From the Ross Report this week, I learned that both Chaz and Gangrel have been let go by the WWF.

Gangrel isn't much of a surprise. He's been away with an injury for several years now. He's been gone for so long that fans hardly remember him.

Chaz on the other hand is disappointing. Since the dissolution of the Headbangers, the WWF just haven't had an idea how to use him. They wasted him like they are Jerry Lynn.

I finished a copy of Foley is Good loaned by a friend yesterday.

(I know, I'm many months late, but work with me.)

What was most interesting was his chapters of views about the "wrestling is to blame for all society's ills!" school of thought, and the PTC. There was particularly interesting facts in that chapter:

• Mick compared their practices to those of the McCarthy era in the US - and learned from Linda McMahon that Brent Bozell (Leader L. Brent Bozell III's father) was a speech writer for McCarthy.



• Said father tried to convince the government to launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike on Moscow.



• The PTC use a slightly modified form of the 'Red Scare' tactics on sponsors: withdraw or have the PTC call you supporters of child murder.



• Of the four child murders they cite as proof of Smackdown! being a cause, 3 of them occured before the show even premiered, and the one during (the Lionel Tate incident we often hear about) had the wrestling accusation thrown out in court as invalid.

Fascinating points. Also, the PTC only count the incidence they determine as vulgar (often just counting the same act multiple times); none of them actually watch the program.

The storyline between Kurt Angle and 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin added a few nods to storyline history tonight.

Michael Cole reminded viewers of the first one: Austin trying to recreate his hit and run on Angle in the exact same arena parking lot where he was 'run down' some two years ago.

The other didn't get mentioned yet, but I suspect it will get mention on Heat: the bridge that Austin tossed the medals off. It's the same bridge he threw the Rock's Intercontinental title off a year earlier than that. That was a nice touch.

His promos around his actions also smacked of Paul Heyman. They were very much ECW-style.

Last few weeks of RAW, I was bombarded with an annoying buzzing sound throughout the show. Fortunately, I tune it out after 15 minutes or so.

At first, I just thought it was a case of TSN having audio problems, that it would disappear... but now, from columns on Wrestleline that many people had the same annoyind sound all over the place.

I guess the WWF have some weird audio shizat going on of late...

Well, RAW tonight was... different.

Some more members of the Alliance are developing personalities... but what's developing is as strange as anything Atlanta came up with.

Case in point: Hurricane Helms. His fixation on superheroes is amusing (though I have to wonder what sort of royalties the WWF have to pay for such use of their Green Lantern character) - but that paint mask and hero pantomime stuff is just silly-looking.

At least the Rock provided some great tributes to NWA/WCW legends... inclusing a great nod to Ric Flair. No doubt about it, the WWF wants him when his Turner-AOL contract ends.

Jim Ross just doesn't learn, does he?

He came under flack for the past week's Ross Report for a derogatory comment yet again about WCW.

Jim, let's remind you again: The WWF now owns WCW. The more you put it down now, the more you hurt your own product.