Hashtag activism has its limits, and most social-media reaction stories are predictable and boring, but the discussion of Colin Kaepernick’s “Star-Spangled Banner” protest taking place in #VeteransForKaepernick threads on Twitter and Facebook right now is more varied and interesting than almost all of the commentary on the subject cramming the airwaves.
Dear America stop speaking for me you don't care about us either we're just your mask for racism and prejudice #VeteransForKaepernick
— Beige Rob (@MrRedMartian) August 30, 2016
As a veteran, @Kaepernick7 's protest is a beautiful part of what we fought for: free speech and perfecting our union #VeteransForKaepernick
— Josh Howell (@lesscrazyplease) August 31, 2016
My colleague Jon Schwarz startled many Americans by pointing out that our national anthem “literally celebrates the murder of African-Americans” in a rarely sung or talked about third verse about slaughtering escaped slaves who chose to fight for their freedom, and against the United States, in the War of 1812.
The San Francisco 49ers quarterback, however, told reporters on Tuesday that he was aware of those lyrics before he began his protest by refusing to stand for the anthem before exhibition games.
In the heated environment of the election campaign, it is also notable that Kaepernick explained that his attempt to draw attention to racial injustice — which was criticized by Donald Trump — is not something he expects to be resolved by the victory of either candidate.
More Kaepernick on presidential candidates: "You have Hillary who's called black teens super predators. You have Trump who's openly racist"
— Cam Inman (@CamInman) August 28, 2016
As reporters swarmed around his locker last weekend, Kaepernick said he would continue to sit during the anthem. “I’m going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed, to me this is something that has to change,” he said.
#49ers Colin Kaepernick video Part 1 pic.twitter.com/WEPwqBucsh
— Cam Inman (@CamInman) August 28, 2016
He was then asked what he would say to Americans who “see the flag as kind of a symbol of the military.”
#49ers Colin Kaepernick video Part 2 pic.twitter.com/zQxexPLKba
— Cam Inman (@CamInman) August 28, 2016
He replied: “I have great respect for men and women that have fought for this country. I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country and they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice for everyone. And that’s not happening. I mean people are dying in vain because this country isn’t holding their end of the bargain up.”
That set off a predictable backlash from commentators who describe themselves as pro-military but have not, apparently, spent much time speaking to the men and women who actually serve in the armed forces.
Kaepernick if you don't like ????????, get out. Our military puts their lives on the line every day for U to throw a football, to the wrong team.
— Ricky Young (@RickyYoungMusic) August 28, 2016
Support for Kaepernick from active-duty and retired military personnel who recognize that the nation has a racial justice problem was evident earlier in the week.
Sitting with Colin during the National Anthem at the Cubs game tonight. #Blacklivesmatter #StoptheWars #Bleachers pic.twitter.com/Dxt4XSSF4u
— Rory Fanning (@RTFanning) August 30, 2016
The military blogger who writes as Johnny Silvercloud, for instance, made his feelings quite clear, partly by sharing a viral video clip of Muhammad Ali posted on Facebook by the boxer Ishé Oluwa Smith in support of the quarterback.
If standing up for flags is more important than standing up for people under that flag, we have a problem. https://t.co/b4IUqIjngg
— Johnny Silvercloud (@JohnnySilverclo) August 29, 2016
But the depth and varied nature of that support only became clear once the topic began to trend under the new hashtag on the dominant social networks on Tuesday and Wednesday. Those comments are worth reading in part because they cut across race and gender lines and display a complexity lacking from much of what passes for debate on the subject on radio and television channels.
Don't use my service–or that of any veteran–to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch. #VeteransForKaepernick
— Charles Clymer (@cmclymer) August 31, 2016
#VeteransForKaepernick Although my grandfather served two tours in Vietnam, he couldn't even rent a home near his base b/c he was black.
— Blorenzo (@blorenzo) August 30, 2016
@Kaepernick7 I served 25yrs in the AF to protect everyone's 1st Amend rights. I support you #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/Q7r7PfvryA
— Nicole (@dcmbrdiva) August 31, 2016
2 tours in Iraq
1 year #GTMO
Military Family
I support his right to protest discrimination
#VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/ycZiWXSQae— 6'4 & Ain't Shit (@Mr_Alexius) August 31, 2016
Anthem protest may be rude, but weakening NATO, lax nuke policy & sowing hatred is dangerous.#VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/YSRUC8uTuj
— Col. Morris Davis (@ColMorrisDavis) August 31, 2016
I serve to protect your freedoms, not a song or piece of fabric. #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/fANIvQK0Yy
— Enshika? (@EnshiFreshh) August 31, 2016
I serve to protect your freedoms, not a song #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/HcCkMsVMOh
— Marco (@BasedMarcoM) August 31, 2016
#VeteransForKaepernick Because we're actually not all self-centered racists. #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/VHnW5Pbxav
— Ed Beck (@DEdwardBeck) August 31, 2016
Free speech is free speech, all the time #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/tOGOmYe0bC
— Coleman Chase (@colemanachase) August 31, 2016
Because we demand our country protect all its citizens equally. THAT is what I defended! #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/xOqLAO0b1f
— Robert Young (@robertcyoung) August 31, 2016
I don't agree with all of his points, but I'll fight to the death for his right to say it. #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/0jeFlIv5RX
— Isaac wright (@I_Zac33) August 31, 2016
I was a Black man before my service and will still be a Black man when I'm done #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/Sjm8Laq9fB
— Dominique Thorpe (@GenuinelySpoken) August 31, 2016
I serve for his right to protest.. I don't serve for Police Brutality.. #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/Q6GUNTwHDO
— Airbnb Papi (@JoeOnDemand) August 31, 2016
My father, a Marine, served his country in Vietnam. He says "we're far from justice for all" #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/8jXspHSOE6
— Blake J. Stanfill (@ShimmiHendrix) August 31, 2016
#VeteransForKaepernick I served 5 years and I support you @Kaepernick7 ! Sitting or standing, exercise your rights! pic.twitter.com/uSoaS4H7fm
— Dionna Bratcher (@DionnaBratcher) August 31, 2016
I was a black man before I put on the uniform and I'm still a black man after taking it off #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/H85dea4OuV
— SH????N (@brownlashon) August 31, 2016
8 Years Active Duty. Twice in the sandbox. He can sit or stand as long as the ???????? waves. #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/95yx9lUPZN
— McAnthony Brisco (@Bcounty510) August 31, 2016
Crazy the media is trying to tell how VETERANS feel about the Kap situation. I support him. #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/IP2orede7k
— Eli'jah Jordan (@elijahXL) August 31, 2016
Salute to you @Kaepernick7 you the real hero #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/o6MqPtz4dz
— Esquire (@Marc_withdaC) August 31, 2016
I stand by him 100% #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/ziXOgqzisU
— hunt (@roveing) August 31, 2016
I served to protect freedoms not songs #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/u5t60AxyrL
— Cole Lawson (@iamcolelawson) August 31, 2016
I joined the military for free college money– effectively a work-welfare program. Don’t care about fighting anybody, any flag, free speech– whatever. Show me the MUNNY. This DA protesting had some convoluted idea probably put in his head by his Jihadi gurrlfriend, but now he’s getting a lot of advice on what he “really meant” when he decided to practice for what he’d do through the rest of the game; sit on his ass. He’s getting some good bank as a washed-up QB, but he needs a career transition soon and he seems to have stumbled upon it. Show Kaepernick mo’ MUNNY!
I served as a medical corpsman in Vietnam ( 31 May 1967 – 31 May 1968 ) and I saw the human face of war on the wounded American grunts, wounded Vietnamese civilians and even on one rare occasion a wounded VC guerrilla. They were all victims of that tragic war. If I could get into a time machine and traveled back to the “hippy-dippy” sixties, I would have probably also avoided military service. But that is more of a case of an old man looking back on his misspent youth. I admire Colin Kaepernick, and I support him. Whether one has served in the military or remained a civilian is irrelevant and more of a rhetorical red herring when it comes to a fellow citizen exercising his right as Colin did to dissent and to protest – non-violently – against the brutality and violence of rogue police officers against African American citizens. As Dr. Samuel Johnson observed “patriotism id the last refuge of a scoundrel.” That’s how I feel about people condemning Colin’s act of peaceful civil disobedience. Our rights under the amendments to our Constitution protect war veterans and civilians. More power to him. And power to the people. The little people. that is.
Athletes are essentially entertainers; stage and screen actors are far more politically active. Kaepernick is a second-string quarterback on a losing team, but he did play in a Super Bowl and is well known. The NFL loves to parade soldiers on its playing fields, which is about all they get for their trouble. Tough luck, but serving Wall Street warmongering does not prove patriotism.
I served two tours in Vietnam from 1966-1968 as a door gunner/crew chief on helicopters. My older brother served 4 months before being KIA. I know the freedom I fought for then. Freedom in the sixties was an idealism that we adhered to that no longer exists today. I lost many of my freedoms when I returned home from Vietnam. I could no longer shoot those who would deny freedom to anyone. I was required to wear a helmet “for personal protection” while riding my motorcycle………hell, no one worried about my personal safety while I was fighting a war. No special license or helmet was required when I left for Nam, but when I returned there were helmet, goggle and license laws. That was 48 years ago and now freedom has lost all meaning. Freedom in America today means if you have enough money you too can speak freely, like Donald Trump. Freedom today means if you are black you fear cops and if you are white you fear blacks. I had a lot of black friends in Nam. There were no racists in foxholes or the unfriendly skies over a war zone. People were judged not by the color of their skin but by the color of their blood. We all shared the same desperate fight for survival and took care of each other. Sadly that sameness, that brotherhood, that connection, was lost when we came home and went our separate ways into the cities and suburbs of America. Only home, back in the “good ole USA” did we become separate and unequal. The only thing left to share was the condemnation of the US soldier at the time. I don’t believe Kaepernick is or was disrespecting our military, or even our flag. I believe he is absolutely right. None of us should stand for a flag that does not stand for all of us.
Uncle Jim died as a consequence of WWI, Uncle KO fought in WWII, and I served in the Navy during Viet Nam. Many of us in geezerhood are not great with tiny typing and social media, but sure support the courage of Colin Kaepernick.
Something is ‘rotten in Denmark’ and needs to be addressed, neither with Hillary’s happy talk, or with the Donald’s slogans of making America great again. Hey, I thought when we fought the fascists we won. I know to use the term fascist is name calling, but what are we when corporations provide most of us with the news and direct so much legislation? We are ‘free’ in what respect? More and more are becoming free of a home.
It is an unknown but public fact that all veterans have sworn an oath to protect and defend the constitution. That includes the bill of rights. We do this as kids. But some of us take it to heart. That short document is a grand thing that begins with We the People, not We the Lawyers, nor we the Supreme Court Justices, nor Harvard constitutional professors. (Who knows that all the Supremes are either graduates of Harvard or Yale, and are either Catholic or Jew, even the proposed Merrick Garland.. (some might say the law is become a club.)
The president has said how he could not understand the uniform on uniform violence when the Army man in Dallas, and the Marine in Boca Raton started sniping policemen. As a reader of ‘The Counted’ in the Guardian, and one you clicks on the newbies to get the story of their demise; I can see how frequently a person is ‘deprived of life without due process of law’ at the rate of about three a day; 719 so far this year. (Man, so many people are pulling knives on police, isn’t that strange?)
The real top of this is the session closing Supreme Court decision Shrief V Utah where it was found that if you had an outstanding traffic ticket you no longer had fourth amendment protection. (A little pun, I guess, on ‘traffic warrant’, and ‘search warrant’.) What the hell did we fight for? I guess not from protection from unreasonable search and seizure. No wonder 20 of us are committing suicide a day. What a sucker play. I am old enough to see all this in perspective. Where is General Smedley Butler? Ike, who, if I recall correctly was left of Bernie Sanders at least stood up for his ‘boys’ and made charging people 10% interest a crime entitled usury. Twenty one million veterans. Are we all suckers? Would fewer of us commit suicide if we had equal protection under the law? I believe so.
Our constitution, written in plain English, is violated at the very top. ….. by both parties.
It was difficult to raise constitutional issues, until Colin’s sit down, because one would be painted as a right wing extremist. Especially veterans.
I am with Bernie, and still feel that a president with a kill list is incompatible with the constitution; Even if it has become a bipartisan tradition.
Thank you Colin Kaepernick, and all you fellow veterans that had something real in mind while doing the nasty duty. Let no more violence come from these hands. Let us create a more perfect union.
Maybe it’s just this:
http://www.coyoteblog.com/coyote_blog/2016/08/this-one-simple-trick-used-by-colin-kaepernick-will-make-it-harder-to-fire-you.html#disqus_thread
In which a genuinely enthusiastic advocate for the rights of corporations treats his speculations as facts and confirms his own circular argument. Thanks for sharing that, I don’t get to read those guys very often.
I’m an old Vet and I’m proud there still brave Americans who will stand up for what is right at the expense of their own well-being . As a matter of fact that is exactly what the Armed Services do and when you do so as a leader, there are those who will be inspired to follow your lead and are grateful for that bravery.
Given the history and facts of The Star Spangled Banner I’m surprised Any black person would stand up for that song, written by a racist who wanted to wash the streets of Washington with the blood of slaves and their sympathizers.
It has been my belief for a very long time that famous people have a responsibility to bring injustice to the forefront as has Kaepernick. His one thoughtful act brings more attention to the injustice that exists than 250,000 protesters. He is a very brave young man. His parents should be proud.
See, Mackey, criticizing Hitlery Klanton for her racism, as you did in a minor way in this article, is not hard. Doesn’t the relief you feel from acknowledging just one of the many flaws that make her an unpalatable choice for any person with a conscience feel good? Is it too much to hope that you might be beginning to tire of your role as waterboy for an ecocidal corporatist war criminal?
Of course, Drumpf is no better, except that he only calls for what Hitlery has already done, but between the two of them, they are only half of the options available on the ballot….
Why support the “Lesser” Evil (which is, in reality, the More Effective Evil – the Evil that “Gets Things Done”(r)(tm)) when you could instead support the Greater Good?
“I served 25yrs in the AF to protect everyone’s 1st Amend rights. I support you”
“I support his right to protest discrimination”
“Free speech is free speech, all the time”
someone speaking in a private forum? shut him down! an employee speaking on the job? free speech!
no justice, no reason!
Since when the the national anthem and the flag become the private property of military service members?
Perhaps those associated with the military would direct their attention to the bogus conflicts they are being ordered into and their complete inability to prevail on the battlefield, whatever that is these days, often against opponents whose offensive capabilities appear to comport with those from the stone age.
God hates flags.
Who really cares! We have a bi racial athlete that is struggling in his career and trying to get attention and using his new racist Muslim faith to get his point across. If I were black and I’m not I could not think of anywhere else on earth I’d rather live than in America. Blacks have been afforded many opportunities in America at the expense of thier fellow citizens “affirmative action” that Europe could never except. Africa is a war torn shithole with hardships that drawrf anything in America. I think we all would like to believe we all are created equal but we are not! Just look on the football field, classroom or IQ levels! Your spouse may have a beautiful smile or gifted in the arts while others are ugly and have chosen not to make the right choices or they might have one leg longer than the other but you get my point. I’m not just talking about skin color here so don’t let your programmed mind wander there. We do have equal protection under the law however. But back to equality, racism exists in every society it will never be oblshed unfortunately it’s human nature it’s like greed or any other sin. Human beings are tribal period! Look at the stupid sports team you follow or the faith you belong to or the community you live in. So in closing if this bi racial newly converted Muslim raised by white parents wants to sit during the national anthem I get that and really don’t care. Our country has come a long way since the inception of that song so if he dosent have the intellectual capacity to see that then I’m cool with it but for goodness sakes things do seem to be working out pretty good for him while living in America.
“. . .using his new racist Muslim faith. . .”
Colin Kaepernick is not now and never has been a Muslim.
Now, away with your racist and not-very-bright self.
Here ha go retard now away with your ignorant ass! About six weeks ago,” Kaepernick began to the hosts of CBS 13 Good Morning San Francisco, “I converted to Islam. I have become increasingly disenchanted with America and Christianity. There is so much hate and inequality in the world, and Mohammed teaches us that it is all because of the blue eyed infidels. This is why I have made the choice to fight against America and it’s Christian values, and fight for peace and love with Islam.”
False
Poor Hillfarmer, he has a belly full of hogwash.
Parlez, I don’t usually eat swine but when I do I prefer a nice smoked slice of heritage breed Hawg shoulder simmered with delicious spices on a bun. No hogwash for me my friend.
How do you know this?
“Muslim” is not a faith. Islam per se is not racist. A few denominations have been. This is also true of Christianity and Judaism.
Not in practice.
Affirmative action helps only a tiny fraction of African-Americans. The racist policies of this nation — past and present — severely harm many, many more. See Michelle Alexander’s excellent book, The New Jim Crow, reviewed here. (Altho Alexander largely focuses on the contemporary drug war and incarceration of millions of black males, she also recounts important socio-economic history of African-Americans.)
Mona, let’s just give each black person $500,000 and let’s start with your paycheck! Would you be happy then or would 1 million be a better number? I would imagine and I’ll be considerate that would take you a good 10 years to accumulate. Would that be satisfactory? Again, starting with your paycheck? I’ve traveled the world literally and I can assure you all Americans yes all Americans live better than most in the entire world and have the available opportunities to better themselves if they want even if they do come from a poor neighborhood I am a good example of that. Maybe black folks in America need to start taking more responsibility and cleaning up their communities, stop having children out if wedlock, reduce drug use, save for school, run out the gangs, work and be contributors. The thing I find most interesting about you liberal scum is that none of you for the most part have lived in communities that are black but I have. I have also worked with many black people and have meaningful relationships and interactions with blacks. Yes, I even have black friends! Okay go ahead and call me a racist! What’s interesting is is that my black friends agree with me on my previous statements as well as this reply they are so incredibly sick of the white guilt and how it actually suppresses the black community. You see Mona unfair laws like affirmative action only builds resentment. Its just too easy to sit in your parents basement and call everybody a racist if they disagree with the political correctness the administration of the day or your local washed up college professor vomits out to the public via the lame stream media or other perverse mediums. Times are changing get on board or go back to 1965 cause this bus is moving on down the road!
Ricky Vaughn has entered the building.
What was heck was your point, Ricky?
Hillfarmer:
First: “I have also worked with many black people and have meaningful relationships and interactions with blacks. ” OMG – You actually used that?!? That’s so racist, it’s actually used as a stereotype of racists!! The only more embarrassing thing you could say would be “I even have black friends” HA….oh, wait: you actually did say that as well. Wow.
This comment of yours cannot be considered an “argument”. All that you’ve done here it seems, is to mosey-on over to StormFront, and cut-and-paste one of their paranoid white-power grab-bags of hate, paranoia, and hackneyed racial and social stereotypes. Indeed, without even an attempt to create a coherent independent narrative. You’re the won who’s world-view is mired in the 1965 mud of a stuck, segregated bus.
Worldwide hillbillies have come out of their shadows & American hillbillies truly are the most ignorant time wasters that exist.
Please stay in the woods & read a book or 2 about this world .
Was all that verbiage necessary when all you’re saying is. “If you don’t like it, leave!!” ?
Hillfarmer: Thank you! In your comment, you have both confirmed for me and given me stunning and absolute proof that the best education any person can have is not found in any classroom, but in global travel. Your comment also tells me that sadly, you were never the recipient of such an education. If one were determined to write a comment designed to as clearly as possible, ensure that the world considered them an utterly bigoted fool, I doubt anyone could improve on yours.
Seriously, consider all the nuances of nativist ignorance and racist undertone packed into this one sentence: “If I were Black, and I’m not, I could not think of anywhere else on earth I’d rather live than in America.”
OK – that first part: you’re head is obviously so firmly lodged in your colon, that can’t even see how offensive that comment is and how resoundingly dense it makes you appear.
To unpack what your words actually are saying: “I’m not black, but that doesn’t matter (except when I consider being black to be a negative thing) because as a white person, I know far better than they about how they should perceive their personal life experiences, and they’re wrong.”
Sadly, in the second clause of the sentence, with full candor, you remove any lingering doubts and truly plumb the depths of your personal ignorance with “…. I could not think of anywhere else on earth I’d rather live than in America.”
Again the nativist sentiment. Again the stunning inability to even for a second imagine that anyone – anywhere outside America might, just might, have the smallest bit of difference that could improve on the perfection that is 2016 America!
Time is short, so I won’t delve into the rest of your text. Suffice it to say that you maintain the same quality of thought throughout. You should really consider challenging your preconceived notions by actually going out and listening to people different from you and understand that their truth, though different from yours, is no less valid.
A bit off topic here:
Heard Marine Corps ad on radio today may be titled “For Us All”. False, false, false.. total bull shit and propaganda (or tricks). The Marine ads used to be about intangibles, which is what the # posters are mentioning: they are not serving for a flag or a song or a person… they serve for ideas, intangibles. And “Navy a global force for good”? give me a fucking break. That is not what the U.S. Navy is for..
I’m deeply disappointed in DOD ads these days. I don’t believe they should be running them; U.S. taxpayers should not be paying for them. There should not be uniformed personnel at sporting events paid for by the taxpayer as a “recruiting tool.” They should not be wasting jet fuel for fly overs at these events for recruiting.
Hell yes! Thanks for writing this piece Mackey! It shows there are U.S. service personnel who have minds of their own, and understand exactly what they’re doing and why (in principle at least, hopefully these same supporters would disagree w/ the on going wars for apparently nothing, and I think they do… according to CATO? Gary Johnson has overwhelming troop support)!
My family gives Mr Kaepernick permission to not only sit during the anthem but boo it as well. The reason, in 1966 I, Phil Ferro, was drafted to fight a war that was started by a false flag operation. I died in June 1967 in Vietnam. My country killed me……… My country took me from my family………… What the police are doing to civilians isn’t any different.
Blind allegiance isn’t American.
This is the point: This US of A is a FREE COUNTRY! We each and everyone have the right to Worship/Support whom we want to!!! Period.
This is so cool. Rather than being a faceless tool, the troops are turning the tables on the hypocrisy of the political elites (and those parrotting their lines). Another grassroots revolution in the making.
You nailed it. “faceless tool”. I love perfectly distilled thoughts.
Thanks for yours.
NFL SHYBAGS REJECT THE AMERICAN WAY
BOYCOTT THE NFL
#BDSNFL
American does not need NFL WALLSTREET AHOLES.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3768174/NFL-executives-hate-Colin-Kaepernick-call-traitor-believe-unlikely-play-pro-ball-again.html
They dont like free of speech and expression and personal choice, they can go to china
Adam Serwer writing in The Atlantic, my emphasis:
Truth.
Bravo, Adam Serwer!
Doug, Doug, Doug …
Sewer implying Kaepernick received special treatment because he’s light skinned is bullshit. Noting a skin-tone difference and then assuming that visual clue gained Kaepernick some advantage is as racist as it gets.
Kaepernick was a great QB at UNR. (UNR is one of the most affordable schools in the west.) He got the 49er position because he was a really good QB. They got to the Superbowl (not so much now but jesus, how many great college QBs don’t last in the NFL?)
Good call. Sewer [sic LOL] attempts to deal the race card from the bottom of the deck and fails.
Astutely observed and perfectly stated by Serwer.
I enlisted in 1969 while others did sit-down strikes in protest.
I got out in 1973 and did my sit-down strikes in a bowling alley where all but me would stand for a salute to the flag during the national anthem before league play.
I was so far past that salute and flag shit by then.
And willing to fight those who would infringe my freedom to sit in protest of the lies and uses I had been put to in service of all the lying flag wavers from top to bottom.
It is so very sad that these “heroes” are honored for sacrifices they made; when in reality they have been sacrificed by the war parties for the profits of imperialism. Martin Luther King Jr. made this point very clearly a year before his assassination.
Patriotism is like a cuckoo’s egg. The parent cares for the cuckoo’s egg and then the newly hatched cuckoo pushes the parent’s own offspring out of the nest and to their death.
Like this.
(JFK)
Yeah, that’s great, but any soldier alive right now, or in the last 70 years or so, aint serving to “protect my freedoms.” They’re fighting in unjust, usually criminal wars. And that, brothers and sisters is the bridge that very few want to cross.
True, but most service members enter the military believing they will be protecting our freedom and they are encourage in that belief by an extraordinarily-effective system of indoctrination and propaganda.
Once part of the system, being endlessly treated as heroes (by the military and the nation as a whole) if they go along with the program, and as outcasts and traitors if they dare to do otherwise, most find it necessary — for the reset of their lives — to believe that they are and/or were participants in the most noble of causes.
True, but most service members enter the military believing they will be protecting our freedom and they are encourage in that belief by an extraordinarily-effective system of indoctrination and propaganda.
Those who volunteer to serve in a branch of the US military today have far greater access to information then those of us who were immediately subjected to a draft system upon graduating from high school. Thousands of US teenagers refused to comply with the draft during the Vietnam war. They, too, were subject to an “extraordinarily-effective system of indoctrination and propaganda.”
Do you have a point you’re trying to make, Karl?
For instance, do you disagree that “most service members enter the military believing they will be protecting our freedom. . .?”
Former Army Ranger Rory Fanning on why he and so many other veterans stand with Colin Kaepernick and against police murder.
Rory Fanning reminds me of Pat Tillman.
That Pat’s voice was silenced speaks volume.
Ignorance is no excuse for bad behavior. Marching off in lockstep to kill people of other nations that pose no imminent threat to oneself, family, or nation is fool hearty to the extreme. I can remember when the American embassy in Iran was overrun by revolutionaries who were loyal to Ayatollah Khomeini… America men were chomping at the bit to go over there and set things straight. Yet, it has recently been revealed that Khomeini’s rise to power was orchestrated by the United States itself.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-36431160
I am not in a position where I can speak for most servicemen. However, it is widely understood that a significantly lack of economic opportunity has resulted in a corresponding uptick in applications for enlistment in recent years. Absent the perceived benefits derived from serving in the military, I believe that the US Government would be hard pressed to meet its enlistment quotas.
Agree with your last statement as well with not knowing what most servicemen think. And the facts you point out about Iran revolution and matching in lockstep.
But enjoin good wherever you find it and walk away or stop evil if you have the power wherever and whenever you can.
@Karl:
I think that ignorance is a substantial, if not perfect, excuse. If one doesn’t know that a behavior is bad — if, indeed, s/he believes it is good and noble and right, having been taught that from birth, it’s hard to hold that person fully responsible for the bad behavior.
It is foolhardy, for sure, to march off to kill people in faraway lands who are no real threat to us or our country — or to “our freedoms” — but the people who do it, for the most part, genuinely think they they are performing a sacred duty, and everyone and everything around them encourages that belief.
A minority, in every conflict, are in it for the thrill of the kill. This element simply gets off on being able to engage in violence that would be impermissible — unthinkable — in ordinary domestic circumstances. There aren’t that many, but I’ve known enough of them to be certain that there are too many.
Yes, the “economic draft.” It’s real and it’s an important factor in driving enlistments. And that’s been true for a very long time, not just in recent years. It’s one of the reasons that the military has long been populated by an inordinate number of servicemembers from the impoverished rural south and, more recently, when it was possible, by people of color from the de-industrialized cities.
However, none of this even suggests that the overwhelming majority of volunteers have honorable intentions, along with whatever other motivations may be present, which clearly include the opportunity to be seen as “heroes” by our society. Making sure that motivation remains a powerful driving force is a major reason for all of our military-themed national holidays, for the anthems, the flyovers, the special honors for the “heroes” at sporting events, civic functions, etc.
As some regulars here know, I have quite a lot of exposure to and experience with these matters. I’ve been an antiwar activist since the 60s, including a period when I conducted my antiwar activities while in uniform, during the time of our misadventures in Vietnam. That was, as you might imagine, relatively high-risk behavior. ;^) I paid a significant price for engaging in it, although it could have been much worse.
If we want to slow the endless advance of the Perpetual War Machine, one of the things we need to do is to undermine the culture of slavish obedience to “patriotic tradition” and unthinking acceptance of its rituals. A few hundred people “sitting with Kap” at the next Niners game would be a fine idea.
It’s one hell of a tough assignment, though. We actually stopped the bloody mess in Vietnam, eventually, but the War Party learned their lessons and have successfully returned the nation to its traditional permanent war psychology. And look where we are.
. . .none of this even suggests that the overwhelming majority of volunteers have other than honorable intentions. . .
“In refusing to comply with my draft notice. . .”
How, specifically, did you “refuse” to comply, Karl?
I simply ignored my induction notice and remained in my home town with the expectation that I would be eventually arrested for noncompliance. Retreating to Canada was not an option that appealed to me and neither was applying for C.O. status. C.O.s, at that time, were still put to use as field medics and the such – thus one was still being compelled to support the war effort.
http://www.landscaper.net/images/drftnote.gif
Well, ignoring the notice was certainly a better choice than reporting, unless, of course, you were prepared to report and do what I and at least a few others did. I’m not sure I’d have done it if I’d known how serious the risks were.
You really weren’t in much danger of being arrested — very few who ignored notices were, unless they made a point of open, public refusal, and they mostly had especially gung ho local draft boards — but I’m sure you didn’t know that at the time, so it took courage to stay home and accept the possible consequences.
But please try to be more understanding of the volunteers. The universal soldier really is to blame, but his orders come from here and there and from every side and every nook and cranny of our culture.
Here are some good folks to support and work with:
Courage to Resist
I never registered for the draft. I could never understand why people opposed to the war or who otherwise just didn’t want to be drafted had registered. If you don’t register, they don’t know that you exist and you don’t have to refuse to report if you get drafted. I have a couple of friends who were forced to register (one by his mother, I can’t remember the other one’s reason), but being forced was the only logical reason for registering if you didn’t want to go.
Roughly one third of all men who refused to comply with their induction notice were prosecuted under federal statutes. So, yes the odds were in my favor. However, one only read about the prosecution of draft evaders in mainstream news at that time.
Interesting points, Doug. As a Canadian and a vet, I respect your choice as being far more courageous than the folks who ran-off to Canada, though as I age, my harsh view on them is lessening a bit. We only ever had conscription (the draft) twice in our history: during WW1 and WW2, and it damn-near broke our country. That said, the draft isn’t necessarily a bad thing as it ensures that the force fighting is truly representative of the nation. Thus, as Viet-Nam made clear, a conscript force will not fight a war that the nation-at-large is opposed to. That’s why your current forces, drawn form very specific socio-economic sectors, makes imperial wars so much easier to wage.
The response to Kaepernick’s action is far more interesting than the action itself. But, and I hope he understands this, when we take a stand and speak truth to power, we should be under no illusion that either the state or her minions will respect our choice. Indeed we should expect that our opposition will be ruthlessly and violently punished. The more authoritarian a state becomes, the less able it is to tolerate any form of dissent regardless of how trivial: as we are seeing here.
I believe that, at best, Mr. Kaepernick is ill informed concerning the statistical implications of police violence against blacks specifically, and the alleged claim that such violence speaks definitively to a broader pattern of institutional racism in America in general.
Yes, a single line in the third stanza of song about the war of 1812 accurately reflected the attitude of a specific segment of American society at that time – as the original US constitution also reflected a synthesis of regional beliefs at the time of its ratification. It is also true that the song only became the national anthem after millions of white veterans petitioned the government – prior to then, all efforts to make it the national anthem failed in the senate. The mistake that Mr. Kaepernick made is akin to that which Soros-funded Black Lives Matters chooses to make as requite element of it agenda for the radical transformation of American society… they both ignore the sweep of American history at the expense of the truth; Any fool can see that, since its very inception, there has been an unremitting drive within American society to fulfill the egalitarian aspirations of America’s founding fathers. To this end, many generations of American people have had to struggle with their own innate biases and fears as their collective cultural sensibilities evolved in step with the world around them. All Americans, black and white, live in a far more socially cohesive society than the founding fathers could have ever imagined. We are a work in progress. As human nature is not perfect, neither is society itself.
I have to agree with Karl on this one. If you think that your country is so free, then there’s no excuse for ignorance. I have no tolerance for asshole Americans who constantly go off half-cocked to the point they’re ready to kill people, yet have no idea what they’re talking about regarding the reason(s) for the problem(s) that they’re upset about. If you join the military you damn well better know what you’re doing, and if you join the U.S. military and fight in its oil wars, you’ve got a lot to answer for.
“”” by deception we shall do war”” is the mantra the corrupt puppets of the establishment are require to follow.– Alejandro Grace Ararat.
Wondering how a protest to get “In God We Trust” off the dollar bill$$ would go?
“I don’t have anything against money, I just don’t like the words TRUST & GOD on it, that’s all”
OR..
“I don’t have anything against GOD, I just don’t want him on my money”
And what about looking up at the sky and pointing and crossing your chest after you strike out, make a fumble, get called out at home, miss a free throw, throw an interception..etc..
Mackey always leaves out the important stuff. Like Kapernick saying Hillary should be in jail.
So?
Leaked 2015 Memo Told Dems: ‘Don’t Offer Support’ For Black Lives Matter Policy Positions
When someone who has more to lose than to gain, takes a stand that he had to know would cause an uproar, deserves some respect. Where I live there is a country radio station B-93. They played Toby Keith songs all morning long while they bashed mister Kaepernick. My daughter, found her self, as did I,
feeling a bit off about the what mister Kaepernick had done. I later that day read the article posted here about how right he is.
In high school in the late 60’s I was the only person who refused to stand for that awful song (I knew about the 3rd verse) or to pledge allegiance to the flag. At the time I was religious enough to spend the time praying for peace. Now, when the situation arises, I look at the people around me and wonder where we would be if the true believers in peace of my generation had kept silent. You may recall we were headed for the atomic apocalypse. I am deeply grateful to everybody who stands defiantly for right.
Here are a couple paragraphs out of Donald Siegel’s published essay entitled “The American Dream and Sport” sums up the nature of corporate America’s relationship with professional athletes who are used to endorse their products.
Black professional athletes like Colin Kaepernick are not only used by corporate America to pitch their products, but they are also used to sell Corporate America’s version of the American dream to the African America community. If Colin Kaepernick shares the view espoused by groups like BlackLivesMatters that American racism is systemic in nature, then his current role as a pitchman for that system is egregiously hypocritical. Likewise, his failure to stand for the national anthem because of its perceived racial overtones rings pathetically shallow and hollow.
http://www.science.smith.edu/exer_sci/ESS200/Amdr/ADreamH205.htm
As if you give a fuck about black lives or about fighting corporatism. You merely take this angle to accuse Kaepernick of hypocrisy, which you’ve utterly failed to prove. Do you think you’ve ever conned anyone here with any of your numerous intellectually dishonest posts on The Intercept?
Yet you feel compelled to respond! Go figure!!!
You seem to think me calling you out on your poorly crafted bullshit indicates something other than a desire to call you out on bullshit. What exactly should I ‘figure?’
This is an anemic retort, even by your flimsy standards.
I’m with you totally, Karl’s arguments suck, and he sucks. I don’t get why he continually trolls this website making enemies. Keep giving this nutter the smackdown he so thoroughly deserves.
No. Based on overwhelming and compelling evidence, including multiple Department of Justice reports, Kaepernick knows that the criminal justice system is racist. The National Football League is not part of the criminal justice system. Black Lives Matter therefore does not protest the NFL.
Another straw man, another surrender.
You clearly do not understand what the “straw man fallacy” constitutes. The NFL is not part of the system BLM, and Mr. Kaeperbick, are protesting. Nor are any of the corporations for whose products he has done endorsements protested by BLM.
See this regarding The Movement for Black Lives’ economic agenda. They do not define capitalist, “corporate values” as racist.
There is simply no basis for your assertion that Kaepernicker’s “role as a pitchman” for products makes him complicit in the racism BLM identifies and protests. Hence there is no basis for considering him to be a hypocrite, at least not for the reason you claimed.
“about slaughtering escaped slaves”
“Slaughtering Escaped slaves”? Bit of a stretch there, Bob.
Did you even read comments on Schwarz’s piece?
But then facts never stopped you before.
At least this piece wasn’t about something Trump said …
I was once Special Forces, hell I am still Special Forces it need leave you. One of my first posts to TI below. Many/most soldiers get the Constitution. We all take an oath to defend it.
I would rather have someone curse me and question authority than mindlessly thank me for my service. We serve and protect and by your diligence as citizens you also protect us from risking our lives in a bad cause.
Thank you gor your statement here.
Fuck you for furthering imperial aims.
But even more, fuck those who exploited your willingness to follow orders in order to further their imperial aims. May they soon experience the pain crows eating their livers each and every day.
I have a bumper sticker that states “support our troops, we’ll need them to help overthrow the government.”
John
A friendly FU right back at you.
Like many of us subject to the draft I served my time and was lucky enough not by my own actions but fate to miss serving in the war. Those that do not serve cannot real imagine what goes into such as life changing and threating choose. Most of my uncles served in WWII perhaps you might have liked Hitler better. They fought in many places. The only Uncle that cautioned me was a CO medical doctor who won a silver star.
Special Forces training is much more than most think. It aided me as a researcher in Nixon’s war on cancer for forty years. Sometimes a gift comes at a cost. From My CV:
[1969-1971] Military service, noncommissioned officer U.S. Army, 5th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, NC.
Margaret Wheatley the author of “Quantum Management” has consulted for the Department of Defense. Wheatley extols the Army Special Forces A Team as a prime example of quantum management principles where team structure can sinuously adapt for a specific mission or change in tactical situation. Quantum management principles involve problem solving by methods similar to those that organize natural systems from the disorder of chaos and are directly applicable to both unconventional warfare or research environments.
“support our troops, we’ll need them to help overthrow the government.”
“Seven Days in May” is possible but we are much more likely to get a General James Mattoon Scott than George Washington. Still if bad governance from both parties gets much worse? I my day Colonel Jiggs Casey was rightly the hero. I recently asked a smart young trooper what he would do under such circumstances, “I would gage the situation.” Times have changed.
Related to Mackey’s above piece, former Army Ranger Rory Fanning:
Fanning’s entire interview is well worth reading.
That’s interesting. I’m thinking about how we never heard Michael Jordan ever speak about controversial issues. I wonder if he was required to?
In a way, Jordan has spoken by his silence. Years back, he went to a Nike meeting, and was greeted by a protest by Nike factory workers, who pointed out that his endorsement “earned” him more money per day than all of Nike’s factory workers combined made in a year. They begged him to speak out on this. He said not a word.
Despite his ability as a player, Michael Jordan has no ability as a Human Being. This shows he was not a Bulls player, but a Bullshit player.
It amazes how we treat veterans. We treat them like they’re Gods. When in fact, most do nothing hero like. And a lot of them HAD to go into the military or face jail time. I respect all veterans. But, these that support what his name, they’re just as wrong as he is.
This quote perfectly reflects the mental confusion of would-be champagne revolutionaries like Mr. Kaepernick. If the “country” is institutionally racist – as his stance on the national anthem is intended to suggest – then how can he assert that his FRIENDS “….have gone and fought for this country and they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice for everyone.”? Logic would suggest that they are merely fighting for the status quo. REFUSING to fight for a country that is perceived to be institutionally racist was what Muhammad Ali was all about.
Secondly, exactly where did those friends fight? Iraq? Afghanistan? Or maybe they were the airman or drone operators who were/are raining down terror and death on brown skinned Muslims in North Africa, the Midest, and near Asia – how did that work out? Did this exportation of American values afford the targets of regime change a greater level of Sovereignty and democracy, or less? Is the average indigenous native of Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya better off as a result of the purported “freedom” that they have been given? Or, can all of these countries be more accurately defined as failed states? How about the millions of displaced Muslims that live in the squalor of makeshift camps? Are they better off? Or those who simply died…?
Please remind me Mr. Kaepernick… Where exactly is this fight for “freedom, people, liberty and justice” taking place. Make your case – you have the attention of the entire world – let’s here what you truly think!
Yes, standing up for free speech is important, but you had better be sure that your positions are logically consistent when you claim to be standing on principle in opposition to institutionalized racism in America and abroad.
For many years, Ali identified with the teachings of the Nation of Islam and, as a result, his public posture was unequivocally and unapologetically hostile toward, and contemptuous of, “white” America.
‘For many years, Ali identified with the teachings of the Nation of Islam and, as a result, his public posture was unequivocally and unapologetically hostile toward, and contemptuous of, “white” America.’
You’re such a lying shitbag. Ali remained his same cordial self to all races throughout his association with NoI. In fact, he was so uncomfortable with NoI’s separatist attitude that he broke away from them.
Hmmm… Ali was cordial to all races?
Tell me if this is not enough to get you to think before you reflexively come to the defense of an admittedly race separatist and I will provide you with another five quotes.
Karl now you are being disingenuous. You know that Ali accepted “Orthodox” Islam offshoot: sufiism which is not ethnocentric as the Nation of Islamic. To use your own words: Do your homework. He did not believe in NOI after the death of Malcolm X who also changed his views about white race jsut not about the white racism in America. There is a world of difference between the twain.
Why you pretend he didn’t renounce such attitudes and break with the NoI? You and everyone else knows how his life changed after that period, yet you want to fixate on it as if it were frozen in time. Do you really expect to convince anyone to fall for yet another of your disingenuous spinnings and join you in a racist, Islamophobic circle jerk?
From Wikipedia:
Later beliefs
Ali converted from the Nation of Islam sect to mainstream Sunni Islam in 1975. In a 2004 autobiography, written with daughter Hana Yasmeen Ali, he attributed his conversion to the shift toward mainstream Islam made by Warith Deen Muhammad after he gained control of the Nation of Islam upon the death of Elijah Muhammad in 1975.
He had gone on the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in 1972, which inspired Ali in a similar manner to Malcolm X, meeting people of different colors from all over the world giving him a different outlook and greater spiritual awareness.[116] In 1977, he said that, after he retired, he would dedicate the rest of his life to getting “ready to meet God” by helping people, charitable causes, uniting people and helping to make peace.[117] He went on another Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in 1988.[118] In his later life, he had taken an interest in Sufism, which he referenced in his autobiography, The Soul of a Butterfly.
My original assertion was that “For many years, Ali identified with the teachings of the Nation of Islam and, as a result, his public posture was unequivocally and unapologetically hostile toward, and contemptuous of, “white” America.’
You retort was that Ali “remained cordial to all races throughout his association with NoI.”
Your claim is patently false as the racially divisive quotes that I provided clearly demonstrated. Suck it up and admit you were wrong.
I’m skeptical about most of your quotes. Provide citations for them.
The first and the last quote were sourced as they were the most damning. However, you can copy and paste any of the quotes into a google search window and you will readily get the answers you seek. I became aware of Ali when he won a gold medal in the 1960 Rome Games and I have followed his life and career with interest ever since. In spite of his many faults, I couldn’t help but liking him nevertheless.
Muhammad Ali to my knowledge never stood up as a conscientious objector to the present day MIC. If there is any documented proof please share. His silence on the subject was a disappointment for me.
As far as objecting to the foreign wars and being appreciative of the right to life for all people accross the globe is concerned Muslim or otherwise and taking a stand for it by criticizing the military that enables the usurping of such rights its too big a fight to pick for one man. You have to start somewhere and your own home is the best place to start. And criticizing the military which simply follows orders and that to a military of professional soldiers which the common man seems to think is doing it for them and perhaps some part of the soldiers also think the same (self delusionally I might add) would again be picking too many fights and confuse the objective which is to stand for justice, first at home, then for all. Which I humbly feel Ali did in the first instance but did not measure up to carry it forward to justice for all (accross the globe), by not speaking up against the present day military adventures. I hope you read this as I would love to hear your thoughts.
Are you unaware that Ali was limited by his battle with Parkinson’s Disease for the last 30 years of his life?
Muhammad Ali Fights Parkinson’s Disease With Help From Caregiving Wife, Lonnie
The man’s days on this earth have come to an end may he rest in peace.
However it’s a fact that he made no such gesture as Kaep against the current wars. Why. Only he knows or his maker.
Kaepernick is bringing attention anew to the same injustice today and the conversation needs to be built upon and a renewed emphasis placed on social justice and against the corporatocracy and MIC in present day.
It requires unity and in that spirit I let Muhammad’s memory rest untouched and unquestioned and draw inspiration from what he did in the prime of his lifetime. The most precious of times indeed as it is for Kaepernick today.
The real work was not done by Ali nor the leadership provided by Ali but by Malcolm and MLK and the legwork and sacrifices were made by many more. The struggles continue today at a global scale the question is when and if the movement will restart or be killed before it has really begun…
Strange that you would post a comment and then read a reply (including a link) to your comment and then post another comment, supposedly in reply to the comment in reply to your first comment, but your second comment indicates that you had no understanding at all of what the reply to your first comment stated. ’30 years of Parkinson’s Disease’ and “Ali has become private in recent years. In addition, his ability to speak has also deteriorated.”
A single google search on the terms “ali conscientious objector” returns numerous websites that speak directly to your your uninformed opinion. For example:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clay_v._United_States
He was extremely public about his opposition to the draft and the war in Vietnam. Please do your own homework.
I meant present day wars not Vietnam war
I am well aware if his refusal of the draft for Vietnam war. I said his objection to “present day” wars.
For those of us who are long in the tooth, Vietnam is a present day war. Every military action taken by the US since world war two has been to advance a neoliberal economic strategy that was devised at Breton Woods by 44 allied nations in 1944.
That was two generations ago pops, smile.
I go along with Kaepernick. Anybody who doesn’t realize it takes brass cojones to do what he has done has no understanding of the odium and nature of the present power structure. What he says about the cops and the candidates is correct, and the police murder of even non-blacks is at many times the level of other western countries.
True. What he has done is started a debate that the power structures are trying to stifle by using emotional arguments.
The civil action for change that one gold star mother rightly but emotionally alluded to in criticizing Kape is where the real action lies and that is what the power structures are trying to avoid by stifling the debate which might lead to action.
True. But the real action will be how we the people respond. Whether we stand up for justice or not. That’s what the power structures don’t want.
Even the partial list of veterans who support Kaepernick (or at least aren’t offended by his act) is enlightening, but personally, I’d be interested in a list (partial or comprehensive) of those who claimed ‘veterans’ would be offended. The only name (other than a certain orange hued guy with a history of appropriating for himself what others have sweated and risked things for) I’ve seen identified as making the ‘offensive’ claim, was NOT a veteran himself, just a family member of one. Which begs the question, are there any, or markedly few, actual veterans (actual – excluding those who, like a certain Republican President, use their connections and power to make sure they’re a continent or so away from the battlefield) who were publicly offended?
Kaep is now the Left’s version of Tim Tebow. “He hates the National Anthem and the cops. He wears a Malcolm X hat and a Castro shirt. Who cares if he can’t throw straight or read a defense, when can he run for office?”
Actually, no. I don’t pay much attention to professional football, and certainly not the the 49ers. But a number of lefties in my Twitter TL who do, and who supported Kaepernick’s action vis-a-vis the anthem, made snarky comments about his professional performance as a player.
“made snarky comments about his professional performance as a player”
That’s the point, they’re both bad QBs that people like for non-football reasons. Actually as player’s they’re somewhat similar, both great athletes, but inaccurate passers who don’t read the defense well.
I live surrounded by 49ers fans. In the past few days, several have said that, although they fully support and agree with his choice not to stand for the anthem, they fully understand why some folks might want to burn his jersey to protest professional incompetence.
And then there’s, “Hell, he’s always sitting. How did anyone notice.”
Kap is a brave guy making a righteous and important statement, but his days as an NFL quarterback would likely be numbered even if he were a Medal of Honor winner, with American flags on every piece of clothing he wore, and who could proudly sing the anthem better than any of the Irish Tenors.
I read your comment as meaning lefties didn’t care if Kaepernick sucked as a player. But as I said, I saw a lot of lefty people caring enough to say he sucked at football. If they nevertheless esteem him for his principled politics, what would be wrong with that?
Nothing really wrong with it I suppose, the Left had a lot of fun with Tebow, but you might have missed that. Let’s just say they’ve both garnered a lot more attention their talents deserved.
Sooo… none of this happened?
“Kaepernick began his pro career as the 49ers’ backup to starter Alex Smith. In the middle of the 2012 season, Kaepernick filled in for an injured Smith and became the full-time starter as the 49ers advanced to the NFL playoffs for the second straight season. He set an NFL record for most rushing yards (181) by a quarterback in a game (playoffs or regular season) in his first playoff game. After beating the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship 28–24, he led the 49ers to their first Super Bowl since 1994, where they lost to the Baltimore Ravens.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Kaepernick
That is impressive. But apparently he hasn’t been so hot lately, or at least that’s the impression I get from some sports fans on Twitter.
That’s correct, Mona. And probably an understatement.
not true.
He loves America enough to want it to change for the better and to initiate or support that change before some facist POS tries to take that from him and the rest of us.
i rest my case.
“He loves America enough to want it to change for the better..”
Oh come on, don’t give me that dissent is the highest form of patriotism crap– he’s wearing a Castro meets Malcolm X shirt, for pete’s sake! You can protest Israel and not be an anti-Semite, but if you’re painting swastikas on a synagogue you can’t really claim you’re doing it because you love the Jews.
– I rest my case.
“if you’re painting swastikas on a synagogue you can’t really claim you’re doing it because you love the Jews.”
and the Jews are shooting Palestinians like the fish in a barrel they are. Thanks for bringing it up …
wrong again.
you: dissent is the highest form of patriotism crap
me: dissent is a responsible form of patriotism
preservation of freedom of speech and expression is everyone’s right and responsibility.
deny that?
Who is preventing him from speaking? Even the league isn’t retaliating against him. I’m just saying if you understand what they were about, you can’t really idolize Castro and Malcolm X and claim that you’re really a patriot. (which is not what he’s claiming anyways, that’s what you said)
THANKYOUVERYMUCH Robert Mackey for bringing this out!
Vets know better.
Sorry again using the Vets. Some of them stated their opinion for Kape and some might be against it. Vets support only shows that the debate shouldn’t be silenced using their name.
Kape is right because he is standing for what the flag is supposed to stand for even if the national anthem is just a tune to rally the troops and cause complacent agreement among the citizenry and push real issues under the rug.
no doubt.
When you are fired on, you start thinking real hard about “what for” you are about to die.
Is it really so surprising that those who endeavour to honour bravery, freedom, and justice would voice their support for someone who bravely (he had to know that his act would provoke somewhere around this level of vitriol and hatred) exercised his (theoretical) freedom to take a stance (ironically, by staying seated) for justice?
Yes, all too often the men and women of the American military (actually, every military) fall short of actually honouring those three things (especially when their ‘leaders’, military and/or civilian, order them to) but they do ENDEAVOUR to honour them.
This should not be an issue, he has every right to support who and what he pleases.
I would say that I still think African American have it far better than Iraqis and Syrians, those individuals our brave men and women kills in the name of “freedom”, even though neither nation has done harm to our freedom.
I wish he was taking a stand against war, murder, and imperialism, something black America is certainly partaking in.
Congrutalions for your post. I could see that in the US not everybody is included in the 2 categories that I wrote below.
Lots of people still thinking with the brain.
Agreed hundred percent. It’s the same kind of mob mentality that has stifled the dissent on the MIC and war profiteering and the false pretenses under which these wars were started. They were started for not American people’s interests but for the interest of the same special interests that want to own the natural resources under the guise of globalization and privatization so that they can find the cheapest prices at which to “buy” raw materials and labor thus bringing down the costs (your and my salaries) and “pay” pennies or rather bribes to corrupt puppet rulers in the subjugated “colonies” and maximize profits for the benefit of the .001 %. We hear of the 1 % and these 1% are only the enablers. Really it’s the handful of people that Credit Suisse report from 2015 alludes to without naming them that are being enriched at the expense of millions being killed, maimed, made homeless and refugees not to speak of the disenfranchised.
However we can start with the problem at hand in our back yard: disenfranchisement of the American people. Finding the culprits of this symptom will lead us to the real culprits.
you are surely blessed.
So, anyone still defending the “I don’t care about the First Amendment because I don’t have anything to say” argument. Retaliation against CK’s supporters? Court martial, Treason, Aiding & Abetting the Enemy? I got $50. Anyone?? I applaud these guys for standing up for CK. It’s nice to see individuals w/a spine standing up for what’s morally the right thing to do.
exactly.
there are too many cowardly political meely mouthed insulted SFB elected persons.
respectfully, i cannot take that bet.
Flag activism has its limits.
So there is mutual admiration between Kaepernick and some of our designated killers of Muslims. This doesn’t exactly bolster Kaepernick’s case against killer cops.
I think when Kaeperick says he respects them he nor do the majority of American people are saying they condone the killing of innocent people. I just can’t believe that. That would be heartless.
However we are self delusionally ignoring the facts and aiding and abetting the implementation of the elites and their agents by our self delusion. That’s why this debate is critical and universal application of principles of justices like liberty and justice for all. This means wearing a burka if you chose to or wearing nothing at all. This means life matters if you are a Syrian child in Syria, or a black kid in America, or a white kid.
Not being from the US there is something that it is quite difficult for me to understand. When this people talk about the military fighting for “our freedoms” do they talk about invading/destroying other countries ? all those soldiers with pictures in Irak think that they went there for the US freedoms ? killing innocents in countries that are thousands of miles away that did nothing to the US is fighting for “our freedoms” ? did Saddam Hussein or Kaddhafi (or some others) bomb North Carolina or Maine and I never heard about that ? this guy Kaepernick says that he has great respect for the Military….sorry..may I ask..for what ??????? I see only 2 possiblities here,
1) People are completely brainwashed
or
2) The society is terrified by something that is political incorrect and this would be to say loudly that it is criminal to kill millions from far away countries that did nothing to the US and even more criminal is saying that is done in the name of democracy, freedoms, etc.
Is it these the way the US society works ?
Um, I’m going to go with #1, it truly is astonishing what they’ve managed to achieve in those regards. As crazy as it may seem to you trust me it is really much crazier when you live here. I’m sorry. For what its’ worth some of us do try to fix this problem, though without much luck.
Brainwashed to the hilt and I just might add, most of my fellow citizens believe that they are far superior to the rest of the people in the world. Utter rubbish, and I might add that if, (when) Hillary gets coronated, the whole world is in deep shit.
Yes, we can sit this out. Time for a new song?
It’s amazing how Jon Schwarz’s piece galvanized such a reaction. This thread will now also likely be inundated, as Jon’s was, with that quote from the kiddy history site that offers a benign (but irreconcilable with the rest of the stanza) reading of the anthem’s celebration of dead slaves.
Veterans such as those enumerated above understand what defending the values of this country actually means. Even if our government sent far too many of them to fight and possibly die in wars that have little or nothing to do with defending the country and its values.
Indeed. Military people often see first hand how badly government can foul things up. Many of them are rather critical of things done.
If I had any respect for you I wouldn’t be so rude, but not only are you a detestable liar your prose always looks like it seeped out of a marketing department.
You have no respect for me because you are almost certainly mentally ill, being one of these. You have flooded comment space here with bizarre delusions about being tortured and stalked, which has caused you to be banned by the writers here multiple times. A banning you refuse to accept because, you have written, you do not respect the writers because they fail to take your delusions seriously.
I do not take them seriously either (except to note that several like you have gone on murder sprees, so these psychotic beliefs can be dangerous), and have made that clear. Hence, your disrespect.
@Mona “except to note that several like you have gone on murder sprees, so these psychotic beliefs can be dangerous), and have made that clear. Hence, your disrespect.”
Yes, Mona has made it clear.
No one brings up murder sprees and dangerous, psychotic, behavior like Mona does. Why is the subject always at the front of your thoughts, -Mona-?
Project much?
Stan initiates abuse at me with some frequency and has a post deleted that the staff believe constituted a threat and menacing of themselves and me. It’s unlikely he could actually find out where I live, but he has several times demanded to know.
People with Stan’s affliction have also menaced people who do what Glenn does, i.e., speak publicly about national security issues and whistleblowing. Security has been involved more than once when these individuals approach the speaker.
Knowing all of that I could not honestly declare that I do not take Stan’s delusional beliefs “seriously” without the caveat about the sense in which I do take them that way.
“Stan initiates abuse at me with some frequency”
And you never fail to not pile on. I am not defending Stan.
I see you whack a hornets nest and then warn others of the risk of stings …
Now that military veterans, as well as starting quarterbacks, are refusing to follow the script, the full dangers of the First Amendment are starting to become apparent. New filters are required on social media, and fast. Technology should ride to the rescue, but it demonstrates the elites have become dangerously complacent about their ability to control the masses.
This is an overdue wake-up call.
Clinton’s on it. Russia’s fellow travelers are worried.
The guy’s a major tur – just like you Mackey…
I’m a 22 year Air Force veteran and I do NOT support him at all. If he cannot honor this country then he has his constitutional right to emigrate!
You are forgiven for calling emigration a constitutional right. And you just exercised the same right he is granted by the Constitution to not support him. That’s your right to freedom of speech. You fight for defending this nation I assume?
The Constitution is the statement of this nations moral vision for which the flag and the anthem are symbols.