Parallax Views w/ J.G. Michael
Society & Culture
On this edition of Parallax Views, Vince McMahon, the former chairman and CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), was the most powerful man in all of professional wrestling (or, as he likes to call it, "sports entertainment"). Now though McMahon is completely out of WWE after horrific allegations of sex trafficking and abuse of a former employee, Janel Grant. It's not the first time controversy has follow McMahon or WWE. There's also the case of Rita Chatterton, a former WWE referee who accused McMahon of rape, and the ring boys scandal, in which WWE employees Mel Phillips and Terry Garvin (as well as Pat Patterson) were accused of being involved in a pedophile sex ring within the company.
In lieu of the latest accusations, I reached out to Josie Riesman, author of the book Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America, to discuss McMahon and the wrestling empire he built over the years as well as how it relates to issues like robber baron-style capitalism and labor exploitation. We'll also, of course, discuss the sex scandals mentioned above as well as diving into the early history of Vince McMahon, who initially grew up in poverty with an abusive stepfather. Moreover, we'll delve into the relationship between Vince and his biological father Vince McMahon Sr. and how the book is also about father/son relationships. Other issues discussed include:
- Vince McMahon Sr. (Vince's father) and the FBI tapes in which he threatens pro wrestler Dr. Jerry Graham
- The issue of "independent contractor" status in pro wrestling and how it could be seen as labor exploitation
- The wrestling term "kayfabe" and why Josie believe the concept needs to be studied outside of a pro wrestling cotnext; Josie's concept of neokayfabe, omerta in pro wrestling, and the "protect the business" dictum
- Tom Cole and the ring boys scandal
- Vince McMahon's wife, Linda McMahon
- And much, much more!
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Argentina’s President-Elect Javier Milei’s Hawkish Foreign Policy w/ Eldar Mamedov
The Horror! The Horror! A Film Fanatic’s Obsession With the Cinema of the Macabre w/ Dennis Daniel
Armenians Under Threat from Israeli Settler Extremists in Jerusalem w/ Prof. Bedross Der Matossian
Beyond the Genocide Debate: Permanent Security Logic & the Gaza War w/ Dirk Moses/The ”Were the Nazis Better Than Hamas?” Discourse is Distorting Holocaust History w/ Waitman Beorn
The UN, the Gaza War, Protest, International Law, and the Beginning of the PalCast w/ Helena Cobban
Two Jewish Perspectives on American Jewish Political Discourse Before & Since October 7th, Antisemitism, & Israel/Palestine w/ Prof. Dov Waxman & JTA’s Ron Kampeas
Ariel Sharon’s Ghost Haunts Gaza w/ Geoffrey Aronson/Gaza, Permanent War, & U.S. Foreign Policy w/ Paul R. Pillar
The Potential Coming War in the South Caucasus, Israel’s Arming of Azerbaijan, and the Corruption of U.S. Foreign Policy by Lobbies w/ James W. Carden
Israel’s Strategic Culture and Its Failing + Israeli Information Warfare w/ Dr. Andreas Krieg
Negotiating with Hamas, the Quest for Peace, & More w/ Israeli Hostage Negotiator Gershon Baskin/The Enduring Global Disorder & Qatar’s Potential Role in Postwar Gaza w/ Jason Pack
The Longstanding Hostilities Between the United Nations & Israel w/ Ian Williams
The Israeli Covert Op Project Butterfly and the October 7th Intelligence Failure w/ James Bamford
The Postwar Future of Gaza Is Likely Dystopian w/ Prof. Nathan J. Brown
Israel/Palestine and the Joint Arab League-OIC Summit on Gaza in Riyadh w/ James M. Dorsey
On Gaza, Israel/Palestine, and the Arab World w/ Eric Margolis
Benjamin Netanyahu’s Worrying Use of ”Amalek” in His Gaza War Rhetoric w/ Ariel Gold
Uses & Abuses of the Settler Colonialist Paradigm, Jabotinsky’s Revisionist Zionism, Israel/Palestine History, Stalin’s Support of Israel, Misunderstanding Fanon?, & the Gaza War w/ Ralph Leonard
How George HW Bush Checkmated the Israeli Right and AIPAC w/ Ettingermentum
Gaza, Israel/Palestine, Palestinian Identity, and What It Will Take to Achieve Peace: Two Perspectives w/ Juan Cole & Shireen Hunter
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