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GUEST EDITORIAL
By Justin James, PWTorch.com reader

This is a response to the Guest Editorial arguing Angle is auditioning for a WWE return.

The common sense behind Kurt Angle's recent statements is that he is preparing to possibly try returning to the WWE. That's a good theory, and it certainly fits the mold, as I understand it. But I have an alternate theory, which is that Kurt Angle may actively be trying to repair his past.

I do not know Kurt Angle personally, and I have only been following wrestling for a short period of time. But all of the research and reading I have done on Mr. Angle suggests that he may very well have had a substance abuse problem. Indeed, he himself has said that he was addicted to painkillers. I would certainly not try to diagnose Mr. Angle via news reports, of course, but it is sadly all too common for professional wrestlers to turn to drugs and alcohol for a number of reasons. We all know the story.

Why is this pertinent? Let's imagine that he decided to seek help for this issue. The standard course of "treatment" for substance abuse is a "drying out" period in a medical facility under medical supervision, followed by various courses of treatment within the facility and afterwards as well. Most importantly for this discussion, patients are almost always, as a rule, introduced to an appropriate "12 step program" such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, etc.

One of the major tenets of 12-step programs is the "making amends" process, where one tries to not just say "I'm sorry," but to actually undo to the best of their abilities the things that they have done wrong. For example, one would not just say, "I'm sorry I stole the money from your wallet," but also pay that money back. Likewise, when one slanders, smears, or attacks the reputation of someone else, the approach to setting things right would be to stop making those attacks, and then making statements saying that your were wrong in your previous outbursts.

Of course, it is wholly possible that Mr. Angle is simple paving the road back to the WWE. And I certainly hope that if he truly is struggling with drugs or alcohol, that he gets the help that he needs. Regardless, I find it rather unfortunate that Mr. Angle's statements are assumed to be self-serving. Is it possible that he is simple growing up a bit and trying to be a decent human being?

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