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[Razgriz-Specter]

Doesn't every country sing the anthem in school every morning? Every country I've ever lived in sure does.

Where in the US do you live that you hear the US anthem every morning?

Alabama here and we never listened to it once during school.
Heck even the pledge fell off here by Junior High ('04,'05)

 

[beelzebozo]

Yesterday I had to deal with this mindset.

Wife’s birthday and I spent it with her side of the family. Her father is really pissed about the flag thing.

I tried to explain how no rights are being violated or rules being broken and that Trump has no say on the NFL because the owners for the most part seem to support the players.

Tell him they are afforded the right to do so by the constitution and I get the usual “I don’t care”.

As expected since listening to crap like Hannity I was told in my own home “Oh god another fucking bleeding heart liberal.”

Then he points to me, looks to the family and says “He’s exactly what fucking wrong with this country.”


I almost lost it. Had to go in the basement. Minutes later he left the house and went home.


Right before that he went into the “shit like this is only a problem if you’re black!”, to which I had to promptly state “You don’t speak like that in my house.”

Trying to raise my daughter to be better than that.



I always knew he was a bit racist, but he was raised that way and for the longest time he kind of just kept it to himself. However this shit stain in office has normalized it yet again and he is acting in a way I haven’t seen in the 12 years I’ve known him.

We’ve never went at each other like we did yesterday.

this sounds horrible.

but you are basically heroic for standing up to him.

 

[Bowler]

Obviously some people take it too far but I didn’t realize it’s such a bad thing to be proud of where you are from. I’m proud to be an American. Guess that makes me some sort of brainwashed lunatic eh?

Not at all. Being proud of the country your from, the state you reside, the city in which you live, the family your born into. These are all engrained and woven into our upbringing. You can still show you're support for your flag. As I will. We have issues, just like every country on earth. As long as we continue to work towards fixing these issues, we will continue to live free.

We keep calling out the bullshit, keep making injustices known... that's how I choose to make change. Kneeling or not standing for the pledge or anthem? Whatever floats your boat of protest, but the country is not at fault. Lol

 

[Euphoria14]

this sounds horrible.

but you are basically heroic for standing up to him.

I just don’t want my daughter hearing that kind of garbage. Don’t want to be attacked in front of the family in own home either. God forbid you did that to him in his home...

One one hand we have my wife’s family who’s is 100% white through and through, and nothing wrong with that.

However then you look at my side. We have all kinds of people, it’s very diverse. White, black, spanish, middle eastern, my dads side of the family specifically just don’t give a fuck where your family comes from.


I want my daughter to be all inclusive and I’ll fight my family if that’s what it takes to make sure that mindset stick with her.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

Not at all. Being proud of the country your from, the state you reside, the city in which you live, the family your born into. These are all engrained and woven into our upbringing. You can still show you're support for your flag. As I will. We have issues, just like every country on earth. As long as we continue to work towards fixing these issues, we will continue to live free.

We keep calling out the bullshit, keep making injustices known... that's how I choose to make change. Kneeling or not standing for the pledge or anthem? Whatever floats your boat of protest, but the country is not at fault. Lol

Can I quote this to others?? Very well said.

 

[Astral/H3X]

Right before that he went into the “shit like this is only a problem if you’re black!”, to which I had to promptly state “You don’t speak like that in my house.”

Jesus fucking tap dancing christ.

 

[jroc74]

Thank you for this thread.

It's hard to not respond to the ignorance on Yahoo comment section. This thread helps. This thread is basically what I want to say to folks.

And totally agree, it's not really about the flag, kneeling during the anthem that has some, many ppl upset.

 

[More_Badass]

Obviously some people take it too far but I didn’t realize it’s such a bad thing to be proud of where you are from. I’m proud to be an American. Guess that makes me some sort of brainwashed lunatic eh?

There’s a difference between being proud of the aspirational ideals and values and positive achievements and whatnot, and blind fanatical devotion that dismisses any flaws or lapses in those ideals or that puts “you must love your country” over the concerns and struggles of its people

ie

 

[Dopus]

Here's a rather petty video from someone who is in a heightened state of distress burning their NFL merchandise.

https://youtu.be/GSxeF68FRsk


It's quite something I must say.

 

[Forearm Star]

Something that always bothered me, these individuals never looking at their anger as a whole.

People kneeling during them anthem at the very least have stopped what they are doing and are acknowledging the flag and the song being sung.

Many many many people during these same moments are on their phones, taking a piss, eating a hotdog, ordering a beer, taking pictures or trying to get to their seats. Many of us at home have the anthem on and are busy doing whatever we can to pass the time before the game starts.

Why has no one addressed this if the problem is people "disrespecting" the flag?

How is actually acknowledging the anthem and flag but kneeling when you do so more of an issue than people flat out not giving a fuck?

 

[Adam Sadler]

Here's a rather petty video from someone who is in a heightened state of distress burning their NFL merchandise.

https://youtu.be/GSxeF68FRsk


It's quite something I must say.

Lmao I wish someone would show this to Mike Tomlin

 

[DrROBschiz]

Flags, songs, statues

This shit only carries the meanings we give them

And should be the first thing that gets trashed when we have issues concerning people and their livelyhood

Imagine putting inanimate objects before people. How can anyone say that our country is healthy in this divisive climate and give two fucks about objects, symbols and songs.

They all don't mean shit if the people of this country hate each other.

Its time to stop with the status quo bullshit. Stop acting like you can just go about your life without dealing with our collective issues. White people are so annoyed that their is consequences to our collective apathy.

 

[Wolfgunblood Garopa]

It's not a perspective per se, but a lack of perspective.

It comes from a primal, emotional place. It's surface level emotional reaction to something that they just can't understand. They aren't capable of thinking beyond a surface level emotional reaction. They are angered when they perceive something as disrespectful to America without any perspective as to what actually makes America worth being proud of. On the contrary, they contribute to making it a worse country for everyone, tearing at the weak points that others are attempting to heal.

 

[NekoFever]

Doesn't every country sing the anthem in school every morning? Every country I've ever lived in sure does.

Not sure why you think America is unique in that regard.

Never did here.

 

[Late Flag]

I've always thought it was strange that we play the national anthem and present the flag at sporting events, to the point that it seems vaguely creepy. I remember thinking about this when I was a little kid, so this isn't something I reasoned my way to -- it's more like ingrained temperament. My life experience has taught me that I am in the extreme minority on this one. Most people react to things that look unpatriotic in ways that strike me as being too emotional.

 

[More_Badass]

I've always thought it was strange that we play the national anthem and present the flag at sporting events, to the point that it seems vaguely creepy. I remember thinking about this when I was a little kid, so this isn't something I reasoned my way to -- it's more like ingrained temperament. My life experience has taught me that I am in the extreme minority on this one. Most people react to things that look unpatriotic in ways that strike me as being too emotional.

This last year in particular, but mainly since Ferguson, really made me question and reconsider my perspective of and beliefs about America as a citizen

 

[jroc74]

Something that always bothered me, these individuals never looking at their anger as a whole.

People kneeling during them anthem at the very least have stopped what they are doing and are acknowledging the flag and the song being sung.

Many many many people during these same moments are on their phones, taking a piss, eating a hotdog, ordering a beer, taking pictures or trying to get to their seats. Many of us at home have the anthem on and are busy doing whatever we can to pass the time before the game starts.

Why has no one addressed this if the problem is people "disrespecting" the flag?

How is actually acknowledging the anthem and flag but kneeling when you do so more of an issue than people flat out not giving a fuck?

Exactly.

There is an article on a site about how a couple of NASCAR folks feel. They basically feel the way Trump does.

Article mentions how years ago drivers stayed in the cars, didn't stand. Of course commenters mentioned that's irrevelant because technology and time constraints back then.

So.... it's fine to not stand when it's inconvenient for you, but you better not stay seated, take a knee as a protest.

 

[Skellig Gra]

I personally think it’s way too simplistic to say it’s just racism. I’ve seen first hand where people get crazy and to the point of violence over perceived disrespect of the National Anthem and it was 2 white people. People only understand the idolatry and completely miss the point of why these things are supposed to be so great in the first place (freedom/democracy/etc).

 

[jroc74]

Doesn't every country sing the anthem in school every morning? Every country I've ever lived in sure does.

Not sure why you think America is unique in that regard.

We used to stand and recite the pledge of allegiance in DC. maybe sung some song, but not the national anthem. That stopped many years ago.

 

[GrizzleBoy]

Can I just fucking remind this motherfucker called America that just one month ago, all these fucking assholes including Trump were out here defending the fucking TRAITOROUS CONFEDERATE FLAG and NAZIS.

DEFENDING the confederacy that went to WAR with America for their right to own black people. Calling it "southern heritage". Completely acceptable.

DEFENDING the fucking Nazi scum that most of the fucking vets and "army Dead" lost their humanity, sanity and lives fighting against because they believed in America's freedoms.


But for a black man to kneel silently in protest towards Nazis, the KKK, white supremacists, police brutality, institutional racism......NOOOO YOU CAN'T FUCKING DO THAT!!!!!! THAT'S DISRESPECTUL. The POTUS is ready to tackle YOU, but ain't got no strength for KKK, CONFEDERATE lovers, Nazis, etc.


You can make a national issue about your desire for an athlete making a peaceful, silent protest to be fired, but ain't got shit to say about cops murdering people on a regular basis losing theirs?


Where were these fucks when Trump was disrespecting America by just being Trump?

Where were these fucks when it became clear Russia was trying to fuck with American democracy

Where were these fucks when Trump was running for pres and told the world that soldiers who get captured can't be heroes?

GTFOH.

America is racist as fuck and it can fuck right off for the amazingly disgusting piece of shit it increasingly finds harder to hide.

Anyone complaining about the kneeling can get fucked. They know they arent protesting against America

Get fucked.

 

[JayB1920]

I personally think it's way too simplistic to say it's just racism. I've seen first hand where people get crazy and to the point of violence over perceived disrespect of the National Anthem and it was 2 white people. People only understand the idolatry and completely miss the point of why these things are supposed to be so great in the first place (freedom/democracy/etc).

I think its a mix of both honestly but there is a lot of ignorance and hypocrisy with the people upset over this whether they realize or not.

 

[rudger]

To be fair people complain about actors/actresses being political as well, and the majority of well known actors/actresses are white.

In addition, the "respect our flag" argument has also been used against "hippies" who would burn the flag in protest. I've frequently seen this complaint lodged against white people who were protesting issues unrelated to race....not that people aren't being racist here, just that the argument is very frequently used against white protestors for non-race related issues. It's just an easy way to ignore the point of the protest by claiming that the method is insulting to you and your country (especially if you've served).

On a related note, I knew a woman who was mad when she saw somebody wearing the American flag as a cape. She was in ROTC and was saying, "I can't believe they are disrespecting the flag like that". They weren't even protesting! We are a weird nation.

 

[Omegasquash]

Human beings have rights, and those that choose to kneel are human beings.

Just like me.

Just like you.

They're not flipping the flag off. They're not burning it. They're not wiping their ass with it. They're not making giant fart noises. They're not holding up signs. They're not interrupting a damn thing.

Instead of criticism, perhaps listen and make an attempt to understand why they're protesting in what has GOT to be the most non-violent, non-aggressive manner I have ever seen. They're not in anyone's face. They're being as humble about it as possible.

My understanding of it is that people are quicker to judge racially centered issues or protests, because to agree or side with those protesters challenges their opinion of their self and their existing world view. It makes them uncomfortable, and rather than take a moment to critically run their outlook through a filter that those protesting provide, they choose to defend their opinions. Easier to say "I'm not racist and they're wrong" than to say "It's possible that I've been looking at things from my perspective only, and that perspective benefits me at the expense of others."

That quickness to judge is born of racism. Not the kind that burns crosses, but the one that's built into you from years and years of experience. I urge people to consider the thoughts and experiences of those in protest, and to consider their outlook in an honest, non-defensive attempt to understand their fellow man.

 

[guybrushfreeman]

In addition, the "respect our flag" argument has also been used against "hippies" who would burn the flag in protest. I've frequently seen this complaint lodged against white people who were protesting issues unrelated to race....not that people aren't being racist here, just that the argument is very frequently used against white protestors for non-race related issues. It's just an easy way to ignore the point of the protest by claiming that the method is insulting to you and your country (especially if you've served).

On a related note, I knew a woman who was mad when she saw somebody wearing the American flag as a cape. She was in ROTC and was saying, "I can't believe they are disrespecting the flag like that". They weren't even protesting! We are a weird nation.

Can you really say burning the flag and kneeling during the national anthem are the same thing though? They don’t seem remotely equivalent to me

 

[br3wnor]

And yeah, I'm so sick of this dollar store patriotism in the form of flag worship and the national anthem. So easy to get misty eyed over a piece of cloth and talk shit about people not performing certain rituals than actually be civic minded and want your country to improve and fix its faults.

EXACTLY

It’s the laziest form of patriotism and doesn’t actually add any value to our country or society. Congrats, you saluted a flag, literally anyone is able to do that.

 

[the-pi-guy]

It largely stems from Conservatives views of patriotism (moreso nationalism)..
To conservatives, the country, its flag and military are sacred entities that should always be respected in exactly the right way.

Some people think it is disrespectful because people died for the country in wars, etc.

But it's largely pushed as a kind of anti-liberal propaganda. Conservatives are respectful, country loving Patriots. And liberals are monsters who would gladly pee on America's grave.

 

[guybrushfreeman]

It largely stems from Conservatives views of patriotism (moreso nationalism)..
To conservatives, the country, its flag and military are sacred entities that should always be respected in exactly the right way.

Some people think it is disrespectful because people died for the country in wars, etc.

But it's largely pushed as a kind of anti-liberal propaganda. Conservatives are respectful, country loving Patriots. And liberals are monsters who would gladly pee on America's grave.

They didn’t care this much about the literal actual Nazis martching under their flag just one month ago.

There’s no hiding from this. The two events are just a month apart. One event couldn’t be more peaceful (literal kneeling) and one couldn’t more more violent (an actual Nazi murdered someone and injured many others). Compare the reactions of some people. There’s no pretend this has anything to do with ‘respecting’ anyone or anything.

 

[reKon]

Seems like it's never an appropriate time to protest for injustices against blacks or other minorities doesn't it?

 

[mid83]

They didn’t care this much about the literal actual Nazis martching under their flag just one month ago.

There’s no hiding from this. The two events are just a month apart. One event couldn’t be more peaceful (literal kneeling) and one couldn’t more more violent (an actual Nazi murdered someone and injured many others). Compare the reactions of some people. There’s no pretend this has anything to do with ‘respecting’ anyone or anything.

To be fair is the assumption here that all Trump voters and/or Republicans were ok with Charlottesville? I know many Republicans and most that I talked to were disgusted by it. I also know that some prominent conservative pundits like Ben Shapiro, had very harsh words towards Trump and his refusal to condemn the marchers, and strongly condemned the march himself.

I know Trump’s reaction to it is of most concern, but I’m not sure it’s fair to act as if half the country was cool with the racists in Charlottesville and angry at kneeling in the NFL. I think you’d find plenty of people who were upset by both.

 

[One Eyed Willy]

Where in the US do you live that you hear the US anthem every morning?

Alabama here and we never listened to it once during school.
Heck even the pledge fell off here by Junior High ('04,'05)

Both my kids' private and public schools (elementary) recite the pledge off allegiance every morning. My son runs his Cub Scout color guard in the pledge before pack meetings as well. This is put on and hosted by the public school system too. California

 

[Warm Machine]

To be fair people complain about actors/actresses being political as well, and the majority of well known actors/actresses are white.

It is because people don’t like it when there are very visible and powerful people that they otherwise like having contrary opinions than their own. They think the opinion comes from a place of privilege and therefor shouldn’t count.

 

[Omegasquash]

Trying to raise my daughter to be better than that.

I didn't see your post before I wrote mine, but I need to flag this.

Good parenting, good job. Don't put up with racist shit in your household, and let your kids see you keep a tight grip on that value.

 

[npm0925]

This, Charlottesville, fake news, Trump, etc. convince me that the United States is on a fast track to fascism or civil war.

 

[n0razi]

The ironic thing to me is that the people who are most upset about it are the "super Christians". Im sure blindly worshiping the flag like a false idol is not what Jesus would have wanted. He also probably wanted you to love your fellow man (even your enemies) over a flag or nation.

 

[yellowjacket25]

Conservatives realized that they can politically turn any protest involving the flag into an attack on our country and our military. None of the people who are going crazy on Facebook actually give a shit about this. It is the most fake controversy I have ever seen.

 

[JoeMartin]

And the military community whining about this feels supremely self-important to me and duplicitous. There are plenty of vets who are OK with it, the ones who aren't just don't care about the cause they're kneeling for. It's not about the flag, they just don't care about black lives.

Source: Am active duty Navy.

A more than significant portion of the military is socially conservative in nature and adhere to conservative outlooks perpetuated by conservative talking heads.

There's a lot of duplicitous ideals conservatives face in the military, least of which is the issue of the flag. Generally it is the most pro-military guys, and the lifers that beat on about these disrespecting the flag kinds of things, that have no real objective appreciation for the fact that their existence is subsided by the wonderfully functional, entirely socialized mediocracy that is the military - much less wanting to admit that it's as much.

But on the issue of the flag itself, military members have perhaps the most reason to understand why protesting in face of it is acceptable - when you take your oath of service you don't pledge to protect a flag or a song. You state explicitly that your loyalty is not a person or persons, nor to organizations represented by people. Your state that your duty is to protect and defend the constitution against all enemies both foreign and domestic.

The guys that wrote the oath of duty understood what 'service before self' meant. A piece of fabric and song are not the country, regardless that they may be the current symbols of the same. It is the fundamental freedoms and liberties that all people necessarily must enjoy that you are sworn to defend, even at the cost of your own life. You'd hope that people who took this same oath would appreciate that exercising of the rights they are ostensibly willing to give their life to defend.

 

[Dopus]

 

[The Albatross]

And the military community whining about this feels supremely self-important to me and duplicitous.

From my perspective, I really don't think much of the whining is coming from the actual military community... Almost everybody I know who gets upset about people not "respecting the flag" is not active military or veterans/former military, but usually people who were never in the military at all, but kind of take on this military-esque bravado.

Anecdotal, of course, but I was watching football with a friend of mine last weekend who is an Afghanistan vet and he's said... He'll always stand for the national anthem and for salute the flag because it represents the country and people he took a vow to defend, but he doesn't care if somebody else doesn't see it that way and chooses not to stand or salute for their own reasons. He steadfastly believes that he joined the military in order to protect the right of someone like Kaepernick to kneel at football games.

Of course I also live in a liberal part of the US, and so the people I know reflect that as well.

 

[HellforLeather]

Im not really a supporter of the protest, but its also totally benign and I really cant fathom how people are getting their jimmies all rustled up about it. It also seems to be a total misunderstanding of what the protest is about. From what I understand, its not about protesting the flag or any American ideals, which seems to be the reason that people cite as to why they are upset.

They arent hurting anybody and they are expressing their first amendment rights in a responsible manner...its totally fine. It should have spurred some kind of dialogue, which is what I would imagine they are going for, but in our hyper-partisan times, pundits

Spoiler

and the fucking POTUS

have hyped this whole deal up into some kind of moral imperative that we must act on. Its just another hype of the week issue for people to grandstand their supposed moral superiority until another shiny new issue comes up next month.

 

[smisk]

Same here OP. Read a lot of comments from those idiots on Twitter yesterday, I just don't get it. I guarantee these would've been the same people calling Jackie Robinson a n*****.
Co-worker this morning was talking about how he threw away all his NFL gear and isn't gonna watch anymore. I just put my headphones in and bit my tongue.

 

[Kai Dracon]

Literal flag-worship is an artifact of the religion called Americanism. Stuff like the flag and the anthem are holy symbols of righteousness. What's going on is a reminder that a whole lot of people in the US don't fundamentally conceive of the country in the terms laid out in the constitution. They don't really grasp, much less support, the truer ideals the country is built on.

Like sunday morning Culture Christians, they've been conditioned to think of themselves as part of a rather specific way of thinking, speaking, and doing things for no other reason than it is the way things are done. The right way, and all others are a not just wrong - other ways are a threat to rightness.

And the outsized reactions to "taking the knee" come in part from the fact that as a religion, Americanism isn't a particularly gentle one. It traditionally celebrates the closed fist and the angry, vengeful father. An image of America as a pinnacle of power, that rewards the loyal and pure with victory in all things. One must understand that those kneeling aren't merely ignoring the flag, to believers in Americanism. To kneel or make it visibly known you are refusing to participate in the ceremony, one is actively refuting the primacy of Americanism itself and thus, part of the identity of believers.

It is particularly triggering to people with racist conditioning because, well, you know, it is taken for granted by racists that American supremacy equals white supremacy as well.

 

[guybrushfreeman]

To be fair is the assumption here that all Trump voters and/or Republicans were ok with Charlottesville? I know many Republicans and most that I talked to were disgusted by it. I also know that some prominent conservative pundits like Ben Shapiro, had very harsh words towards Trump and his refusal to condemn the marchers, and strongly condemned the march himself.

I know Trump’s reaction to it is of most concern, but I’m not sure it’s fair to act as if half the country was cool with the racists in Charlottesville and angry at kneeling in the NFL. I think you’d find plenty of people who were upset by both.

I didn’t say any of that. Keep your straw man to yourself. I’m talking about the overall narrative and discourse, of which there’s simply no comparison in the reactions we’ve seen

 

[jroc74]

The ironic thing to me is that the people who are most upset about it are the "super Christians". Im sure blindly worshiping the flag like a false idol is not what Jesus would have wanted. He also probably wanted you to love your fellow man (even your enemies) over a flag or nation.

Source: Am active duty Navy.

A more than significant portion of the military is socially conservative in nature and adhere to conservative outlooks perpetuated by conservative talking heads.

There's a lot of duplicitous ideals conservatives face in the military, least of which is the issue of the flag. Generally it is the most pro-military guys, and the lifers that beat on about these disrespecting the flag kinds of things, that have no real objective appreciation for the fact that their existence is subsided by the wonderfully functional, entirely socialized mediocracy that is the military - much less wanting to admit that it's as much.

But on the issue of the flag itself, military members have perhaps the most reason to understand why protesting in face of it is acceptable - when you take your oath of service you don't pledge to protect a flag or a song. You state explicitly that your loyalty is not a person or persons, nor to organizations represented by people. Your state that your duty is to protect and defend the constitution against all enemies both foreign and domestic.

The guys that wrote the oath of duty understood what 'service before self' meant. A piece of fabric and song are not the country, regardless that they may be the current symbols of the same. It is the fundamental freedoms and liberties that all people necessarily must enjoy that you are sworn to defend, even at the cost of your own life. You'd hope that people who took this same oath would appreciate that exercising of the rights they are ostensibly willing to give their life to defend.

.

 

[Linkark07]

It's indoctrination. Most public school kids in America stand up and recite a loyalty pledge to our country and flag every single day from as young as five years old, and most go their whole lives never questioning it. That's pretty much all you need to understand.

US isn't the only exception. Here I had to deal with the same crap too; if I didn't sing the national anthem or recite the loyalty pledge I would get a detention, or probably suspended a week.

It was until being an adult that I realized they were trying to brainwash me. And mind you, this was in private schools.

 

[Mathiassen]

US isn't the only exception. Here I had to deal with the same crap too; if I didn't sing the national anthem or recite the loyalty pledge I would get a detention, or probably suspended a week.

It was until being an adult that I realized they were trying to brainwash me. And mind you, this was in private schools.

Where?

I can say for Norway that we don't have anything like that for our whole upbringing. Only time the national anthem is played is during our annual independence day and international sporting events.

I honestly can not remember a single time i've heard the anthem elsewhere.

I think it's the same in the rest of Scandinavia.

 

[ForsakenLotus]

It's really complex for some people and really simple for others. For some the flag is a jingoistic symbol of how badass America is and to kneel during it is a sign of disrespect and therefore un-American. It's shallow patriotism. For others, it's the generalization of the American flag and how you can equate it and the negativity being attached by the kneeling athlete and the justified anger and resentment towards the bastardized confederate flag and its symbol of Southern Pride.

 

[Spieler Eins]

Overt patrionism attracts the mentally weak. This kind of flag cult should not be normal in a modern society.

 

[LordKasual]

It's a rallying cry and a good excuse, that's it, nothing more.

It's safer, easier, and even admirable to be enraged at being "unpatriotic". But if you're enraged at someone bringing attention to racial issues, your position is a bit less defensible when brought to the public.

 

[Switch Back 9]

Im not really a supporter of the protest, but its also totally benign and I really cant fathom how people are getting their jimmies all rustled up about it. It also seems to be a total misunderstanding of what the protest is about. From what I understand, its not about protesting the flag or any American ideals, which seems to be the reason that people cite as to why they are upset.

Can I ask why?

 

[HellforLeather]

Can I ask why?

That was kind of a blunt statement that I should have probably left out or clarified more. Its not so much a disagreement with the protest against police brutality as much as I have an issue with both sides of this issue. One side seems to claim that every time an officer shoots a person of color, that its racially motivated or is a symptom of systematic oppression regardless of circumstances; the other side seems to side with the officer every single time, again, regardless of circumstances. From where I stand, it seems that many people on both sides of this issue dont have much of an interest in discussing this issue with any sort of honesty about it, which seems to prevent any kind of progress. I also believe that the flag should be respected as a symbol of American values and freedoms but my feelings have no bearing (nor should they) on the law or what these players are well within their rights to express.

Honestly, its probably wrong of me to associate the entire NFL kneeling protests to any kind of specific viewpoint on the issue without hearing from those participating specifically, but whenever these issues come up, people seem to dig into the trenches of whatever side they are on and stick to their narrative despite what the facts might suggest.

But again, regardless of how I feel, they are absolutely within their rights to be doing what they are doing. Although I dont agree with any such decisions, this also means that teams are in their rights to fire players and people to boycott the NFL in response.