9/11 Flashback — Ep. #165: September 12-18, 2001 with Matt Griffin & Phil Schneider

Kris Zellner (0:13)

Hello, everyone, and welcome to Between The Sheets, episode number 165

I'm your host Kris Zellner, joined as always by my co-host David Bixenspan. And Bix, we have quite the show this week. A very important show.

David Bixenspan (0:27)

Yes, and a Patreon-selected show. Patreon-selected, I guess that's what you're saying.

Kris Zellner (0:31)

Yeah, William Lanham requested this show, and he picked the interesting week because, of course, we are discussing the aftermath of September 11, the week that was September 12th through the 18th, 2001 And we have a special guest this week making his return to the show.

The man who is the promoter of one of my favorite indie groups right now in the scene, and I love going to watch his shows. And he's also the former Mr. Delicious, JC. North, as we are joined by Matt Griffin. Matt, welcome back to the show.

Matt Griffin (1:09)

I am so psyched to be back, and just tell me when I can plug all my products because I got a lot going on. Yeah, I'm very, thanks for having me back, and I appreciate those kind words about ACTION Wrestling.

Phil Schneider (1:22)

Oh, yeah, I'm front and center. There's one blood.

Kris Zellner (1:24)

Every show at powerbomb.tv, you can find those shows, and it's quality wrestling watching, no doubt. They're all great shows, so please go check them out. powerbomb.tv, BTS Pod gets you a free 20 days. So please do that. But one of the main reasons we hang you on this week, Matt, is you have a special connection with what's going on here as your next military man.

So you will bring a perspective that we don't have on this topic, and we're going to begin talking about September 11th.

David Bixenspan (2:01)

Well, we should, too. Matt is, I mean, we'll talk about later. Matt is also on a show that week that gets discussed in terms of the whole discussion we're about to get into in terms of people trying to figure out whether or not shows should be canceled.

Matt Griffin (2:14)

I will say personally that week, I very much needed that show and that eight hours in the car each way to go to that show because that was a hell of a week.

Kris Zellner (2:25)

Yeah. All right. Dave Meltzer starts on September 11th, 2001

This week has been a trying time for everyone. Watching the news, you want to think it isn't real. It can't be real, but it is. It's appeared in all of our lives that we'll never forget, even though we all wish somehow we could. Life has its joys and its horrors. And this, as far as national disasters is concerned, is as bad as any in most of our lifetimes. Things may never be the same exactly, but we ought to strive to make them as close to the same. We should never forget what happened. We must learn from one. Once again, it is easy to get down and impossible not to be down. But we ought to fight. And as a fight, we must win, not to stay down. For all of you who knew people involved, you have my deepest sympathy. It is tragic that the most selfish among us are often rewarded with the worst results. Those police officers and firefighters in New York lost their lives because they believed their responsibility to their position in society outweighed their personal safety. And those close to them will have to bear the consequences for the rest of their lives. We all know people who have gone through tragedies, and for those close to the victims, the tragedy never fully goes away. Lives are altered, usually not for the best forever. This is a time when all of our resolve will be tested. For those with families or wanting families, you start questioning bringing a life into the world where the flip side of being such a sophisticated and advanced society is that a few horrible people have the power to inflict such damage. It is times like this when you think about those close to you, how you live your life. We should all thank our friends and family for being friends and family and realize in times like this we have to be there for each other. If there is something positive, it is that deep down when things are at their worst, people do stop what they are doing and think of what they can do to help, and it brings out the best in people. This has been a week like no other in any of our lifetimes, a week that we viewed both the worst and best in humanity, images were planted in our minds that will stay forever. Perhaps the worst week in many of our lives and a week where for the first time many of us experienced literally hell on earth. A week where emotions sweat out of control, fear, despair, outrage, vengeance, loyalty, caring about others and forgetting about ourselves, unselfishness in humanity, the likes of which we rarely ever seen. And ultimately we are faced with the quest of getting back to normal. The problem is all of our lives are changed forever. We will get back to a state of normalcy soon enough, but the normal that we once knew may never be the same. For those of us saying just how much people's views in New York City and its people have changed over the past week. When the chips were down, the people of that city under the worst circumstances ever were the real heroes of our lifetime. There's going to be more long-term trauma in many of us everywhere, but unfortunately, as hearing from one person after another who lives or works in Manhattan, as horrific as this was on television, television apparently doesn't even come close to portraying how bad it really was. Keep in mind that during a period like this, I see how it may or may not affect wrestling almost makes me feel wrong to even give any thought to that where the world and the state is in, the economics of pro wrestling shouldn't be of any concern. Wrestling shouldn't be of any concern. It seems that everyone that I've talked with this past week, either knew somebody personally or at least very, at the very least, knew someone who knew someone well who passed away.