Hulk Hogan: The Hero vs. The Man

Hulk Hogan was never my hero. Growing up in the south, I was an NWA kid; Jim Crockett Promotions was the center of my world and Dusty Rhodes was my father figure. My Saturdays consisted of Dusty versus Ric Flair, The Rock & Roll Express versus The Midnight Express and Magnum TA versus Tully Blanchard. I had no time and even less desire to follow the "paper champion up north," as Hogan was so often referred to.

So my childhood was not shattered when the steroid controvrersy erupted in the early 90's. I wasn't affected as the stories of Hogan's selfishness in the ring and prima donna attitude came to light when he worked in WCW. I didn't bat an eye when the sex tape emerged in 2012 and when WWE cut ties with Hogan last week, I was not one of the fans crying foul.

Heroes are made of stronger stuff than this.

Does this mean I hold any ill will toward him? No. As I said, he was never my hero and honestly, I don't really have a stake in what happens to him. He could be the nicest guy on the planet or the most devious scoundrel that's ever lived and my day will likely begin and end tomorrow as it always has.

But as I sat back and watched the drama surrounding him unfold over the past several days, I have been very surprised at how often I've seen the word "hero" used. Are we still doing that? Are we still holding these guys up on a pedestal and glorifying their works as if they're in line for sainthood?

Why is that? Why do we feel the need as fans to pour out such admiration, such praise, upon ordinary men and women? Hogan's not wearling an S on his chest. He never has. He's as flawed as all the rest of us and judging by what we've seen transpire over the last week, he may be a bit more flawed than all the rest of us.

But he's not the worst of us. It's at this point that the phrase "glass houses" comes to mind but we're already aware of that. Everyone agrees that no one is perfect yet the first opportunity we have to bash someone when they fall, we take it. We have all done it, we are all guilty.

Yet many believe WWE is a company full of hipocrites, covering the sins of talent when it suits them as it sentences others to isolation when it wants to move on. Those fans believe Hogan deserves a second chance, that he should not have been dumped by the company the way he was and that WWE should stop trying to erase his existence from its history.

However, no one in WWE is up for sainthood either. Everyone in that company is only human and humans conduct their lives based upon their own judgments and ideologies. Those judments and ideologies are flawed because humans are flawed and that's just the way it is; what's right for you may not be right for someone else.

But there's much more going on here than just personal affection or disgust in Hogan's direction; saving face and making money is what a company does. WWE cannot employ a man that used racial slurs on tape, anymore than it can employ a woman who gets paid to have sex on tape. Fans can take it personally if they want and that's fine but nothing will change the fact that WWE has to act in the best interest of its sponsors and its shareholders.

Hogan made a mistake. He's made lots of them. We all have, actually. But the difference between him and us? He's Hulk Hogan; he has to know that everything he says and does is scrutinized and judged more harshly than a lot of others because of who he is. Is it fair he's not allowed to be imperfect? No. But that is the price paid for being a hero.

So the isolation continues as the debates rage on. Is Hogan a monster or is he just a man that made a mistake? His words came from somewhere and that place was apparently very dark indeed but does that mean he is beyond forgiveness?

For right now yes. Hogan must deal with the consequences of his actions and suffer his fate as the latest outcast from WWE. What he said was wrong and if he's truly sorry for what he did, then he should seek counseling and deal with his issues while doing everything in his power to atone for his sins.

Hogan hurt a lot of people with this and it's not an overnight fix. He's got a lot of work to do and whether or not he can make it right remains to be seen. Hulk Hogan the hero is no longer the story for me; it's Hulk Hogan the man. What is that man really made of?