Linguistic
Active member
*****My writing sample is simply meant to show you that I have a brain. How much of a brain? Well, that's up to you. I am here at your pleasure to assist the group. No ego at all.*****
Handler Information
Name: Josh Ray
Email Address: joshberg65@hotmail.com
Best Way to Contact You: E-mail, messenger pigeon, tin-can-and-string telephone
eWrestling Experience: I have been insanely mediocre in more e-feds than an old lady can shake a stick at. At one point in time a character of mine, known as “The Sergeant” won the Empire Pro Wrestling Intercontinental Championship and held it for a cup of coffee.
How did you find DEFIANCE? Brunk, whom I’ve been a geographical bachelor from my entire life, backhandedly asked me if I was interested.
Are you willing to write matches? Only if you don’t make fun of me.
Writing Sample
Originally published as a guest column in the 2015 Halloween weekend edition of The Lebanon Daily Record.
Veterans not Pawns in Hart’s Political Games
As a combat veteran, I took particular interest in Joan Hart’s column earlier this week concerning the Department of Veterans Affairs. I was immediately dismayed to discover Hart took a predictable “democrats bad, republicans good” stance. What pained me more, however, was how comfortable she was with misrepresenting veteran death statistics to support her absurd narrative. The veteran care problem is real but, as usual, Hart takes creative liberties with it. Her “good and evil” narrative of how one side of the American political coin is the champion of all that is good and holy is truly Hollywood-worthy.
The first statistic she negligently introduces to readers is credited to TownHall.com, a supposed “news” website with a distinctly conservative slant. According to this source, the VA budget nearly tripled from 2000 to 2012, which she points out is a higher rate than medical cost inflation. You know what increased at an even faster rate for the same period of time? Soldiers who were wounded or killed in action. According to the Congressional Research Service (which isn’t a conservative or liberal outlet), there were zero combat related deaths in 2000, which increased by 4,585 deaths through 2010. I think the 4,585 death increase is more than triple the VA’s budget rate-of-increase over the same period. Why would Hart leave that statistic out? I can’t say for certain, but in my opinion she either purposely left that information out to fit her screenplay plot or she has poor source vetting skills.
Important to note for this same timeframe is that casualty increased by over 20,000. That statistic doesn’t include those of my brothers and sisters who are dealing with invisible injuries such as post traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. Simply put, funding has not kept up with the increased needs of our veterans So, contrary to Hart’s assertion that the democrats are mistaken that the VA needs more money, it appears that it is less financially capable of caring for veterans than it was 15 years ago.
Still, Hart pushes her agenda to prove that republicans are the only ones capable or willing to repair the VA by, you guessed it, quoting a republican. Jeff Miller (R-Fla) was given the stage in Hart’s column. She delivered his comments that the current VA system is too bureaucratic in true “pot calling the kettle black” fashion. Seriously? Of course it is too bureaucratic. Every government entity is. Government employees at any agency are penalized for thinking outside the box or applying logic. Instead, they must follow the paperwork trail. This is where the VA fails its clients the most.
Hart’s hypocrisy in her column shines brightest when she is telling the reader that the VA is too bureaucratic one moment, then telling them that several republicans brought forth proposals to fix the problem. In actuality, the proposals brought forth do what political proposals always do: remove one requirement, but add two or three more in its place.
Another staggering statistic Hart presented was credited to an Inspector General’s report. Reportedly, 300,000 American military veterans likely died waiting for care. The assertion seemed to be that these veterans died from the illness or disability they were awaiting care for. This is simply not the case. Many died from completely different issues decades later. What’s more telling is that many of those that were waiting on care, applied for it under republican presidents in the 80s and early 90s, while many more were from 2001-2007 under President George W. Bush. There were also many under democratic presidents. Neither side has done veterans many favors.
I’ll give you a personal perspective on the above paragraph. In 2006, I was honorably discharged from the Army under medical conditions. My back was busted up in Iraq and I was dealing with serious mental issues upon my return from “the sandbox.” The VA was supposed to take care of me, but at my most vulnerable, the VA actually asked me to provide pictures of me in combat to prove I was involved in combat operations. Needless to say, my life was already a wreck and I was having difficulty fighting my own mental state. You can guess how much energy I had to devote to fighting the VA. Thankfully, I have a patient wife. Many other soldiers/veterans did not. This was before President Obama, so I know for a fact that the VA’s controversies extend beyond the Obama Administration and Hillary Clinton.
Ask veterans of Vietnam whether the care they currently receive is better than it has ever been. My father-in-law never even received any kind of treatment by the VA as a Vietnam veteran until around five years ago. Seems that under both republican and democrat Presidents, the VA has been a low priority.
Don’t get me wrong. Care for our veterans is pathetic. Our country has a steep and rich history of failing its veterans. It is intellectually dishonest of Hart to tow an ideological line and say that somehow Hillary Clinton is the only one in Washington DC to be out of touch with the reality of the VA. According to the Congressional Research Service, the U.S. has spent nearly 2 trillion dollars in war funding since 2001. The VA’s funding during the same time was only 1.3 billion, so we’ve effectively funded taking care of our veterans 0.07-percent of what we’ve given them to get the injuries in combat that they need care for.
There are an estimated 22 veteran suicides each day. That’s more than the casualty rate of soldiers since September 11, 2001. To me, this is unacceptable. Almost as unacceptable is Hart’s playing of partisan games, using the lives of my battle buddies as a scorecard in the Hollywood blockbuster that is Republican vs. Democrat.
Wrestler(s) Information
Ring Name: “Political Firestorm” Ventura Dunn
Height: 6’
Weight: 222 lbs
Hailing From: Capitol Hill
Alignment: HEEL
Gimmick: Ventura Dunn (VD, because… yeah) is a politician. He is basically everything people hate about everything, but he’ll feed you that chicken crap and insist that it’s chicken salad.
Wrestling Style: Ventura has a theatrical style. He wrestles to elicit reactions from the crowd and announce team. He leans toward grappling in the William Regal sense of the word. He uses impact moves in a similar style to Cesaro, but he uses impact moves much less than grappling.
Three Weaknesses:
· Ventura’s theatrical grappling style opens him up to counters and distractions.
· In typical politician fashion, Ventura is overconfident. He believes his wrestling abilities to be far superior to what they are in reality… this is evident especially in the impact move portion of his moveset.
· His mouth. Ventura often publicly talks himself into worse situations rather than better.
Three Strengths:
· Ventura is actually an accomplished grappler.
· Behind the scenes maneuvering – for some reason, Ventura works his way into opportunities that he may or may not deserve.
· Underhanded tactics. He generally gets away with in-ring cheating.
MOVESET
Ten regular moveset moves:
1) Single leg takedown
2) European Uppercut
3) Judo Hip Throw
4) Muay Thai knee strikes
5) Belly-to-belly suplex
6) Knee Strikes
7) Forearm strike to the back
8) Headlock
9) Fireman’s carry
10) Military Drop Gutbuster
2-5 trademark moves:
1) Spinning elbow drop
2) Double-arm suplex
3) Running knee drop
1 Finishing Move:
Filibuster (Slingshot Suplex Jackhammer)
Handler Information
Name: Josh Ray
Email Address: joshberg65@hotmail.com
Best Way to Contact You: E-mail, messenger pigeon, tin-can-and-string telephone
eWrestling Experience: I have been insanely mediocre in more e-feds than an old lady can shake a stick at. At one point in time a character of mine, known as “The Sergeant” won the Empire Pro Wrestling Intercontinental Championship and held it for a cup of coffee.
How did you find DEFIANCE? Brunk, whom I’ve been a geographical bachelor from my entire life, backhandedly asked me if I was interested.
Are you willing to write matches? Only if you don’t make fun of me.
Writing Sample
Originally published as a guest column in the 2015 Halloween weekend edition of The Lebanon Daily Record.
Veterans not Pawns in Hart’s Political Games
As a combat veteran, I took particular interest in Joan Hart’s column earlier this week concerning the Department of Veterans Affairs. I was immediately dismayed to discover Hart took a predictable “democrats bad, republicans good” stance. What pained me more, however, was how comfortable she was with misrepresenting veteran death statistics to support her absurd narrative. The veteran care problem is real but, as usual, Hart takes creative liberties with it. Her “good and evil” narrative of how one side of the American political coin is the champion of all that is good and holy is truly Hollywood-worthy.
The first statistic she negligently introduces to readers is credited to TownHall.com, a supposed “news” website with a distinctly conservative slant. According to this source, the VA budget nearly tripled from 2000 to 2012, which she points out is a higher rate than medical cost inflation. You know what increased at an even faster rate for the same period of time? Soldiers who were wounded or killed in action. According to the Congressional Research Service (which isn’t a conservative or liberal outlet), there were zero combat related deaths in 2000, which increased by 4,585 deaths through 2010. I think the 4,585 death increase is more than triple the VA’s budget rate-of-increase over the same period. Why would Hart leave that statistic out? I can’t say for certain, but in my opinion she either purposely left that information out to fit her screenplay plot or she has poor source vetting skills.
Important to note for this same timeframe is that casualty increased by over 20,000. That statistic doesn’t include those of my brothers and sisters who are dealing with invisible injuries such as post traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. Simply put, funding has not kept up with the increased needs of our veterans So, contrary to Hart’s assertion that the democrats are mistaken that the VA needs more money, it appears that it is less financially capable of caring for veterans than it was 15 years ago.
Still, Hart pushes her agenda to prove that republicans are the only ones capable or willing to repair the VA by, you guessed it, quoting a republican. Jeff Miller (R-Fla) was given the stage in Hart’s column. She delivered his comments that the current VA system is too bureaucratic in true “pot calling the kettle black” fashion. Seriously? Of course it is too bureaucratic. Every government entity is. Government employees at any agency are penalized for thinking outside the box or applying logic. Instead, they must follow the paperwork trail. This is where the VA fails its clients the most.
Hart’s hypocrisy in her column shines brightest when she is telling the reader that the VA is too bureaucratic one moment, then telling them that several republicans brought forth proposals to fix the problem. In actuality, the proposals brought forth do what political proposals always do: remove one requirement, but add two or three more in its place.
Another staggering statistic Hart presented was credited to an Inspector General’s report. Reportedly, 300,000 American military veterans likely died waiting for care. The assertion seemed to be that these veterans died from the illness or disability they were awaiting care for. This is simply not the case. Many died from completely different issues decades later. What’s more telling is that many of those that were waiting on care, applied for it under republican presidents in the 80s and early 90s, while many more were from 2001-2007 under President George W. Bush. There were also many under democratic presidents. Neither side has done veterans many favors.
I’ll give you a personal perspective on the above paragraph. In 2006, I was honorably discharged from the Army under medical conditions. My back was busted up in Iraq and I was dealing with serious mental issues upon my return from “the sandbox.” The VA was supposed to take care of me, but at my most vulnerable, the VA actually asked me to provide pictures of me in combat to prove I was involved in combat operations. Needless to say, my life was already a wreck and I was having difficulty fighting my own mental state. You can guess how much energy I had to devote to fighting the VA. Thankfully, I have a patient wife. Many other soldiers/veterans did not. This was before President Obama, so I know for a fact that the VA’s controversies extend beyond the Obama Administration and Hillary Clinton.
Ask veterans of Vietnam whether the care they currently receive is better than it has ever been. My father-in-law never even received any kind of treatment by the VA as a Vietnam veteran until around five years ago. Seems that under both republican and democrat Presidents, the VA has been a low priority.
Don’t get me wrong. Care for our veterans is pathetic. Our country has a steep and rich history of failing its veterans. It is intellectually dishonest of Hart to tow an ideological line and say that somehow Hillary Clinton is the only one in Washington DC to be out of touch with the reality of the VA. According to the Congressional Research Service, the U.S. has spent nearly 2 trillion dollars in war funding since 2001. The VA’s funding during the same time was only 1.3 billion, so we’ve effectively funded taking care of our veterans 0.07-percent of what we’ve given them to get the injuries in combat that they need care for.
There are an estimated 22 veteran suicides each day. That’s more than the casualty rate of soldiers since September 11, 2001. To me, this is unacceptable. Almost as unacceptable is Hart’s playing of partisan games, using the lives of my battle buddies as a scorecard in the Hollywood blockbuster that is Republican vs. Democrat.
Wrestler(s) Information
Ring Name: “Political Firestorm” Ventura Dunn
Height: 6’
Weight: 222 lbs
Hailing From: Capitol Hill
Alignment: HEEL
Gimmick: Ventura Dunn (VD, because… yeah) is a politician. He is basically everything people hate about everything, but he’ll feed you that chicken crap and insist that it’s chicken salad.
Wrestling Style: Ventura has a theatrical style. He wrestles to elicit reactions from the crowd and announce team. He leans toward grappling in the William Regal sense of the word. He uses impact moves in a similar style to Cesaro, but he uses impact moves much less than grappling.
Three Weaknesses:
· Ventura’s theatrical grappling style opens him up to counters and distractions.
· In typical politician fashion, Ventura is overconfident. He believes his wrestling abilities to be far superior to what they are in reality… this is evident especially in the impact move portion of his moveset.
· His mouth. Ventura often publicly talks himself into worse situations rather than better.
Three Strengths:
· Ventura is actually an accomplished grappler.
· Behind the scenes maneuvering – for some reason, Ventura works his way into opportunities that he may or may not deserve.
· Underhanded tactics. He generally gets away with in-ring cheating.
MOVESET
Ten regular moveset moves:
1) Single leg takedown
2) European Uppercut
3) Judo Hip Throw
4) Muay Thai knee strikes
5) Belly-to-belly suplex
6) Knee Strikes
7) Forearm strike to the back
8) Headlock
9) Fireman’s carry
10) Military Drop Gutbuster
2-5 trademark moves:
1) Spinning elbow drop
2) Double-arm suplex
3) Running knee drop
1 Finishing Move:
Filibuster (Slingshot Suplex Jackhammer)