Wrestling fans are referred to within the wrestling business as "marks"

The term was used for decades of course, but many of us didn't know it existed. But it was fair. It implied that we didn't know what was going on. That we thought what we were watching was real. And most of all, that we were willing to pay money to see it. Which we did. We were all "marks" at some point.

Then the term "smart mark" or "smark" came along. This is, in my opinion, the most accurate term to describe a majority of wrestling fans nowadays. Most of us know it's fake. Most of us know a lot of the tricks of trade. We know the game now. We still enjoy the business, but we get that it's just a show.

Then came "internet mark". This is where I think the term "mark", in all it's variations, started becoming a dirty word.

Since the rise of the internet, many of us have been given a voice that we never had before. We can now tell the whole world exactly what we think about anything in wrestling. We no longer have to buy a ticket and hope that our homemade signs aren't going to be taken away from us. We can bitch about or praise the product immediately. Hell, we can even do it while we watch the show.

The wrestling business, in general, clearly hates the "internet marks" more than any other category of marks. Some in the business have gotten wise, and realized that we don't hate wrestling. We love it. With a passion. We desperately want to see the business, regardless of what company it is, to do well. Because we love it so damn much.

I feel they've used the word "mark" as a way to separate themselves from us. They've done that by turning into an insult. And it's worked. So much so, that even people in the "IWC" call each other "marks" in a derogatory manner. It's become rather sad to see. It's practically the "N-word" of professional wrestling at this point.

I think most of the people in the business, especially the ones calling the shots, use it as an excuse to make unpopular decisions. Then some of them hop online, ironically enough, and bitch about us bitching about them. Say that we are just "stupid marks" that don't understand anything about wrestling. I think that maybe the business is just mad at the fans because we stopped paying money for some of the crap they present to us at times. We no longer eat whatever they feed us, and they hate it.

So from here on out, I'm "taking it back", so to speak. Damn near everyone in the wrestling business is a mark, and goddammit, so am I.

Comment if you agree. Or even if you don't. Either way, have a nice day.