Crockerinho

Wrestling Moderator

From WWE.com:

UTSIDE TIKRIT, Iraq ? Mick Foley was eating breakfast with Big Show, Charlie Haas, Eddie Guerrero and some others at the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Paliwoda last week, when he heard a loud explosion.

"We were assured by one of the officers that it was outgoing," said Foley, in Iraq with a team of WWE Superstars for a holiday SmackDown! broadcast." A moment later, we heard another explosion. That was incoming. Soldiers went scrambling around for their (bulletproof) jackets and helmets, and we did, too.

"And through it all, Big Show continued to eat his corn pops."

It's a frightening story ? but one not nearly as unnerving as a conversation I had with Luther Reigns about his visits to U.S. military bases around this war-torn nation.

"If I was 20 years old, I'd join the military," he claimed." It's a license to kickbutt legally, and that's what I like to do."

Honestly, I wasn't too shocked by this comment; Luther's known to utter things like that. It's this next exchange that gave me pause for thought.

"Did you fire any guns while you were here?"

"No," Luther responded, smiling demonically. "Heidenreich did."

It's been a busy week for the SmackDown!" crew. Days before the show, the Superstars landed in Iraq, and splintered into groups, visiting troops in various locations. I ended up here, just miles from Saddam Hussein's hometown, at FOB Speicher ? site of the program. A few hours later, I heard some Christmas carols emanating from a recreation hall.

I walked in to see former WWE Tag Team Champions Kenzo Suzuki and Rene Dupree among a group singing "God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen." Suzuki struggled with a word sheet, while Dupree was holding a candy cane and smiling.

Senior Airman Lawrence O'Neill, 21, of Wayland, MI, could use the holiday cheer. When he embarked on his first mission on Sept. 16, he immediately came under fire on the road back from Mosul.

"I aimed towards some buildings, like I knew where it was coming from, and the shooting stopped," he recounts. "Ten minutes later, we got hit with an IED (improvised explosive device) rolled up in a tube. A piece of shrapnel actually landed in the truck with me. I picked it up, and have it in my room.

"Then, when we got back to the base, we got mortared. That was my first day."

While the majority of the troops I've encountered are committed to the U.S. effort in Iraq, I also came across a few who've grown to question their government. Army Specialist Jim Hrehowsik isn't one of them.

"I don't see this as a war," the 27-year-old native of Sewaren, NJ, told me while displaying his "girlfriend," Becky ? an M-249 that fires between 700 and 1,000 shots per minute." I see this as rebuilding a country."

To show his confidence, he pulled a freshly minted Iraqi "dinar" from his pocket. "Look," he continued, "I'm collecting dinars. Right now, eight dinars equals one penny. But I expect the value to go up ? and to become a very wealthy man."

He also has another strategy for Thursday's SmackDown! show.When his commander carries the Delta Company 701st Main Support Battalion flag towards the ring ? as part of the pre-match ceremonies ? Hrehowsik intends to make his move.

"When the unit's all around him, I'm breaking away," he promised, "and getting myself aplace in the front row."

Crockerinho

Wrestling Moderator

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We're being told that there is a lot of heat backstage on Rob Vam Dam after he refused to go on the "voluntary" middle east SmackDown! tour. The guys were all told backstage at a meeting last week that the trip was 100% voluntary and it was to be left entirely up to them.

Luther Reigns approached management last week and told them he didn't want to go. WWE talent VP John Laurinaitis then told him that if he didn't go, it would have been a huge mistake because although the tour was optional, Vince McMahon expected everyone to attend. He was basically told in more ways than one that if he didn't go, there would be heat on him After being given a long lecture, Reigns reconsidered and went.

Rob Van Dam on the other hand was a different story. He had absolutely no desire to attend the tour and he didn't. Rob told Laurinaitis last week that he wasn't going and was told to go meet with Vince McMahon. Many WWE employees would have likely reconsidered the idea of not going due to having to meet with the boss. Rob Van Dam went to Vince McMahon though and told him he wasn't going. WWE tried one last time to get him to go and he stood by his ground and never went. WWE management is less than happy with his decision.

The Phantom

Im sure RVD has his reasons and Vince and the road agents should respect that, not bully him into going. Good on RVD for making a stand, but it'll probably cost him a push (which i guess he's kinda used to)

Bouchie

Kurt Angle never went last year, and that's when he was doing the pro-USA babyface gimmick. He should have been the first one to sign up, considering.

I can't say I blame RVD, or anyone else, for not going over there. On CNN this morning they mentioned an explosion that just happened in Mosul. Vince should not call something "voluntary" if he doesn't really mean it.

Chewy

Its kind of 50/50. On one hand RVD should be repecting what these guys are doing for him and do the show and on the other he should also worry that he could die if things take a turn for the worse. But its the same for every other superstar thats going over there this year sooo I really dont know what to say, I guess hes just doing whats best for him self.