Post by Anthony Bailey on Aug 11, 2012 16:59:04 GMT -4
"I woke up this morning, you know...and the sun was shining, and it was nice and all that type of stuff. And the first thing, I saw you and uh, I said ‘Boy, this is gonna be one terrific day so you better live it up because tomorrow you'll be nothing.’ You see? And I almost was." – James Dean as Jim Stark, Rebel Without A Cause (1955).
Like Jim Stark, many men, both young and old, have been on an extensive quest for masculinity and have struggled to fit in among their peers. Bailey could have easily become a casualty to this epidemic had his own father and other men around him not taken the time to invest in him and give him the affirmation he needed. He might not wave a banner that welcome critics with open arms, but if there is one thing Bailey knows how to handle well, it’s slander.
Johnny Rebel has toiled ruthlessly to drag Bailey’s name through the mud and instead of getting all worked up like he has done time and time again in the past, he has decided to "turn the other cheek." Not in a passive sense to where he won’t even engage Rebel, but in a way where it shows his opponent and others that his rookie skin is much thicker than they think it is.
{{The scene opens to a downtown view of the alluring but small city of St. Augustine, Florida. Numerous automobiles, horse carriages, and pedestrians crowd the streets and sidewalks of the year round tourist attraction on this humid Saturday afternoon. The camera slowly pans to the right and suddenly Anthony Bailey emerges into the scene but from a distance. He’s standing in front of an old antique store, which is moderately successful but located in a more concealed part of the downtown area so Anthony is removed from all of the hustle and bustle. He’s wearing a plain white T-shirt, black cargo shorts, and a pair of black and white Nike sneakers. Scrolling through his iPhone, he wraps up whatever it is that he’s doing once the camera gets closer to him. He slides the phone into his pocket, faces the camera and smiles, and slowly begins to speak.}}[/color]
Anthony Bailey: You might assume that smiling at such a time like this would be difficult for me to do but in reality, I find it quite easy. Or you might also assume that that signature smile of mine is to mask some sort of fear or insecurity about what will occur tomorrow night in Boise. Yes, the fear of the unknown might dictate an ounce of influence of my current emotions but all in all, I am perfectly mine. The more Johnny Rebel’s promos have attempted to stir up outrage in me or motivate me to retreat from my mission, the more peaceful nights I have successfully slept like an infant. The more he has attempted to rally up troops for the “anti-Bailey” bandwagon, the more assurance in myself I have taken. Johnny Rebel thinks that his harsh words are weighing me down but they are actually reaffirming everything that I have already said.
And no, it’s not the same horse crap that I rant and rave about supposedly week after week as you claim Rebel, but it was something that I said as we were only a few days away from beginning the year 2012. Hop into the DeLorean with me, fasten your seatbelts, and let’s go back in time a few months. I made a remark about the man Johnny Rebel himself and I said how he reminded me of a popular film released back in 1955 starring the late, great James Dean as Jim Stark. Unlike Stark, Rebel might not have just moved to a new town or met a new girl and obviously he’s way too old and way beyond his high school years. But if Johnny Rebel’s life could be summarized into one sentence, it would be the title of this movie.
He claims that he is here to set this place straight but for what? What needs to be set straight about Asylum, one of the cornerstones of APW? This brand isn’t flawless and does have its issues but whatever needs to be amended around here; I’ll take charge in doing so as the World Champion. And it would be impossible for you to set anything straight Rebel because you are directionless and have no idea where to go from here. You are the one without a cause, not this brand and certainly not me. You want to know why I say the same things more than once? Because I want the fans and the supporters of this business to hold my actions accountable by what I am proclaiming. I want it to be engrained into their long term memory and call me out if I’m not doing what I said I would. You defy authority and individuals attempting to hold you accountable and the things you say are vain babble so you wouldn’t understand my approach to this sort of thing even if Stephen Hawking were hired as your personal tutor.
You’re trying your hardest to pitch the lame idea of you using Level-One and the Sindicate to get what you wanted out of them or how you demolished the entire Overdrive roster and decided to extend your demolition ways over on Asylum. That’s what you want us to think but face it, you and I both know the truth. You’ve been in the business for almost eighteen years and the inescapable thought of soon hanging up yours boots terrifies you. You are noticing your joints are a bit stiffer than last year and your vision and mind aren’t as acute as they once were. So what better way to stay relevant than to target the golden boy of the brand that you are now on? It’s pure genius, especially for someone as careless and as wayward as you.
This is proof that Anthony is more confident in himself concerning Johnny Rebel this time around. His words toward Rebel were nowhere near this compelling when they first wrestled back in January.[/color]
You can try to discredit me and what I have done so far in my career, but discrediting and acknowledging what’s evident is totally different. Discrediting your opponent is what lying politicians do. But I decide to go the moral route and shed light on what has already been revealed. Reginald has never once handed me anything on a silver platter, I have earned everything on my own. And with the support of the fans and some healthy dialogue with a few individuals that have been doing this longer than I have, I have sustained everything that I have earned. But look at you Rebel, a man clamoring for one last taste of dignity. Sarah isn’t around, Level-One and the Sindicate aren’t around, you no longer have your Overdrive Title or your Tag Title and you are willing to crush the dreams and aspirations of a young man who is at the position you used to be in. Good thing that young man cannot easily be crushed though huh?
{{Bailey slightly smirks.}}[/color]
You expect me to fold like a game of poker but I’ll go on to raise the question of when have I ever folded? Did I fold at Test For The Best when Jason Kash and I made history during APW’s first ever lumberjack match? Or how about at Rasslemania against Chaz Dillinger when I was crowned the new Tap Out Champion? It’s kind of ironic because if anybody can teach the masses a thing or two about folding, it would be you since you folded at both of those events. First during the fatal four way for the Undisputed Title and secondly during the Tag Team Title match. While I triumphed and exited those arenas victorious, you walked back to the locker room and blamed everybody else for your loss except yourself. Kurt Noble was the one who was instrumental in both of your losses at those pay per view events, so maybe you’re just trying to take out the suppressed anger you feel towards him on me. Is that what this is about Johnny?
Maybe it’s not because I cannot see vengeance being on your vague agenda. I already know what you are up to so I won’t even entertain that thought…but I still don’t get you Rebel. When I think I have you all figured out, you throw another curveball that causes me to see even more how pitiful you are. You say that I mention your name to leech off of your success but I have to stop you right there. Mainly because this is APW and not PWO or WWA because we all know that you haven’t experienced “true” success ever since then. And lastly, I must stop you right in your footsteps because when I mention you; it’s always in the context of the inception of my career. Dislike me all you want but you are synonymous to who I am because you were my first ever professional opponent. I often gag at the mentioning of your name but there is no way around it. You were a gateway into my beginning here in APW, but you fail to realize how much things can change in seven months. Not only did I stride through the gate, but I have now become the gatekeeper…
Your most outrageous assertion to date has to be when you said that I want to be just like you. Even if I tried my hardest and clicked my heels together three times like Dorothy, I could never be you and would never desire to be. You are one of the most hopeless people I have ever come across in my entire life and as I said before, I thrive off of hope. To quote H.G. Wells, "I hope, or I could not live." Your life and your career are wasting away daily while mine has reached new heights far beyond what I could have ever imagined. I’m only twenty-two years old and I am in the prime of my life and the crazy part about it is that I’m just getting started both figuratively and literally speaking.
The high school students in Nicholas Ray’s movie Rebel Without a Cause felt a great deal of inward conflict and insignificance during the scene at the Griffith Observatory. This is the scene where the one actor said “We will disappear into the blackness of the space from which we came.” Now my intent isn’t to get philosophical on you but to paint a clearer picture of who Johnny Rebel truly is. I have always been a believer of having a bigger purpose other than me and winning championship belts. Tending to my own needs is a given but I know that it is pointless for me to be entirely consumed in myself. I realize that the world does not revolve around Anthony Reese Bailey and I am fine with that.
Another reason why I could never be Johnny Rebel is for the fact that he doesn’t get this simple and freeing truth. He does think that the world revolves around him and that time starts when he rises in the morning and stops when he lies down at night and shuts his eyes. But nearly eighteen years of this belief system and chasing the wind of dominance, power, and esteem is beginning to take a toll on Rebel. His career is on the brink of disappearing into the blackness and he’s paralyzed in fear. Brand hopping and trying to verbally disgrace me are just branches in the trunk. Peeling away the bark and getting down to the root of Rebel’s intentions will expose a man wrestling with a great deal of peril. Hopefully my victory over him tomorrow night will serve as an anecdote for him to come to grips about the direction of his life so he can begin to make the necessary adjustments.
And never forget who I am Johnny Rebel, I am Anthony Bailey…APW’s only Promise…the only Promise that can't be broken, not by you or anyone else. I’ll be seeing you tomorrow in Boise.
{{The scene slowly fades to black as Anthony walks off in the opposite direction.}}[/color]
Like Jim Stark, many men, both young and old, have been on an extensive quest for masculinity and have struggled to fit in among their peers. Bailey could have easily become a casualty to this epidemic had his own father and other men around him not taken the time to invest in him and give him the affirmation he needed. He might not wave a banner that welcome critics with open arms, but if there is one thing Bailey knows how to handle well, it’s slander.
Johnny Rebel has toiled ruthlessly to drag Bailey’s name through the mud and instead of getting all worked up like he has done time and time again in the past, he has decided to "turn the other cheek." Not in a passive sense to where he won’t even engage Rebel, but in a way where it shows his opponent and others that his rookie skin is much thicker than they think it is.
{{The scene opens to a downtown view of the alluring but small city of St. Augustine, Florida. Numerous automobiles, horse carriages, and pedestrians crowd the streets and sidewalks of the year round tourist attraction on this humid Saturday afternoon. The camera slowly pans to the right and suddenly Anthony Bailey emerges into the scene but from a distance. He’s standing in front of an old antique store, which is moderately successful but located in a more concealed part of the downtown area so Anthony is removed from all of the hustle and bustle. He’s wearing a plain white T-shirt, black cargo shorts, and a pair of black and white Nike sneakers. Scrolling through his iPhone, he wraps up whatever it is that he’s doing once the camera gets closer to him. He slides the phone into his pocket, faces the camera and smiles, and slowly begins to speak.}}[/color]
Anthony Bailey: You might assume that smiling at such a time like this would be difficult for me to do but in reality, I find it quite easy. Or you might also assume that that signature smile of mine is to mask some sort of fear or insecurity about what will occur tomorrow night in Boise. Yes, the fear of the unknown might dictate an ounce of influence of my current emotions but all in all, I am perfectly mine. The more Johnny Rebel’s promos have attempted to stir up outrage in me or motivate me to retreat from my mission, the more peaceful nights I have successfully slept like an infant. The more he has attempted to rally up troops for the “anti-Bailey” bandwagon, the more assurance in myself I have taken. Johnny Rebel thinks that his harsh words are weighing me down but they are actually reaffirming everything that I have already said.
And no, it’s not the same horse crap that I rant and rave about supposedly week after week as you claim Rebel, but it was something that I said as we were only a few days away from beginning the year 2012. Hop into the DeLorean with me, fasten your seatbelts, and let’s go back in time a few months. I made a remark about the man Johnny Rebel himself and I said how he reminded me of a popular film released back in 1955 starring the late, great James Dean as Jim Stark. Unlike Stark, Rebel might not have just moved to a new town or met a new girl and obviously he’s way too old and way beyond his high school years. But if Johnny Rebel’s life could be summarized into one sentence, it would be the title of this movie.
He claims that he is here to set this place straight but for what? What needs to be set straight about Asylum, one of the cornerstones of APW? This brand isn’t flawless and does have its issues but whatever needs to be amended around here; I’ll take charge in doing so as the World Champion. And it would be impossible for you to set anything straight Rebel because you are directionless and have no idea where to go from here. You are the one without a cause, not this brand and certainly not me. You want to know why I say the same things more than once? Because I want the fans and the supporters of this business to hold my actions accountable by what I am proclaiming. I want it to be engrained into their long term memory and call me out if I’m not doing what I said I would. You defy authority and individuals attempting to hold you accountable and the things you say are vain babble so you wouldn’t understand my approach to this sort of thing even if Stephen Hawking were hired as your personal tutor.
You’re trying your hardest to pitch the lame idea of you using Level-One and the Sindicate to get what you wanted out of them or how you demolished the entire Overdrive roster and decided to extend your demolition ways over on Asylum. That’s what you want us to think but face it, you and I both know the truth. You’ve been in the business for almost eighteen years and the inescapable thought of soon hanging up yours boots terrifies you. You are noticing your joints are a bit stiffer than last year and your vision and mind aren’t as acute as they once were. So what better way to stay relevant than to target the golden boy of the brand that you are now on? It’s pure genius, especially for someone as careless and as wayward as you.
This is proof that Anthony is more confident in himself concerning Johnny Rebel this time around. His words toward Rebel were nowhere near this compelling when they first wrestled back in January.[/color]
You can try to discredit me and what I have done so far in my career, but discrediting and acknowledging what’s evident is totally different. Discrediting your opponent is what lying politicians do. But I decide to go the moral route and shed light on what has already been revealed. Reginald has never once handed me anything on a silver platter, I have earned everything on my own. And with the support of the fans and some healthy dialogue with a few individuals that have been doing this longer than I have, I have sustained everything that I have earned. But look at you Rebel, a man clamoring for one last taste of dignity. Sarah isn’t around, Level-One and the Sindicate aren’t around, you no longer have your Overdrive Title or your Tag Title and you are willing to crush the dreams and aspirations of a young man who is at the position you used to be in. Good thing that young man cannot easily be crushed though huh?
{{Bailey slightly smirks.}}[/color]
You expect me to fold like a game of poker but I’ll go on to raise the question of when have I ever folded? Did I fold at Test For The Best when Jason Kash and I made history during APW’s first ever lumberjack match? Or how about at Rasslemania against Chaz Dillinger when I was crowned the new Tap Out Champion? It’s kind of ironic because if anybody can teach the masses a thing or two about folding, it would be you since you folded at both of those events. First during the fatal four way for the Undisputed Title and secondly during the Tag Team Title match. While I triumphed and exited those arenas victorious, you walked back to the locker room and blamed everybody else for your loss except yourself. Kurt Noble was the one who was instrumental in both of your losses at those pay per view events, so maybe you’re just trying to take out the suppressed anger you feel towards him on me. Is that what this is about Johnny?
Maybe it’s not because I cannot see vengeance being on your vague agenda. I already know what you are up to so I won’t even entertain that thought…but I still don’t get you Rebel. When I think I have you all figured out, you throw another curveball that causes me to see even more how pitiful you are. You say that I mention your name to leech off of your success but I have to stop you right there. Mainly because this is APW and not PWO or WWA because we all know that you haven’t experienced “true” success ever since then. And lastly, I must stop you right in your footsteps because when I mention you; it’s always in the context of the inception of my career. Dislike me all you want but you are synonymous to who I am because you were my first ever professional opponent. I often gag at the mentioning of your name but there is no way around it. You were a gateway into my beginning here in APW, but you fail to realize how much things can change in seven months. Not only did I stride through the gate, but I have now become the gatekeeper…
Your most outrageous assertion to date has to be when you said that I want to be just like you. Even if I tried my hardest and clicked my heels together three times like Dorothy, I could never be you and would never desire to be. You are one of the most hopeless people I have ever come across in my entire life and as I said before, I thrive off of hope. To quote H.G. Wells, "I hope, or I could not live." Your life and your career are wasting away daily while mine has reached new heights far beyond what I could have ever imagined. I’m only twenty-two years old and I am in the prime of my life and the crazy part about it is that I’m just getting started both figuratively and literally speaking.
The high school students in Nicholas Ray’s movie Rebel Without a Cause felt a great deal of inward conflict and insignificance during the scene at the Griffith Observatory. This is the scene where the one actor said “We will disappear into the blackness of the space from which we came.” Now my intent isn’t to get philosophical on you but to paint a clearer picture of who Johnny Rebel truly is. I have always been a believer of having a bigger purpose other than me and winning championship belts. Tending to my own needs is a given but I know that it is pointless for me to be entirely consumed in myself. I realize that the world does not revolve around Anthony Reese Bailey and I am fine with that.
Another reason why I could never be Johnny Rebel is for the fact that he doesn’t get this simple and freeing truth. He does think that the world revolves around him and that time starts when he rises in the morning and stops when he lies down at night and shuts his eyes. But nearly eighteen years of this belief system and chasing the wind of dominance, power, and esteem is beginning to take a toll on Rebel. His career is on the brink of disappearing into the blackness and he’s paralyzed in fear. Brand hopping and trying to verbally disgrace me are just branches in the trunk. Peeling away the bark and getting down to the root of Rebel’s intentions will expose a man wrestling with a great deal of peril. Hopefully my victory over him tomorrow night will serve as an anecdote for him to come to grips about the direction of his life so he can begin to make the necessary adjustments.
And never forget who I am Johnny Rebel, I am Anthony Bailey…APW’s only Promise…the only Promise that can't be broken, not by you or anyone else. I’ll be seeing you tomorrow in Boise.
{{The scene slowly fades to black as Anthony walks off in the opposite direction.}}[/color]
