Even a North Carolina basketball Team Is Not Immune to the Left’s Meltdown over Indiana

Flopping Aces ^ | 04-10-15 | Brother Bob

[Starman417]

By now you're probably familiar with the controversy around Indiana's Religious Freedom laws. Over at The Nation, their resident sports editor, David Zirin, is always ready to find some radical leftist angle on any sports story, and this year's NCAA Final Four tournament was no exception. In the week leading up to the Final Four games, Zirin published a piece "Duke University Coach Mike Krzyzewski Is a Profile in Cowardice" demanding that a firm stand be taken by Coach K:

“I’m only going to talk about my team and basketball and the Final Four. Just like when we get to Indiana, I’m not going to talk about social issues or poverty or anything else. I’m just going to talk about this Duke basketball team.”

The above words were said this morning by Duke University basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski answering the question about whether he would have anything to say on Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which in a post-Hobby Lobby Era, is already granting businesses the “freedom” to discriminate against the LGBT community. Coach K’s curt comment could probably best be described as a profile in cowardice. His school, Duke University had already issued a statement...

At the top of the post is an update that after Zirin's original article was written the four participating coaches issued a joint statement supporting the Radical Left's position. But back to Zirin's personal assault on Coach K, he continues:

To be clear, I am not arguing that Coach K should come out and stand with the LGBT community, if that is not what he believes. The man is a longtime Republican donor who in 2002 deeply upset people in Durham when he held a fundraiser on campus at the Duke Inn and called his party Blue Devils for Dole. In other words, Coach K has a number of options for how he could respond to this mushrooming controversy.

As Colonel Potter would have said, "Horse hockey!" When the radical left gets its sight on a cause disagreeing with their dogma is heresy. Had Coach K. presented the "wrong" opinion he would have found himself at the center of a hate campaign when his focus needed to be on preparing his team for their big game. If that sounds like a crazy assertion, look no further than what happened to a small pizzeria over the heinous offense of committing a thought crime. Or look at the 70 year old grandmother florist who faces financial ruin in the name of "tolerance", or other leftists who think that other forms of heresy warrant imprisonment. Zirin goes on to assert that

Normally, I am a big believer that we should not demand coaches or athletes to make political statements if they have no desire to do so.

Since when? He goes onto explain why this is an exception and concludes with

Mike Krzyzewski once said, “I don’t look at myself as a basketball coach. I look at myself as a leader who happens to coach basketball.” This isn’t leading. It’s not even following. It’s standing for no one but yourself.

Actually, Zirin misses one point that leftists often do - maybe your latest Two Minute Hate isn't the reason that the rest of us need to drop everything in our lives. Coach K. is someone in a critical leadership position, and there are several young men known as the Duke basketball team who are looking for him to lead them in the biggest game of their lives. For a number of them, this will be their last major basketball game that they ever play in (for those of you who don't follow college hoops, Duke has since won the tournament to become NCAA champs). The coach's first commitment is to his boys. Him voicing a personal stance would not have made any difference either way in how the law was treated. But the controversy that would have followed, having reporters chasing him with cameras and microphones would have been a huge distraction to his ability to lead his team. Instead the coach honored his commitment and put those who placed their trust in him first - what a concept!

[dowcaet]

Good for Coach K. His team comes first.

[Dilbert San Diego]

What is it with liberals? They expect everyone to parrot the liberal line on cue, whenever some issue comes up? Regardless of what that person is doing in life, regardless of their other responsibilities? Regardless of whether that person has anything to do with passing or administering the law which liberals are having a meltdown about??? Why is this???

Many of these liberals bitching about this don’t even know who Coach K. is, and don’t even follow basketball. Yet they want to inject themselves into his world. For what reason???

[V_TWIN]

“don’t even know who Coach K. is, and don’t even follow basketball. Yet they want to inject themselves into his world. For what reason???”

I think I’ve seen this before, some 3rd rate leftist hack rides the coattails of a popular current event (this time it happens to be the NCAA BB tourney) to espouse there lefty rant. Nothing more than a parasite IMO. Kinda like the 3-6 “American Indians” that protested at the Superbowl. Just me 2 cent.

[Resettozero]

What is it with liberals?

It's their religion and a temporary means of providing them self-righteousness.

[Don Corleone]

The ‘left’ will never give up on this sort of politically based harassment. Get used to it. With them everything is political. Nothing else is relevant.

[Hatteras]

Not a fan of Duke and the coach from a sports perspective but what I do know is that if Duke basketball was just an average college program, Coach K would have been out years ago due to his conservatism. Seriously, they only put up with him because he wins.

[afsnco]

Good for Coach K.

I think the way to approach these tyrannical fascists is to just say what you believe and then don’t let them browbeat you into changing those beliefs, like idiot Pence did. He obviously didn’t really believe in religious freedom, he obviously ain’t a Christian, or he wouldn’t have caved.

[NohSpinZone]

Fantastic. Makes me even happier that Duke won over the kooks at Madison, Wisc.

[RightOnTheBorder]

This is why you cannot ignore leftists but must smash them at every opportunity. It is not good enough to these scum that you don’t oppose them, or stay out of an issue. They demand compliance. They demand you get your mind right. They demand you participate in the two-minute-hate.

[driftless2]

Some people don't make a distinction, but Zirin is a leftist and not a real liberal. Liberals are bad enough because their social causes are destructive. But many liberals love capitalism well enough, and they know where their bread is buttered.

But leftists like Zirin would like trash the whole system and replace it with Cuba Norte. Zirin hates capitalist America. He's a real piece of work.