Robert Ehrlich: Out-of-touch kneeling NFL players are starting to ruin emotional attachment to football

[TomSea]

Excerpt:

Out-of-touch kneeling NFL players are starting to ruin emotional attachment to football
Robert Ehrlich

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The incarceration statistics are an intolerable reality in a nation of unparalleled wealth. Accordingly, players who wish to utilize an appropriate public platform in order to articulate their concerns (and engage the public) about these issues will find plenty of fans willing to listen.

But players need to listen, too. An overwhelming majority of Americans view the flag and anthem as symbols of freedom, sacrifice, and opportunity, cherished values albeit pursued by an imperfect country and people. Here, fans do not interpret the kneeling as an exercise in speech, but rather a very public snub aimed at unifying symbols. The bottom line: Far too many Americans have fought, bled, and died with that flag on their shoulder. No amount of "but we didn't mean to disrespect the flag" disclaimers will erase the image of kneeling players.

If you doubt this observation, consider the Baltimore Ravens pre-anthem "ceremony" at M&T Bank Stadium on Oct. 1. Stadium announcer Bruce Cunningham informed the crowd that players and coaches alike would take a knee prior to the anthem in prayer for "unity, kindness and justice for all Americans." The fans still booed. And, trust me, they were not booing justice or the prayer. They were booing a compromise that pleased few; they will continue to boo any kneeling activity around the flag and country. That many players expressed shock over the adverse reaction from fans speaks to how out of touch they are when it comes to the average fan experience.

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Continued at: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/out-of-touch-kneeling-nfl-players-are-starting-to-ruin-emotional-attachment-to-football/article/2637585

[dfwgator]

The fact that a lot of the players are just flat-out thugs is the reason,   the anthem is just a symptom of it.

[EasyAce]

Muddy Waters once sang, "You can't lose what you ain't never had."

I ain't never had any attachment to football, emotional or otherwise, other than playing
one season in a recreational league when I was kid just to see if I liked it. I didn't, partially
because as a football player I was a good baseball player (for a few boyhood years, anyway),
and partly because being amidst a gaggle of guys trying to cripple each other while one
poor sap survived to throw or run with something that wasn't even shaped like a ball, for
crying out loud, made about as much sense as trying to see where you were going in an
unlit TNT warehouse with a blowtorch.

So it's no loss for me, either.

And that was before you could follow the NFL by reading the police blotter reports . . .