AS I SEE IT Special Edition: A horrible truth revealed
by: Bob Magee
Needless to say, shoot angles took a backseat yesterday to a horrible truth revealed as Ring of Honor part-owner Rob Feinstein was implicated in a sting operation run by the Perverted Justice.com website and Philadelphia's WCAU NBC 10 which aired on last night 11:00 pm news. Feinstein was implicated last night in this online sting operation attempting to pick up who he thought to be a 14 year old boy set up via an instant message chat (engaged in by members of the Perverted Justice.com group).
Feinstein (as well as two other individuals) came to the house cited in the sting as the "home" of the 14 year old boy (or girl) that those involved in the sting were portraying, with his face shown and his name used in the story.
PWBTS readers can view the WCAU/NBC 10 story in question featuring Rob Feinstein that aired on last night's 11:00 pm news report at this link (NOTE: Please be aware that the subject matter is for adults only, and judge your use of this link accordingly.)
Pedophilia is a sickness...and it is a crime. I personally find it repulsive beyond words I'll use in this column. It's one of the reasons I've had difficulty with the Catholic Church into which I was baptized, confirmed, and even employed for 2 years; since the Church has knowingly allowed individuals within it to continue in their ministries until very recently...when the Church was forced to take steps toward reform.
My feelings are no different here.
As of this writing, there are no words on whether Feinstein will be charged as a result of this sting. There are reports that WCAU NBC 10 and the Perverted Justice.com group are refusing to cooperate with Delaware County police who have requested the names of the individuals in question. Obviously, Feinstein's name is already public.
The Ring of Honor website announced this morning that Feinstein is stepping down from RF Video and ROH...and that BOTH companies are to continue operations, leaving the March 13 event in Elizabeth, NJ to be on as scheduled.
Here is the statement:
The following statement is from Robert Feinstein:
"It is with deep regret that I step down as partner of Ring Of Honor Inc. and President of RF Video Inc.
Due to recent allegations that have been lodged against me it is in the best interest of both companies that until these allegations are resolved that I step down to avoid tarnishing the excellent reputation that has been built over the years of both companies."
RF Video and Ring Of Honor will continue normal operations without interruptions.
Even if this incident had never happened...Rob Feinstein was certainly a controversial individual over a period of years regarding issues stemming from his RV Video business. Because of those various issues with people, there are many who seem to be more than a little pleased at his fate. To me, this is, in some ways, almost as sick as the act that they criticize. While it is clear that Feinstein's action shown on the NBC 10 story are deserving of whatever sanctions the legal system of the court of public opinion may choose to give him, relishing this as some sort of personal revenge seems more than a little inappropriate to me.
But I think it's important that wrestling fans and fans of the Ring of Honor promotion do not view those who work for the promotion in the same light that Feinstein is deservedly being viewed today. Those within Ring of Honor that fans know, and many that they don't know, are going to be affected by what happened.
Even the organizers of the Perverted Justice.com website seem to attempting to make this fact clear in part of the statement that they issued:
...Perverted-Justice.com is ashamed at Mr. Feinstein's terrible act, and his reckless disregard for his Ring of Honor/RFVideo employees.
However, to make sure the record is clear, Perverted-Justice.com is not anti-wrestling in any form. This situation is not a "black eye" on wrestling, or indicative of the average wrestler or wrestling promoter. Speaking personally as the owner of Perverted-Justice.com and as the individual drafting this release, I am a wrestling fan myself. This incident is not a reflection on wrestling. This is a solitary incident of an individual who clearly needs some form of counseling, no different than any other of the 600+ individuals we have exposed in nearly two years of work.
We call on Rob Feinstein to seek counseling immediately, to apologize to those around him whom he has harmed via his irresponsible actions, and to apologize to his hard-working employees who deserve absolutely none of the negative taint that Rob Feinstein has brought down upon them with his actions this week."
To that I say amen.
Until next time...
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If you have comments/questions, or if you'd like to add the AS I SEE IT
column to your website, I can be reached by e-mail at bobmagee1@hotmail.com)