Archive for the ‘Anarchy Journal Constitutional’ Category

In #WWE the #USTitle can be the New #TV Title

Posted: June 10, 2014 in Anarchy Journal Constitutional
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by @anarchyroll
6/04/2014

The United States Championship in WWE is essentially useless, but it doesn’t have to be. It can be the bridge belt for NXT call ups and main roster mid carders who have lost their way, place, momentum, or all of the above.

In a by gone era, a title belt like this was called the Television Title. The best wrestler on television today is how it was branded in kayfabe. However, in reality it was a way for new wrestlers to a promotion to make their mark, for young up and comers to show if they were worthy of moving from the mid card to the main events, and for former main eventers to regain some momentum or play gatekeeper.

The NWA, WCW, and ECW all utilized the Television Title correctly for many years and created many stars with that roster spot. Even TNA had a TV Title for a while, technically they still do, but let’s not go down that very dark, very disappointing road now.

From the late 1980s through the late 1990s wrestlers like Steve Austin, Steven Regal, Paul Orndorff, Ricky Steamboat, Arn Anderson, Chris Jericho, Shane Douglas, Bam Bam Bigelow, and Rob Van Dam all had runs as Television Champion in either the NWA/WCW or ECW or in the case of Jericho, both. The title helped each wrestler as well as many not listed. The shiny gold belt around their waste let the masses know to pay attention to them. It was made clear by how early on the show their match was taking place that they were not to be confused with the World Champion. But it got more eyeballs put on the talent, which allowed them to get over as a heel (Austin) or a face (RVD) or in the case of gatekeepers like Anderson help get younger talents over or show that they weren’t yet ready for prime time.

In the year 2014 there is no reason to have Intercontinental and United States Champions. But there is no way that the WWE will ever rebrand the US Title as TV Title. That’s fine, don’t rebrand it, just treat it like a TV Title.

WWE is in the midst of a youth revolution. In my opinion, I think there is an overkill of NXT call ups who are not ready for the main roster flooding my television screen. However, regardless of opinion, one need only have working ear drums to hear that the majority of these talents are not over with the live crowds. For every Wyatt and Shield member, there is a Bo Dallas, Adam Rose, Xavier Woods, Alexander Rusev, and Curtis Axel who through no fault of their own draw cricket noises when they are in the ring. Why? The fans have no reason to care about them. They’re all green in the ring or don’t have a unique character or don’t have mic skills or a combination of the three. How would a US/TV Title get them over?

It would help. A shiny belt draws eyes and symbolizes importance. That’s why world titles are big and gold. Bo Dallas got called up to the main roster because he spent over a year as NXT Champion. But was he NXT Champion because he was over? Or was he over because he was NXT Champion? Or is he nepotism incarnate? Regardless, the Bo-lieve gimmick/character would gain some steam with a win over Sheamus (as of writing the current US Champion) and a lengthy run with the United States title. Bo could then drop the title to another NXT call up who needs to get over as a face like Xavier Woods, Adam Rose, or Sami Zayn (fingers crossed).

Or much like Sheamus; a former main eventer needing to pick up some purpose and momentum again; perhaps someone like Dolph Ziggler, Damien Sandow, Ryback, Mark Henry, or Rob Van Dam could have a transitional run with the title before dropping it to someone like Adrian Neville, Tyson Kidd, or Kalisto.

Dean Ambrose was the right person to hold the US Title for a year. However, management not booking him to defend it for multiple four-month clips did him and the title no favors. This is the perfect time to rebrand or in the case of WWE, repurpose the United States Title. Changing the look of the physical belt also wouldn’t hurt anyone’s feelings.

Unofficially officially making the US Title the NXT bridge belt, as well as a way for main roster journeyman to regain some shine is what is best for business in 2014.

Over half of the main roster is doing nothing of storyline substance. Every NXT call up since the Wyatt Family have been greeted with silence. Using the US Title to put a wee bit of spotlight and attention on these talents to see if they can generate heat, good promos, good feuds, and god forbid money will be good for everyone in the long run. It puts the US Title to use, it puts it in its place, and gives the talent another safety net to fall back on before getting a creative has nothing for you pink slip.

And let’s change the look of the physical belt please. Every other belt in the company has changed looks at least twice over since 2003. No time like the present for a new look and a new purpose for the illustrious United States Championship.

Student Loan #Debt Getting Presidential Treatment

Posted: June 8, 2014 in Excess and Algorithms
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by @anarchyroll
6/8/2014

There is something about the word, and the monetary figure trillion that catches one’s attention. Trillion, as in; the total amount of student loan debt in America is $1 trillion.

A standing rule I have is that anytime the word debt and trillion are together in the same sentence, it is worth keeping an eye and an ear on.

Elizabeth Warren has been attempting to push a student loan debt reform bill through Congress. A bill that would in essence, allow debtors to refinance their student loan debt, something that is not currently allowed to happen.

President Obama has now formally put his support behind the bill.

Student loan debt has real potential to be the next bubble that busts the entire economy akin to the housing and dot-com collapses of the previous two decades.

The other important piece of the legislation is that it lowers the interest rates on the loans themselves. The first benefit of the bill helps those already in debt. The second benefit helps those yet to take out loans. Sounds like a common sense piece of win win legislation. Naturally in Washington it is facing an uphill battle with stark opposition.

Regardless of political affiliation or economic situation, $1 trillion of debt must be formally addressed with public policy of some kind to at least take a small preventive measure against a future recession or depression caused by outstanding debt on a mass scale as currently exists with student loan liabilities.

#Fracking 201

Posted: June 5, 2014 in Frackishima
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(This is an article I wrote as a guest blog piece for a couple of different websites on the subject of fracking hence why the sources are footnotes instead of hyperlinks as I prefer.)
 

by Anthony Roll
(@anarchyroll on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr)
6/5/2014

Fracking is a term that has made its way from the underground to the mainstream in recent years. Do you know what fracking is? Fracking is a short hand term for hydraulic fracturing. What is hydraulic fracturing? In short it is a method used to extract gas from large rocks that are deep underground[1].

The most common type of rock that is fractured in the United States is shale[2]. The process of fracking involves sending highly pressurized water underground mixed with sand and chemicals to break open the shale and release the gas[3]. The process has been around since the 1940s but has become popular in the last decade as a way to reduce America’s dependency on energy producing imports. Fracking has lead to a domestic energy boom that is expected to continue for years to come[4]. The boomerang to accompany that energy boom revolves around the negative environment consequences of the fracking process.

The term fracking has become mainstream in recent years because of the controversy surrounding it. What is the controversy? The controversy revolves around negative environmental consequences that occur before, during, and after the fracking process[5]. From the pollution caused by the transportation of the water and chemicals to the blast sites. To potential as well as documented leaks of the chemicals into local water supplies[6], to tremors and earthquakes caused by wastewater disposal[7], the debate of fracking is another chapter in the battle between commerce and environmental health.

Both sides of the fracking debate have strong evidence to support their stance. Those against fracking frequently point to the documentary film Gasland which showed repeated groundwater contamination caused by fracking that famously included residents near blast sights being able to light their water on fire[8]. Proponents of fracking point the economic benefits to the country at large as well as state and local communities. The natural gas America gets from fracking accounts for 25 percent of our gas supply, meaning we don’t have to import it from overseas. In addition, Pennsylvania alone has seen around 72,000 jobs created from the fracking industry[9].

Economic benefits are great, especially in a country still recovering from The Great Recession[10]. However we as a society can’t cut off our nose despite our face in the name of economic growth. The negative effect of fracking is poisoned fresh water supplies. Although the Earth is 3/4 water, only 2.5% of the water on the planet is drinkable freshwater[11]. Humans cannot survive without freshwater. Fracking poisons freshwater. Fracking is therefore a threat to the human condition. If fracking was not a threat, then why is it banned in five countries in Europe[12]?

Fracking need not be banned forever. A moratorium until the technologies evolve to a point where water contamination has no chance of happening is all that is required. Or how about until the processes no longer cause earthquakes? Is it too much to ask for technology to evolve more in the age of the iPhone and Oculus Rift? Do we really believe oil and gas companies don’t have the money for research and development to evolve the fracking process? Ask those questions to a family dependent on the income earned from working at fracking wells, and the answers might be different. That is the double edged sword of the debate.

Fracking is helping and hurting people at the same time. Families and communities have had their freshwater supplies forever poisoned while at the same time the workers who did the accidental poisoning have jobs for the first time in half a decade. Whose lives are worth more? Fracking forces the issue of asking the tough questions. What happens if freshwater continues to be poisoned as a result of fracking? What if earthquakes continue to be caused as a result of fracking? What if both of those things happen while lots of people and communities continue making lots of money? These are all tough questions that must be asked. When the future of freshwater and energy is at stake, one thing that is not debatable, is that fracking is certainly a preeminent issue of our time.

 

[1] http://www.propublica.org/special/hydraulic-fracturing-national

[2] http://energy.usgs.gov/OilGas/UnconventionalOilGas/HydraulicFracturing.aspx

[3] http://www.theguardian.com/environment/interactive/2011/apr/26/shale-gas-hydraulic-fracking-graphic

[4] http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/12/16/doe-forecast-natural-gas-boom/4034723/

[5] http://www.dangersoffracking.com/

[6] http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/14/opinion/global/the-facts-on-fracking.html?pagewanted=2&_r=0

[7] http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2014/05/140502-scientists-warn-of-quake-risk-from-fracking-operations/

[8] http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2014/05/140502-scientists-warn-of-quake-risk-from-fracking-operations/

[9] http://billmoyers.com/content/the-facts-on-fracking/

[10] http://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/great-recession.asp

[11] http://water.usgs.gov/edu/earthwherewater.html

[12] http://www.energytribune.com/73234/uk-shale-gas-numbers-could-be-stratospheric#sthash.u9Gx9CjJ.dpbs

#XMEN Days of Future Past is The First #Movie of its Kind

Posted: June 5, 2014 in Anarchy Journal Constitutional
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by @anarchyroll
6/4/2014

A sequel, a prequel, and a reboot all in one movie. Regardless of personal taste or opinion, X-Men Days of
Future Past deserves respect for being the first of it’s kind.

Those of us who have fond memories of the 1990s X-Men cartoon that aired on Saturday mornings finally got
the movie we have been waiting almost two decades for since the first film hit theaters. By that, I of course
mean sentinels, sentinels, sentinels.

I’m not fluent in the comics, the X-Men I know are from arcade games, video games, and animated tv shows. I
am still confused why it took fifteen years to get a sentinel movie. I’m sure it’s in the same line of thinking that
thought it a good idea to kill off Cyclops, not have Gambit, have Phoenix with no fire bird, and nothing but
Magneto for a villiain over the course of the first four films.

All is not forgiven or forgotten, but for my money all is made better in X-Men Days of Future Past.

I mean that literally and metaphorically. The details I won’t get too much into to avoid major spoilers.

Bryan Singer (the director) did his best work out of all the comic book movies he has made. The writing was as
good as comic book movies get. My two favorite scenes in the movie do not involve action or explosions.

The merging of the two eras of the movie franchise showed that the acting chops of the bunch goes to the
prequel group. Jennifer Lawerence, Michael Fassbender, and James McAvoy really shine as actors while
everyone else not named Hugh Jackman looked as they did in the original trilogy, like they were phoning it in
and didn’t respect the franchise they were representing.

I was happy to see Bishop and Quicksilver and was still left to wonder where the hell Gambit has been.
Apparently Gambit will be getting his own movie starring Channing Tatum. At this point, that character that is so
popular and has been that ignored, has probably earned his own trilogy.

I suppose there has been a fair amount of negativity in this review considering it’s my favorite X-Men movie by
far and is easily in my top ten comic book movies of all time list. For me thisine is right up there with Dark
Knight, Avengers, Spider-Man 2, Man of Steel, and the like. Certainly a cut above films likes of Green Lantern,
Fantastic Four (both), Amazing Spider-Man (both), and all the X-Men movies that came before it.

A great summer blockbuster that is the first of it’s kind in terms of franchise films. Good acting, good action, a
good tease for what is to come. X-Men Days of Future Past gets my endorsement and my excitement for where
the scene after the credits is taking the franchise. Fingers crossed for my main man Cable!

The #China Bubble

Posted: May 28, 2014 in Excess and Algorithms
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eanda logoby @anarchyroll
5/27/2014

What happens when the country that we borrow from needs to borrow from someone?

China is starting to see companies collapse and borrowing go up. Why should you care?

Because the United States of America is dependent on China whether we want to be or not, whether people know it or not. China now has to spend $4 to make a $1.

If China goes through a depression or a recession or even something resembling a recession, we are going to feel the negative effects here at home. Not just because they buy so much of our government debt, but because China is responsible for 1/3 of global economic input according to the article linked to above.

There’s no need to panic or ring a doomsday alarm. But China is in a debt crisis.When that language/terminology is used there must be cause for concern in the name of financial responsibility and fiduciary duty. Why is that the case? Why should you care about this?

China owns $1 Trillion with a T of US Government Debt.

That may not seem like a lot when you see the total amount of government debt. But a trillion dollars is a trillion dollars no matter how economists may try to justify it to themselves. Anytime a trillion dollars is involved, it’s safe to say that an eye and an ear should be paid to it at all times. Especially when a margin call from China could put us on a bullet train to a 2008 sequel. The sequel is never better than the original, but let’s keep this one in the territory of Casablanca and Old School and let the original stand alone with the test of time.

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