Liberals conflate various issues here.
1. Liberals state that we have 1st amendment rights, freedom of speech, etc. and that the players are exercising their freedom of speech. Liberals do not state that the players are there “on company time” when at the game. Liberals make it sound as if none of us can say anything because of the 1st amendment. Liberals don’t seem to grasp that we customers/consumers/general public, also have freedom of speech to be critical of the players.
2. Liberals state that Trump has somehow initiated this situation. Kapernick was the first player, followed by others. Trump simply used his freedom of speech, to state his opinion. Liberals make is sound as if Trump somehow can fire NFL players. Of course he can’t, the players work for the individual teams. The liberals make it sound as if Trump somehow is chilling freedom of speech.
3. Liberals bring race into it, because the players are protesting the whole canard about cops shooting black men for no reason. And it seems almost all protesting players are black. The liberals being the way they are, equate any opposition to a cause pushed by members of minority groups as racism or bigotry.
4. The liberals don’t seem to understand, that while we have freedom of speech, the rest of us who hear and see this freedom of speech also have our freedom of speech, to disagree with whatever cause is being pushed by protesters of all stripes.
"The rule before Trump was that half the country had to endure any scold, put up with all name calling, and generally be treated like idiots by popular culture. The brilliant lights who made the rules never considered that scolding half the country may, in itself, have been divisive. And that people have been stewing about it for years."
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Liberals don't care to understand that their 'rights' end where ours begin. Give them an inch, they'll take a mile & cram theirs down your throat. No more.
“...Trump has somehow initiated this situation. Kapernick was the first...”
Yes, and crapnick did it during 0bum’s administration when everything was so wonderful.
He also walked out on his contract - was never fired.
To take it to an opposite extreme using reductio ad absurdum, if a player was to take the field while waving a Confederate Flag, would there be an equal outcry to protect their freedom of speech?
Almost certainly not, the player would be benched on the spot, terminated later that day, and I'd think that the general response would be "Dumba$$. He got what he deserved." Same freedoms, same concept, only one is politically correct - therefore acceptable - and one is not.
I think that's what I find so offensive about this entire situation. Players exercised their freedom of speech, that's fine. The fans (me included) exercised their freedom of speech to say, "We don't approve.", also fine.
Where the NFL fell down was that they forgot who was in charge in a customer-vendor relationship. "The customer is always right", is an excellent cliché to follow. In this particular case, the vendor (NFL) said, "We DON'T CARE", when presented with what the customer said they wanted, then doubled down on the premise when the customer pushed back.
How many stores do you frequent where the clerks insult you, personally? Or argue with you about your purchase? Or, when you complain to their management, have the manager side with their employee rather than with you, the customer?
Speaking for myself, none. So to me, the only surprise about people's reactions to this situation is that they're not more vehement.
/rant off. Thanks for listening.
Amazing that players on the football field in San Francisco and Oakland get freedom of speech, but conservative at Berkeley do not.
-PJ