments. The reason for all of this is because people got tired of seeing the same people winning everything. World Wrestling Entertainment has been the Triple H, John Cena, Undertaker, Randy Orton show for FAR TOO LONG! Even with injury and retirement taking out some of these tired acts, WWE has not replaced them with anyone long-term. Instead, WWE has built fresh faces to feed to the tired old acts with nothing changing. MMA needs to evolve? The UFC needs to evolve? No, World Wrestling Entertainment needs to evolve and change it’s image before the pathetic company of today becomes a dead company tomorrow.
CHEERS and JEERS
Superstar of the Week: Lady Antebellum
Congrats to Hillary, Charles, and Dave on the success of Own The Night. Their third album was released on September 13th to good reviews from critics and great reviews from fans. Selling over 347,000 copies in a week, Own The Night topped the Billboard Top 200 and the Billboard country charts while also becoming the number one album in Canada too. It was the largest debut for a country artist since Taylor Swift’s Speak Now was released in 2010.
On top of that, Lady Antebellum’s first headlining tour was announced recently with ticket sales occurring all over the country. I have my tickets for the show in Roanoke, Virginia in December. The trio that everyone in Nashville fell in love with in 2008 and the rest of the music world began to love in 2010 is riding high off the success of their third album. Lady Antebellum is not just “owning the night;” they are owning the world.
Jerk of the Week: Floyd Mayweather, Jr.
On September 17th, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. improved his career record to 42-0 with a fourth round knockout over Victor Ortiz. The sad thing is that the record books will forget the heinous and disgusting antics by Mayweather during and after the fight. Not only did Mayweather lose the respect of more boxing fans, he may have also tarnished his name beyond repair.
Mayweather dominated the fight. Victor Ortiz was ill-matched for Floyd’s speed and talent. In the fourth round, Ortiz broke the rules with an illegal head butt to Mayweather. As the official turned to the judges to deduct a point from Ortiz, Mayweather delivered two punches to a defenseless Ortiz while the fight was paused. Floyd Mayweather was credited with a fourth round knockout victory. Then, Mayweather added to his professional and classy nature with a post-fight interview for the ages. As 80-year-old boxing analyst Larry Mercer questioned Mayweather’s punches on a defenseless Ortiz, Floyd cried foul on the questions and then repeatedly challenged Mercer to fight him.
I am one of many who want to see Floyd Mayweather, Jr. face Manny Pacquiao inside the ring. But, I hate that getting to see that epic fight would line his pockets with a few more millions because Floyd Mayweather is the kind of thug in sports who deserves to die penniless and alone. Floyd Mayweather is a jerk in every sense of the word. His actions during and after the Mayweather-Ortiz fight epitomize everything wrong with calling him a champion. Floyd Mayweather is a jerk; not a champion.
POWER RANKINGS - Top NFL Teams (through Week 3)
5. Baltimore Ravens
4. Detroit Lions
3. New England Patriots
2. New Orleans Saints
1. Green Bay Packers
BIG A RECOMMENDS…
Bridesmaids - Currently available on DVD
2011 has been another great year filled with critically-acclaimed R-rated comedies in the theaters. Horrible Bosses was absolutely terrific. Bad Teacher and The Hangover: Part II received mixed reviews from critics but rave reviews from cinemagoers everywhere. However, no film from the genre has received as much love as Bridesmaids.
Written by and starring Saturday Night Live’s Kristin Wiig, Bridesmaids is a hilarious film about a group of ladies and the trials and tribulations before a wedding. While the plot sounds like a stereotypical romantic comedy, Bridesmaids is anything but that. From a dress fitting ruined by food poisoning to an ill-fated bachelorette party to Las Vegas, Bridesmaids is loaded with the hi-jinx expected and appreciated in these comedies. Plus, the performance of Melissa McCarthy alone is worth renting this film. Bridesmaids is a tremendous comedy worthy of all the praise it has earned. Check it out if you need a laugh.
WHAT I LEARNED THIS WEEK…
The thing I have learned the most since the last time I wrote The Highlight Reel is that there is a lot of value in the phrase, “Measure twice and cut once.”
Recently, I returned to college to enter Greensboro College’s PAL Program. This program is an accelerated program that ultimately is supposed to lead me towards teacher licensure in the state of North Carolina. Everything seemed wonderful in the beginning. But, once my first class began, I found out that the brain trust within the program had not measured twice. In fact, they had not measured once. The professor I have for my Pedagogy (learning to teach English) course has not taught a single method regarding how to teach English in a month. The fieldwork component of the course was delayed for weeks. Then, when it began, I found myself being assigned at a school I’ve never seen before (Ragsdale High in Greensboro) and told to do things as part of this fieldwork component that I have not been instructed how to do in the Pedagogy course. It seems as if I was supposed to take forms handed to me, read these forms, and pull professional skills out of my backside without any instruction whatsoever. I don’t understand what happened to a college that just a few years ago was absolutely terrific to me and helped me obtain a degree I was proud to have; a degree that would have assured me a job in the journalism field had our economy not been so terrible.
Sadly, they are not even the worst example of people who should adhere to the rule of measuring twice and cutting once. In early August, I received notice from CenturyLink that I was finally going to be able to upgrade my internet service to DSL internet through them. I was finally going to get away from dial-up and move into the 21st Century. When the end of August rolled around, CenturyLink said there was a slight delay. I would be able to get DSL services on September 22nd. I was shipped my modem and instructed that after 7PM on September 22nd, I would be surfing the web via DSL. Lie. I was told by Customer Service and Technical Support to try again on September 27th. It would be working them for sure. Lie. Try again on September 28th. My work order was scheduled for September 28th and I would have DSL working on that date. LIE! LIE! LIE! The wires necessary for the services to work are old and destroyed by time and Mother Nature. Instead of noticing this problem before telling the customers that the service was going to be available, they simply lied and got out hopes up and accounts started before the service was actually available. Not only did CenturyLink not measure twice before cutting, they cut all of the wood before beginning to build the house. I finally, on September 29th mind you, have gotten to use the internet service CenturyLink sold me. After over a month, myself and the other customers on this road have received what was promised from the bill of goods.
Some people in my life may think that I am a worrier. I stress to much and plan too much. I try to control everything under my thumb with my planning of events to an obsessive level. But, to those who say that is a fault, I must ask this: what is wrong with measuring twice… hell, five or six times… before cutting once? That one cut then is perfect. No problems. No hang-ups. No frustrations, anger, annoyance, bitterness, and outright rage at being lied to.
As a student and a customer, I am expected to complete my assignments and pay my bills on time. If I am late with either, I suffer the consequences. Yet, college professors and a multimillion dollar company can pull plans out of thin air, have them fail at epic levels, and are not supposed to suffer those same consequences that they would have for me if I screwed up on their level. Planning, proper planning, the same skills used by even the most dim of bulbs who still have an ounce of common sense in their tiny brains, would have alleviated the problems that I am currently having to deal with courtesy of both Greensboro College and CenturyLink. Life is filled with double standards and I have come to expect that over the course of my 28 years. But, something so simple as proper planning is not something that should be erased by the notion of a double standard. Everyone should measure twice and cut one in every aspect of their life. It’s just common sense.
- Aaron Goins
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