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COMMENTARY The NFL bites the hand that feeds it

6 min read
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Amazing.

Left-wing ideologues seem to have an almost infinite capacity for doing really foolish things. The latest example of self-inflicted embarrassment occurred last weekend and involved the hyper-publicized disrespecting of our flag and national anthem by the overpaid thugs of the National Football League.

According to the leftist storyline, they were upset President Trump called them out on their prior disrespect and wanted to “show their solidarity.”

Did they ever! Solidly dumb. The president played them like a violin.

According to a recent Scarborough Research Study, NFL fans are among the most patriotic and the strongest supporters of the president of any fan group in sports. Trump used one of the left’s favorite tactics, ridicule, to goad them into exactly the reaction he knew would incense his NFL support base, and it worked like a charm.

The National Football League is a multi-billion dollar business. It is an entertainment business that employs about 1,700 very large and very strong people to engage in something resembling gladiatorial combat. Fans pay $100 or more for tickets to be entertained by the spectacle.

Football is entertainment – or at least it is supposed to be.

It is not supposed to be a platform for political antics. No one really cares what the average football player thinks about politics. They want to see blocking and tackling and running and passing. Fans, by paying for tickets to an entertainment event, have every right to expect to be entertained.

Last year, a very mediocre quarterback named Colin Kaepernick chose to “take a knee” during the playing of the national anthem to protest what he claimed to be the “oppression of black people and people of color.” That didn’t go over well, and Kaepernick is now a spectator.

Since Kaepernick’s shameful performance, similar actions have increased until they reached a crescendo this past weekend. Let’s look at what is truly going on when these leftists “protest” the flag and the anthem.

In 1814, Francis Scott Key wrote a poem that was later set to music and became America’s national anthem. The poem was originally titled “In Defense of Fort McHenry,” and pictured the British bombardment of the fort during the War of 1812. The poem, and then song, commemorated one of America’s darkest moments. It describes America as a beacon of enduring hope, a light of freedom, that finds a way to endure. The song, which has been played at sporting events since at least 1918, and which officially became the national anthem in 1931, serves as a continuing reminder that this great nation has overcome threats and danger and continues to be a light of freedom in the world. It is a reminder that many of our citizens have fought and died for the freedom that allows us to do things like attend sporting events and enjoy our liberty, as imperfect as some may think it to be. There is still none better on this earth. It is out of respect for those who have given us our freedom that we stand when the anthem is played. Is this something that truly deserves to be disrespected?

The American flag is a symbol of our freedom and liberty. It is a symbol that Americans have rallied behind in times of war and travail.

It is a symbol that we have proudly followed at events around the world.

Who has not swelled with pride when our flag is hoisted at the Olympics, for example, to the strains of “The Star Spangled Banner?”

Unfortunately there are those who choose to desecrate and disrespect our flag. It has been publicly burned and torn, but the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that such actions are protected by the First Amendment as “symbolic speech.” As distasteful and disrespectful as such actions are, they are constitutionally protected acts of free speech, and to legally ban such acts would be to remove one of the freedoms from the land that the flag represents. This does not mean that the flag deserves any less respect than the national anthem and we stand when the flag passes for exactly the same reason, out of respect for those who have given us our freedom.

NFL players are very highly paid employees of their teams. They are contracted to do one thing – play football. Last weekend, a large number – some report 200 – of these overpaid prima donnas, decided to disrespect their nation’s flag and their nation by kneeling, sitting or various other antics during the national anthem. Some, including the Pittsburgh Steelers, didn’t even have the courage to publically commit their disrespect and, instead, hid in the tunnel.

One man had the courage to come forward and show respect. No one could miss Alejandro Villanueva as he stood, helmet under his arm and hand on his heart. You see, Army Major Villanueva fought for his country and understands commitment and courage. I don’t think any of us really believe the lame walk back of his actions, pretty obviously prompted by team management. No, he was standing too proudly, too resolutely. His focus says it all.

While we are entitled to speak freely, we are not entitled to do so in a particular venue. While speech is protected, access to a particular forum is not, so if the NFL or the teams wanted to stop the disrespect, they certainly would be within their rights. Looking at TV viewership and empty seats, the disrespect is obviously not going over well with fans, largely conservative and Trump supporters.

Trump won a decisive victory, and the left still hasn’t figured out what happened. The owners and the media will, eventually. Football won’t disappear but it will be diminished.

As Daniel Sobieski wrote, “Those who would take a knee to protest the American flag have likely never been handed a folded one. NFL players who want to take a knee should talk to wounded warriors who no longer can.”

Ball is a Peters Township councilman and the vice chairman of the Washington County Republican Party.

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