MMA Anarchist HW Jeff Monson

A thread dedicated to news about UFC fighter and anarchist Jeff "the snowman" Monson

An old intervieuw, nicked from infoshop:

Welcome to Infoshop News
Saturday, November 22 2008 @ 12:19 PM CST

An Interview with Anarchist Jeff "The Snowman" Monson of the Ultimate Fighting Championship

Tuesday, March 07 2006 @ 11:36 AM CST
Contributed by: Anonymous
Views: 16,574
"The constitution is just a piece of paper!"

Ground & Pound's Tim Leidecker spoke with the controversial Abu Dhabi Champion on Januarry 11, 2006, about the political
and social problems in the United States as well as his upcoming fight against Branden Lee Hinkle at UFC 57.




Ground & Pound: To do away with any prejudices right at the beginning: What are you exactly Mr. Monson?
Anarchist, communist, terrorist, vandalist?

Jeff Monson: I am an anarchist, someone who would like to do away with all class hierarchy in society and the institutions that promote this inequality.



GnP: How long can the United States still bear with George W. Bush?

JM: The sad truth is that as long as the media is controlled by those in charge, propanganda and misinformation will continue to be forcefed to the public and consequently change will be very hard to come by. Bush would probably be elected again if the law allowed for three terms.

GnP: Do you think that either the 2000 or 2004 elections could have possibly been rigged?

JM: Nothing would suprise me but I am not a conspiracy theorist. I need to see facts before being convinced of anything. Saying that, Bush did steal the 2000 election but not by ballot improprieties. Months before the election, George's brother Jeb was able to push through a measure which forbade felons to vote in the State of Florida. However, the election officials bungled and thousands of Florida citizens who had never committed a felony were denied their right to vote. The errors were eventually corrected and voting rights restored... after the election. Over 80% of the 47,000 people affected by this "mistake" were black; voters who traditionally (especially in southern states) vote democratic.

GnP: Does the republican party "abuse" the relgious beliefs of the US citizen in order to get more votes?

JM: It is obvious that Republicans attempt to impose their "Christian" values on Americans and the rest of the world for that matter. I think its more of an attempt to justify certain actions than a move to garner votes.

GnP: Do you think the war in Iraq can be interpreted not only as quest for oil but also as religious crusade?

JM: I really can't believe the war is a religious crusade because it is really inconceivable that Bush and his cronies could commit these kind of atrocities and actually believe they are acting in the name of God. When you send your citizens to die for economic profit, make shady deals with dictatorships they condemn publicly, eliminate environmental protection regulations and eradicate funding for the poor and mentally ill, it makes it difficult to justify in the name of Christianity.

GnP: Are parts of the US media guilty of creating a mass panic from terrorism reports?

JM: The media is just a propanganda machine, spitting out words the government has given them to get the atttention of the dull-witted masses: Wmd's, terrorists, insurgents, democracy. When I'm in Japan they have an international newspaper at the hotels. It is shocking to see the difference between unbiased news coverage compared to what we
have here in the US.

GnP: What do you think of projects like "Rock Against Bush"? Do you think it's a legitimate approach at opening people's eyes or just an attempt of exploiting a politically controversial opinion commercially?

JM: I think these projects have good intentions; it's just important to keep the goal in view. Is the goal to educate people or to make money? Ultimately those running the projects will have to decide what is important to them.

GnP: Through your job as a fighter you have travelled large parts of the US as well as forgeign countries like England, Brazil or the United Arab Emirates. Judging from you experiences would you say that the "Project Multiculturalism" has failed in the US more than elsewhere?

JM: What I have learned through traveling is that people really are products of their environment. Poverty, corruption and lack of freedom breeds discontent. The inequality between classes is the fuel for this discontent. The old saying goes "'money is the root of all evil"; but really it is class inequality which leaves most unable to self-actualize (reach their potential) which I believe is the basis for human misery.

GnP: The First Amendment of the US Constitution guarantees every citizen the freedom of speech. On the other hand you are receiving a lot of heat from large parts of the MMA community for your non-conformal opinion. How do you deal with that personally and do you think that part of the bill of rights is not in peoples minds anymore?

JM: The constitution is just a piece of paper that gets changed or ignored when those in charge find it to be inconvenient to what they want at the time. It has happened since the constitution was first drafted. This just was proved again when congress signed over the right to declare war over to the president directly violating the constitution. However, most importantly to me (and to anarchists): How can another person or document GIVE me my rights? Who is anyone to tell me what MY rights are? The constitution guarantees MY freedom of speech because some rich, white, land owners, 200 years ago decided they would by their good graces GIVE me this right? The declaration of independence states that all men are created equal. If this is to be believed than how can one man decide what another man's rights are? That is why the U.S.
is seen as the land of hypocracy.

GnP: How do you agree on the anarchists rule of thumb of non-violence and your life/profession as a fighter?

JM: Not all anarchists believe in non-violence. There are different schools of thought in the direction that resistance to oppression should take. A career in fighting really can't be compared because obviously it's a profession and the violence is contained to competiton.

GnP: At UFC 57 in four weeks time you are facing Branden Lee Hinkle from Mark Coleman's team. Even though he has never submitted anybody even close to your caliber, do we have to fear you being held down and controlled by a bigger man?

JM: He is an outstanding wrestler, that is for sure. I know he is a strong guy as well. I would like to keep the fight standing as much as possible and work my striking.

GnP: There are some insiders in the fight game who claim that the fight has been booked because Hinkle is the champion on (right-wing) Joe Krantz' show World Extreme Fighting. Do you think there's any truth in making it a political battle?

JM: I really was unaware of the WEF title or anything about that organization to be honest.

GnP: What would your gameplan against Arlovski look like?

JM: I think I can match his game. I would feel comfortable in any position against him. I know he's dangerous though
and I definately respect his ability.

GnP: Are you disappointed that you never had the chance to showcase your talent in Japan so far? Shouldn't the best heavyweight grappler not be in the PRIDE Heavyweight Grand Prix as well?

JM: It's long overdue but unfortunately I don't get to make those decisions. In the near future I hope.

GnP: In the end, do you have a message for your fans in Germany, Austria and Switzerland?

JM: I appreciate all the support. I will be doing a few grappling/MMA seminars in Europe this spring and will definately be going to Germany. Thanks again!

http://www.groundandpound.de/interviews/in..._monson_de.html

Video of his latest fight vs. right-winger Brandon Lee Hinkle:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=I47KzpbKJ20&search=monson

jeffs official site: http://www.jeffsnowmanmonson.com/

Please dont upload pictures of me onto the internet.

Thx bye.

great fan of his tattoos. I'm thinking about joining a grappling training group, does anybody on this board has any experience with grappling/BJJ?

i wanted to start doing mma/shooto but that would mean switching dojo's, and sins i'm very fond of my current one im still very much in doubt.

I do BJJ and my instructor rolled with Jeff Monson and the arnold world cup for 3rd place. lost by points not submission tho.

http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/mon...it-again-15782

haha gotta love him

(en) Russia, St. Petersburg, Media, Jeff Monson interview - The Wobbly Fighter
Date Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:24:07 +0200


It was a bit more of a hassle to secure the interview with the American heavyweight mixed
martial arts fighter Jeff "The Snowman" Monson than with some other people. It was because
he had one piece of publicity too many: he was photographed by a reporter in his local
newspaper in November as he was spray-painting the Washington State Capitol with circled
a, peace sign and "no war" and "no poverty" slogans. After the photo was published, Mr.
Monson was charged with First Degree Malicious Mischief, and an arrest warrant was issued:
"I just spent 5 days in jail over the incident but it will not hinder my travel to Russia.
I have to stand up for what I believe in." ---- The thing is, Mr. Monson is an anarchist,
and you can find some circled a's tattooed on his body, as well as Russian words "freedom"
and "solidarity": "The tattoos are just one way to express my beliefs.

I back up what I believe in my actions. I've been detained,
tear-gassed, pepper-sprayed, and spent time in jail for what I
believe." His two children provide him with support, though it's not
quite unconditional: "They think maybe I take it too far sometimes
[...] and I know they were not excited about me being in jail for five
days when I could have been at home with them."

Mr. Monson may not look it but he actually has a Master's in
psychology: "I think my appearance can be helpful or a hindrance. Some
people look at me and automatically think 'this guy can't be
intelligent'. But when they get to talk to me I think they forget
about the outside appearance and tattoos, etc. I am utterly convinced
[in] what I believe about anarchism and that the current state of the
world in a capitalistic dominated venue is oppressive and
destructive."

One of Mr. Monson's sponsors is the anarchist publisher AK Press; he
named Leo Tolstoy as his "favorite writer ever," singling out Mr.
Tolstoy's scathing anti-state essay "The Kingdom of God Is Within You"
particularly. Mr. Monson, however, is not Tolstoyan enough to turn the
other cheek as far as his professional activity is concerned: "I enjoy
competition very much. The most difficult sport in the world is MMA
fighting. It is the ultimate challenge to me and I'm attracted to
that. Outside the cage I can still be articulate and well-spoken. In a
way I am just a wage slave, earning a living. I just happen to enjoy
what I do."

Mr. Monson is also a wobbly, that is, a member of the Industrial
Workers of the World - which begs the question whether being a fighter
qualifies as working in an industry? "Well, to be sure most workers
now are not exactly in industry. I do work, I guess you could consider
it the entertainment field. The IWW does have a long history of
fighting for workers' rights and hopefully this will continue until
the workers are no longer being exploited under the yoke of the
owner's quest for profit. The workers actually owning and controlling
the businesses and the production of goods and services is the goal.
The wobblies are quite strong in the Pacific North-West and I feel
blessed to live in the area with many people with progressive minds."

Speaking of minds, before Mr. Monson dedicated himself completely to
MMA fighting, he worked as a mental health professional: "I wish the
training I got from counseling others would translate into helping me
prepare mentally for a fight but it really doesn't help. I try to stay
relaxed and calm and treat the fight like a tough training session. I
enjoyed my time working with others in the mental health field. There
are always opportunities when I'm done fighting for that."

Fighting is a tough sort of occupation indeed: "In the cage there are
two competitors doing whatever they can with very limited rules to
knock or submit each other." However, Mr. Monson sees it as a fairly
safe sport, thanks to "the physical evaluations each fighter must go
through to be eligible to compete," among other things: "There are
going to be some injuries [but] I think there has been two deaths
total in MMA fighting. In boxing there are several deaths every year."

Mr Monson's evident interest in Russia was probably one of the factors
that led to him almost fighting Fedor Emelianenko a year or two ago
but the plans fell through: "I'm not sure what happened with the Fedor
fight to be honest. I don't think his trainers liked the match-up is
my take on it." This time Mr Monson's debut fight in Russia will pitch
him against Ibragim Magomedov at the Yubileiny Sports Complex on
February 28. But Russian or not, it doesn't matter much to Mr Monson:
"I don't take color or race or anything except my opponent's skill
when I fight."

hes not in ufc anymore and he actually just lost a fight somewhere in brazil (?) pretty badly

I saw a blurb about him in rolling stone. He seemed pretty bad ass. Gotta wonder why an anarchist chooses to help make money for UFC and their corporate sponsors and beneficiaries.

On the other hand, it gives him an avenue to put the politics out there. If not him some other asshole will help UFC make money.

great fan of his tattoos.

Mine are better.