I woke up on Sunday morning after a long Saturday night and picked up some eggs and assorted vegetables. My head was throbbing a bit still, but I knew a couple of glasses of water and some coffee would knock that out. I got back home and started breakfast. My girlfriend was still in bed and I thought it would be a nice surprise to make her breakfast before she woke up.
I never minded waking up early on Sundays in the Fall. The reason is because the first football game starts at 10 AM and I enjoy being productive while a good game is playing in the background. But that is when I saw it. The National Anthem is playing and there are those boneheads, kneeling. I just shook my head but went on. Then the announcers started talking about it and I became more irritated. Then the replays from the other games came on and began showing the protests from those games. I was done. I turned the television to another show.
This morning I decided I was done. I am not going to watch anymore football. I guess you can call it a boycott but it really is not. It just annoys me. I knew last year that this would continue happening since the media made a big deal when Colin Kaepernick did it (he is still looking for a job). But I did not think it was going to be so widespread and such a debate.
I am a Constitutionalist. I believe in our Constitution and will fight to defend it. That includes the First Amendment. Peaceful protest, whether I agree with it or not, is fine with me. I even believe one has the right to burn the flag (though it better not happen in front of me). That is what makes our country special. The problem here is that the NFL is a business. The entertainment business, not politics. A football game is not the forum to protest. If these guys decide to say something after the game, good for them. But I am there to be entertained, not have politics thrust upon me by a bunch of guys with questionable education. I am watching to get away from reality for a few hours and forget about the problems of the world. I do not need to become angry because some guy decides to disrespect the country.
I also become annoyed because these guys on the field are hardly destitute. The average NFL salary is $1.9 million dollars. The league minimum goes up for each year of service ($465,000, $540,000, $615,000). The average career in the NFL is 3.3 years. Do the math. That is over $1.5 million over a career for a sub par player. These guys are hardly victims. In the real world, you keep your head down so you can keep your job. These guys make a ton of money and could not care less.
The protests are about race. Whether you believe there is a race issue or not, race is NOT an issue in the NFL. Over 50% of players in the NFL are Black (I will not say African American because one from the Caribbean would be insulted). Compare this to the population where Blacks make up 12.3% and we see that Blacks are hardly being discriminated against by the NFL (no matter what the NAACP says).
Listen, if I go to a restaurant and do not like the food, I do not go back. If I do not like the way these overpaid bozos treat the flag and the country (the one that made them all millionaires) I will not watch. I stopped watching the NBA over the same thing. You know what? I lived. I must not be the only one who is giving up on the NFL either. Attendance is down over ten percent and television rating are down seven percent. Maybe when these guys get hit in the wallet, they will knock it off. Or at least the NFL with do something (these guys are their employees).
On a brighter note, kudos to Army Special Forces member Alejandro Villanueva. He ignored his teams wishes on running away and hiding from the National Anthem in the locker room. He came out and showed his patriotism. I guess fighting for this country (he served three tours in Afghanistan) allowed him to see the big picture.
Oh, by the way, the picture above shows the awesome omelet I made for Josie.
Visit my site at http://reallysorefeet.com
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Resources:
http://gazettereview.com/2017/03/average-nfl-player-salary/
https://www.spotrac.com/blog/nfl-minimum-salaries-for-2017/
https://www.statista.com/statistics/240102/average-player-career-length-in-the-national-football-league/
http://news.gallup.com/poll/4435/public-overestimates-us-black-hispanic-populations.aspx
Pictures courtesy of:
pinterest.com
knoxnews.com
theindependant.com
nymag.com
chron.com
nbcsports.com