John "Bradshaw" Layfield - A Nazi?

[Rainecloud]

Non-fans of World Wrestling entertainment, please don't turn away. I'd appreciate some non-wrestling fan posters to share their opinions here.

Background: John "Bradshaw" Layfield is a 14 year wrestling "veteran" who has recently been promoted to the main event bracket of the Smackdown show, and is currently involved in a heated feud with WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero. The heat behind the storyline is that self-made American "JBL" hates Mexicans, and wants them to get off American soil. Eddie plays the super-over good guy who wants to kick JBL's ass for saying distasteful things about the Mexican public (and for giving his Mother a heart attack). Layfield also has a book on sale, called "Have More Money Now", and is a financial analyst on Fox News and CNBC. He seems to have it made, right? Wrong...

During the beginning of last week, the Smackdown brand of World Wrestling entertainment held some shows in Germany. A WWE Championship match between Guerrero and Layfield was the main event of these shows, and during the show in Munich, JBL decided to take a different approach. Angry that his rubbish act wasn't getting any "heat" (reaction) from the audience, Layfield decided to act like Adolf Hitler by giving the crowd the Nazi Salute throughout the match. This certainly did provoke the crowd, and it angered them greatly.

Personally, I think this is despicable, and it was very foolish of JBL to try and get "Cheap heat" from the crowd, just because his boring and pathetic wrestling skills weren't getting him any sort of a reaction. It's at times like this I feel embarrassed to be a wrestling fan, although I won't stop watching my favourite show because of one man's dumb mistake.

JBL has recently been fired from his television shows as a result of his actions, and he may also lose his radio show. On top of that, he is in hot water with WWE management, and his second championship match against Eddie Guerrero at the Great American Bash (WWE's next major Smackdown Pay Per View event) may be in jeopardy. Also, his Nazi saluting has been reported in many newpapers (both in Germany and abroad), and it looks like he may be facing criminal charges in the near future. When asked why he hailed Hitler, JBL responded by saying "I don't understand why everyone's so angry about it, I'm the bad guy - it's what I'm supposed to do". Other WWE wrestlers have been saying things along the lines of "I'm embarrassed and upset" and "Layfield is a jerk".

What are your thoughts/opinions on this situation? Does JBL deserve to lose his television shows and championship matches for hailing Hitler in Germany last week, or have his actions been blown way out of proportion?

[LH]

Wow, people really know how to overreact. He's portraying a character of a very mean, nasty man. There's no indication there that Bradshaw has any connection in any way with any type of real life, serious bigotry. His long time tag partner Farooq is black, if that means anything. Speaking of which, I can't seem to recall any type of hot water for Farooq, The Rock, D'Lo, Mark Henry, or any of the other guys who used black seperatists gimmick in the late 90's. Granted the characters played by those guys are just bigots and didn't go as far as throwing white people in ovens, the notion was still the same. I don't know. Bradshaw just did something stupid and ignorant, probably without thinking of the consequences. Lighten up a bit, don't crucify him!

[Doc Sark]

I think some of the blame has to be placed on the doorstop of the writers and Vince McMahon. Look at all the talent/top card there is on Smackdown, you got John Cena, Undertaker, Booker T, RVD etc, and they are trying to push Bradshaw, the definitive mid card as a main eventer. Of course in many places he is going to have to take drastic action to make anyone give a monkeys about his character. He doesn't have what it takes , in my opinion, to warrant challenging for the title. It's no wonder the Smackdown brand is so far behind ratings-wise than the Raw brand.

[Big D]

One of the most insulting things you could do to a German audience is given them a nazi salute. The WWE members shoudld've been given a few pointers before entering the country. Simply being "the bad guy" isn't an excuse for abuse like that; portraying a redneck for the public's amusement was about as far as it should've gone, and even that is arguable. Naziism is Germany's, and perhaps the world's, most terrible memory of the past, the ultimate symbol of how low humanity can go. For anyone to publicly invoke those images just to get a response during an entertainment event really isn't on, in my opinion.
The WCW's short-lived "West Texas Rednecks" managed to be provacative and sometimes amusing, without being degrading or insulting. Pro-wrestling is dependent on overblown, outlandish personae, but things should not get taken too far. Nazi-saluting a German audience is clearly too far.

[Peegee]

They do racist things all the time in WWE. Just a few weeks ago Trish Stratus implied she was surrounded by 'frogs' when they were in Montreal.

I agree with LH -- it was just one silly gesture.

[Ifrit's Bodyguard]

I tend to agree with the masses on this one, he was playing a character and if the script writers want him to play a rascist character then they have to take the rough with the smooth. If the German audience respond negatively to him then he has done his job, thats the business he's in and anyone who goes to a WWE show knows that guys like Bradshaw are out to make you hate them.

[Dingo Jellybean]

But the point is that the act WASN'T scripted.

I've gotten tired of the WWF and haven't watched a show in over 4 years. They try everything to get the crowd involved the to draw ratings, but having the writers make a character racist is just stupid, and desperate.

As far as him being fired, maybe suspended, a firing might be too harsh, but I'm not Jewish and if they feel he has to be fired, I just have to step aside. If I were Jewish, I probably wouldn't hate him too much for it, even though I'm not Japanese, when Bill Parcells referred to some of his surprise plays as "Jap" plays, I wasn't too offended...even though I am Chinese.

But people never really think before they speak, and these are the consequences.

[Del Murder]

What law did he break?

[Mikztsu]

I find all this kinda funny. Just imagining him doing that infront of German crowd...heh.

[Big D]

I tend to agree with the masses on this one, he was playing a character and if the script writers want him to play a rascist character then they have to take the rough with the smooth. If the German audience respond negatively to him then he has done his job, thats the business he's in and anyone who goes to a WWE show knows that guys like Bradshaw are out to make you hate them.

Granted, but some things are just too extreme under certain circumstances. Most of the pro-wrestling bad-guy stuff - the kind that's meant to make the audience hate them - is pretty limited. Bad sportsmanship, obscene behavour, nothing that's a direct affront to the audience personally. Nazi-saluting a German audience is a direct and personal offence, made even worse because he was using it as part of an entertainment routine - taking something vile yet weighted with historical importance and using it to provoke a crowd. I'm trying hard to imagine a suitable analogy... perhaps performing in front of a devout Christian audience wearing satanic iconography and making demomic gestures at the crowd, for instance. Or in the same situation, wearing a priest's robes and then strutting around the ring pretending to masturbate.

Wrestling shows need to have 'heroes' and 'villains', but causing a public outrage isn't the way to go. I agree that sacking him could be excessive; but disciplinary action of some kind is needed in a situation like that.[qq=Del Murder]What law did he break?[/qq]I'm not certain, but that kind of thing may be pretty close to illegal in Germany. Anyway, you don't have to break the law to outrage public standards of decency. People go to wrestling shows for entertainment and laughs, not to have their people, history and national shame belittled by someone who should perhaps have known better.

[LH]

I'm German and I'd just laugh at him if he did it in front of me.

[Rainecloud]

[QQ=Del Murder]What law did he break?[/QQ]

This article briefly outlines the situation.

This is what CNBC had to say about JBL's actions.

Thanks for your replies, everyone. It's nice to know that some non-wrestling fans actually post in my wrestling-related threads. As far as I know, the act was definitely not scripted. Who in the right mind would tell JBL to perform a Nazi salute in front of thousands of Germans? And yes, I know that WWE has been racist/offensive before - to a small degree - but I'm sure they wouldn't go as far as to condone Nazism in their shows.

[Ifrit's Bodyguard]

perhaps performing in front of a devout Christian audience wearing satanic iconography and making demomic gestures at the crowd, for instance. Or in the same situation, wearing a priest's robes and then strutting around the ring pretending to masturbate.

He does make "devil horns" regularly though and this new guy Mortichi(sp?) claimes to sit at God's right hand. People are going to make fun of you in this life, thats just the way it its, I feel the German audience should be big enough to accept that and move on.

[Peegee]

I'm German and I'd just laugh at him if he did it in front of me.

Man I learn things about you all the time.

Just because Germany was once affiliated with the Nazi regime doesn't mean they still are. In fact I doubt very much so that they are, just as suddenly Canada's no longer a racist country...or at least from my perspective. I would imagine that "Canada" would be rather upset if I were to go around calling "it" racist. There's no crime committed, but he did insult "a country".

[Cz]

I think it was a cheap way to get the crowd riled up, and perhaps shows that JBL's character isn't effective enough to warrant a main event push. Never mind, after the Great American Bash, the feud will be over, and JBL will be pushed down to the mid-card, which will be better for both him and the fans.

Funnily enough, despite JBL's actions, Eddie didn't get much of a reaction from the crowd. You'd think they'd be supporting him after Bradshaw's salute.