re: I have zero problem with the locked elbows BUT standing national anthem strategy

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they don't show up when i go there.

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No worries. It's probably stuff you already have anyway.

Absolutely agree. Just said this to some friends on Sunday.

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frick you

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Eloquent as ever, Hog.

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When you boil it all down, you're just pissed off because they are protesting.

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No. I’m upset that they are bringing politics into a completely non-political setting where I watch for entertainment.

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The flag and patriotism were just a convenient cover.

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No. The flag and patriotism were the points of politics that they attacked by bringing in their politics during a game that I watch for entertainment.

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A patriot would respect their first amendment rights.

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This isn’t a matter of respect for their rights. It is a matter of their lack of respect for those who support(ed) them and their teams in a non-political context. They can exercise their rights all they want off the job but if they are going to ruin my enjoyment of sports entertainment by getting political, I’m not going to tune in.

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I think I get it.

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No, I don’t think you do.

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Cool. Also, why do you care about kneeling?

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Easy fix.

Announcer states over intercom:

Please stand for your national anthem, or kneel in respect for your President, Donald John Trump.

Put this picture on the big screen:

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No. I’m upset that they are bringing politics into a completely non-political setting where I watch for entertainment. No. The flag and patriotism were the points of politics that they attacked by bringing in their politics during a game that I watch for entertainment.

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Bullshite. You are free not to watch that part of the game. In fact, it’s NOT part of the game. YOU are one bringing politics into a game you watch for entertainment. It’s YOUR choice.

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This isn’t a matter of respect for their rights. It is a matter of their lack of respect for those who support(ed) them and their teams in a non-political context. They can exercise their rights all they want off the job but if they are going to ruin my enjoyment of sports entertainment by getting political, I’m not going to tune in.

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Bottom line is you don’t respect their rights. And you are ascribing YOUR interpretation of disrespect to their intent in kneeling. The intent is NOT to disrespect.

When Kaepernick first started his protest, he sat during the Anthem. He then spoke with Ken Boyer, a former NFL player and Green Beret. Boyer told Kaepernick that “soldiers take a knee in front of a fallen brother's grave to show respect.” He suggested that Kaepernick kneel instead of sitting — to show RESPECT. And Kaepernick took Boyers advice.

So you’re wrong about that too. But, it makes YOU feel superior by thinking they are being disrespectful.

And, after all, YOU feeling superior is what it’s all about, right.

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"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” Colin Kaepernick

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Sorry, Charlie.

That was in August 2016 in the first few weeks of his protest, while he was still sitting during the Anthem.

When Kaepernick was told by Green Beret Ken Boyer that soldiers knelt to show respect for their departed friends, Kaepernick started kneeling instead of sitting.

If he was unconcerned with disrespecting the flag, Kaepernick could have continued his sitting protest.

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bullshitee. You are free not to watch that part of the game.

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It's not about freedom, like I said before. It's about taking an apolitical form of entertainment and interjecting political expressions and/or statements into it. It removes the entertainment value for me and I choose not to support that. I'm free not to watch any of it, and I choose not to.

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In fact, it’s NOT part of the game

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It's not occurring within regulation, yes, but it's part of the entertainment experience. If they were chanting political slogans or holding up signs on the sidelines during time outs of half time, I'd be just as annoyed, even though that's not "part of the game". Even so, they are bringing politics into the game when the announcers keep talking about it and the players wear patches and slogans on their uniforms to show their politics.

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YOU are one bringing politics into a game you watch for entertainment. It’s YOUR choice

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You've got this mixed up. I'm not the one calling for athletes to broadcast their political views.

It's amazing that for years and years, I didn't have a problem with athletes of all stripes believing what they wanted to believe politically until they started making a public spectacle on game day with their protesting. Am I really the one bringing politics into it? I don' think so.

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Bottom line is you don’t respect their rights.

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Not true. They can protest whatever they want. I just don't want them injecting their "free speech" into entertainment. If they want to do so, they will have to face the backlash of fans like myself who don't support their opinions turning off the TV or not showing up to watch any longer. That isn't a lack of respect for their rights; it's a lack of support for their politics being interjected into my entertainment experience. I feel the same way about awards shows, music, TV, and movies, among other things.

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And you are ascribing YOUR interpretation of disrespect to their intent in kneeling. The intent is NOT to disrespect.

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I don't care what their intent is. If someone rips up the Bible to protest abuse of children in the church of Rome, I'm going to be offended by that. Not because I support abuse of children (or Roman Catholicism--I don't) but because I don't think that's an appropriate way to protest abuse. Likewise, I don't think refusing to respect the customs and traditions of the flag is an appropriate way to protest perceived injustices in this country.

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When Kaepernick first started his protest, he sat during the Anthem. He then spoke with Ken Boyer, a former NFL player and Green Beret. Boyer told Kaepernick that “soldiers take a knee in front of a fallen brother's grave to show respect.” He suggested that Kaepernick kneel instead of sitting — to show RESPECT. And Kaepernick took Boyers advice.

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That was terrible advice. Sitting and kneeling are both disrespectful to the flag. Perhaps Kaepernick should have taken his protests elsewhere.

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So you’re wrong about that too. But, it makes YOU feel superior by thinking they are being disrespectful.

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Kaepernick used the national anthem as an opportunity to interject his political concerns for social justice. It was entirely inappropriate in my estimation and I believe he was wrong to do that. He's free to do that (so long as his employer tolerates it), but he's wrong to do that.

It doesn't make me feel superior to anyone to condemn what they are doing or to take my business elsewhere when they are doing something I don't like. It's not about superiority. It's about entertainment and what I believe is an appropriate time and place to protest.

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And, after all, YOU feeling superior is what it’s all about, right.

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No, it's not.

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That was a long and totally useless post

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Thank you for your interest