Let's be honest: a large percentage of the folks who dislike (name call, pick on, troll, etc.) T.R. Foley are animated or triggered by differences with his political views.
He writes an opinion column that mostly offers non-political views on wrestling, but occasionally he feels free to speak about figures like Hastert or Jordan or particular issues that do in fact affect the sport like race or Title IX. That's his prerogative.
If you don't appreciate his views, why not either ignore him or offer substantive responses instead of calling him a Communist (which he is not), or whatever?
Most of the wrestling community is right-wing and often very, very conservative. It's also tends to be very religious and rural on the whole. That generates its own biases and blindness as well.
I don't see any (or at least many) calling out Askren or Saylor or Schultz or so many, many others for interjecting their very right-wing or authoritarian views on Twitter or podcasts or interviews. Pyles too gets very nationalist and even jingoistic in his political views on international wrestling. It would be easy to provide additional examples.
Why not also be aware that most of the top wrestling countries are currently ruled by authoritarians, even tyrants, and often have very regressive theocratic tendencies? Maybe there is actually a connection with wrestling here, one that few arguably like to think about.
Some folks are going to miss Foley as their punching bag. A few of us might actually miss his more informed, cosmopolitan and educated experiences and positions that add something to the discussions and debates.
