Spirited stagnation
Aug 18, 2020 3:45:58 GMT -5
Post by OrochiGeese on Aug 18, 2020 3:45:58 GMT -5
*Arthur Wingate stands in front of a UBL banner with a solemn expression.*
[Arthur:] "I've run this moment through my head over a hundred times in the past two months. The words have always been clear but the conviction behind them has faltered, especially the longer it has taken for me to speak of them.
However, I was inspired by the words and actions of RYOMA, the the new Super NOVA Universal Champion this past weekend. Everyone in the UBL congratulates him for winning his first major World Championship. And he showed the will of a warrior to take on an entirely new challenge fresh off the completion of a seemingly insurmountable one. It is that spirit that motivates me to come in front of you all today and bare my conscience over what has transpired since May.
It has been four months since the UBL has been allowed to run an event. Despite our successful start to the Continuum stream, a massive roadblock was erected to stall our momentum. Because we are incorporated in the United States, we are subject to the jurisdiction of a federal government task force called the Council of American Wrestling Standards. Their emissary to us, a Mr. Devin Kunn, was the one responsible for terminating our broadcast license in December. He came to me again in May with the news that we were to immediately cease all live events as well. The cynic in me would note that our success in drawing a live audience seemed to work inexplicably against us, as he claimed we were subjecting a broader audience to the alleged violation of decency codes that caused us to lose our broadcast license to begin with.
However, this was just the warning shot of his offensive. Mr. Kunn based his sanctions of us on an accusation that we have never faced before. It wasn't of excessive violence, it wasn't of the dangers of group warfare, it wasn't of the threat to public health that Ralph Ferguson posed. Rather, it was of stagnation. He claimed that we had grown stale. Of course, I questioned his expertise in making that judgment as well as his authority to enact a punishment as a result.
But in the interest of full disclosure, here are his findings:
1. Gauntlet's attack on us since January has been uninspired and unoriginal because of the similarities to Destiny's war against us. You heard that correctly - we were blamed for the lack of novelty that a violent aggressor demonstrated against us. Apparently it was also our fault that the aggressor had allies who were our previous unsolicited adversaries. I can only surmise that the lesson here is to try to act in a unique way when you are repeatedly made the victim of attacks.
2. Since we have produced leagues and tournaments before, we should try something different. If I recall, Luke Kisiera's apoplectic response to that was: "Do you even know WTF ubble is?" Mr. Kunn could not answer the question and actually dropped the line of inquiry. I bought Luke a steak dinner afterward as a reward for his heroism. Jean knit him a sweater.
3. He then claimed that our wrestlers were not using state of the art maneuvers inside the ring. Mr. Kunn had this complaint when he originally graced us with his presence in the spring of 2017. Addressing that led to an almost year long delay at that time. Clearly, I could not allow that to occur again this year. So, in the hope of salvaging the early momentum of our Collider Tour, I agreed to Mr. Kunn's conditions.
He demanded that we spend the entirety of the summer training our roster in cutting edge moves and a flare for innovation. For those in the press and community who have been wondering why the Peter Venkman Memorial Arena has had so much activity despite not running shows, all of our wrestlers have been training nonstop in the Dojo for the past few months. We were lucky to have veterans like Corey O'Brian and Geese Walker step up to work with some of the younger wrestlers. Certainly Barton's fledgling Basic Training program benefited from additional guess trainers as well. So I will not deny that the in ring product will improve as a result of this regimen, but Mr. Kunn's approach to this issue was draconian and of questionable legal validity. Training would have continued had shows continued. We are always open to implementing reasonable ideas to improve our product and have a successful track record of doing so. How Mr. Kunn could watch the main event of Continuum I and see the way RYOMA defeated Cosmic K*I*D yet still call our style stagnant is beyond me.
But pride and a fondness for reality is a privileged luxury when you are under the thumb of a capricious organization. So here we are three months later incredibly eager to run live events again. Mr. Kunn said we could resume shows once he was satisfied with our progress and if we were willing to no longer be attacked by Gauntlet in the same way as we were by Destiny. Four months have passed and I still do not have a response to that last unenforceable condition. However, each member of our roster is primed to get back into the ring and show their passion and innovation.
I call on you now, Mr. Kunn, to return and see our progress. The fans are the beneficiaries and your employers. Give them what they want and what we have earned. Allow us to wrestle again."
*Arthur bows and the camera turns off. He breathes a sigh of relief and walks off of the set.
A few minutes later, a suited figure approaches him.*
"If I still traded, I'd buy all your stock for a speech like that."
[Arthur:] "But will it move him?"
*Geese Walker smirks*
[Geese:] "Thin skin bruises easily and the reaction is immediate."
[Arthur:] "Undoubtedly but all of this hinges on your read of the situation."
[Geese:] "I have a proficiency in propaganda and wish to finally use it for good."
[Arthur:] "And the potential for escalation?"
[Geese:] "It has already occurred. We are just catching up. Understand, Wingate, we can not reclaim the 2020 that you had planned for. This is our reality now and we must bend its trajectory to our advantage."
*Geese nods and walks off as Arthur looks concerned.*
[Arthur:] "I've run this moment through my head over a hundred times in the past two months. The words have always been clear but the conviction behind them has faltered, especially the longer it has taken for me to speak of them.
However, I was inspired by the words and actions of RYOMA, the the new Super NOVA Universal Champion this past weekend. Everyone in the UBL congratulates him for winning his first major World Championship. And he showed the will of a warrior to take on an entirely new challenge fresh off the completion of a seemingly insurmountable one. It is that spirit that motivates me to come in front of you all today and bare my conscience over what has transpired since May.
It has been four months since the UBL has been allowed to run an event. Despite our successful start to the Continuum stream, a massive roadblock was erected to stall our momentum. Because we are incorporated in the United States, we are subject to the jurisdiction of a federal government task force called the Council of American Wrestling Standards. Their emissary to us, a Mr. Devin Kunn, was the one responsible for terminating our broadcast license in December. He came to me again in May with the news that we were to immediately cease all live events as well. The cynic in me would note that our success in drawing a live audience seemed to work inexplicably against us, as he claimed we were subjecting a broader audience to the alleged violation of decency codes that caused us to lose our broadcast license to begin with.
However, this was just the warning shot of his offensive. Mr. Kunn based his sanctions of us on an accusation that we have never faced before. It wasn't of excessive violence, it wasn't of the dangers of group warfare, it wasn't of the threat to public health that Ralph Ferguson posed. Rather, it was of stagnation. He claimed that we had grown stale. Of course, I questioned his expertise in making that judgment as well as his authority to enact a punishment as a result.
But in the interest of full disclosure, here are his findings:
1. Gauntlet's attack on us since January has been uninspired and unoriginal because of the similarities to Destiny's war against us. You heard that correctly - we were blamed for the lack of novelty that a violent aggressor demonstrated against us. Apparently it was also our fault that the aggressor had allies who were our previous unsolicited adversaries. I can only surmise that the lesson here is to try to act in a unique way when you are repeatedly made the victim of attacks.
2. Since we have produced leagues and tournaments before, we should try something different. If I recall, Luke Kisiera's apoplectic response to that was: "Do you even know WTF ubble is?" Mr. Kunn could not answer the question and actually dropped the line of inquiry. I bought Luke a steak dinner afterward as a reward for his heroism. Jean knit him a sweater.
3. He then claimed that our wrestlers were not using state of the art maneuvers inside the ring. Mr. Kunn had this complaint when he originally graced us with his presence in the spring of 2017. Addressing that led to an almost year long delay at that time. Clearly, I could not allow that to occur again this year. So, in the hope of salvaging the early momentum of our Collider Tour, I agreed to Mr. Kunn's conditions.
He demanded that we spend the entirety of the summer training our roster in cutting edge moves and a flare for innovation. For those in the press and community who have been wondering why the Peter Venkman Memorial Arena has had so much activity despite not running shows, all of our wrestlers have been training nonstop in the Dojo for the past few months. We were lucky to have veterans like Corey O'Brian and Geese Walker step up to work with some of the younger wrestlers. Certainly Barton's fledgling Basic Training program benefited from additional guess trainers as well. So I will not deny that the in ring product will improve as a result of this regimen, but Mr. Kunn's approach to this issue was draconian and of questionable legal validity. Training would have continued had shows continued. We are always open to implementing reasonable ideas to improve our product and have a successful track record of doing so. How Mr. Kunn could watch the main event of Continuum I and see the way RYOMA defeated Cosmic K*I*D yet still call our style stagnant is beyond me.
But pride and a fondness for reality is a privileged luxury when you are under the thumb of a capricious organization. So here we are three months later incredibly eager to run live events again. Mr. Kunn said we could resume shows once he was satisfied with our progress and if we were willing to no longer be attacked by Gauntlet in the same way as we were by Destiny. Four months have passed and I still do not have a response to that last unenforceable condition. However, each member of our roster is primed to get back into the ring and show their passion and innovation.
I call on you now, Mr. Kunn, to return and see our progress. The fans are the beneficiaries and your employers. Give them what they want and what we have earned. Allow us to wrestle again."
*Arthur bows and the camera turns off. He breathes a sigh of relief and walks off of the set.
A few minutes later, a suited figure approaches him.*
"If I still traded, I'd buy all your stock for a speech like that."
[Arthur:] "But will it move him?"
*Geese Walker smirks*
[Geese:] "Thin skin bruises easily and the reaction is immediate."
[Arthur:] "Undoubtedly but all of this hinges on your read of the situation."
[Geese:] "I have a proficiency in propaganda and wish to finally use it for good."
[Arthur:] "And the potential for escalation?"
[Geese:] "It has already occurred. We are just catching up. Understand, Wingate, we can not reclaim the 2020 that you had planned for. This is our reality now and we must bend its trajectory to our advantage."
*Geese nods and walks off as Arthur looks concerned.*