I don’t get why “Please Stand” is worse than “Please Stand For Our Veterans”.
“But imposing corporate censorship to deny that same right to those veterans who have secured it for us all is reprehensible and totally beyond the pale.”
There are lots of veterans who support the right of people not to stand for the anthem, too. If you want to make your point, stand outside the stadium in Minnesota during the Super Bowl and protest. It should be nice and toasty then.
Because “Please Stand” basically tells the story that the players’ kneeling due to the social injustices going on in America is invalid.
Speaking as a Marine combat veteran, whether I stand, sit, kneel, salute, place my hand over my heart, or rub my head and pat my tummy during the anthem is no ones business. We must not confuse the symbols of freedom with actual freedom. I would bet that many of the anti-kneelers are at the concession stand buying beer or in the head during the national anthem anyway.
Instead of some hyper commercialized, parading, firework launching, jet flying, patrioti-ganza thrown in honor of itself, the NFL should honor America with US Marine Corps Band’s traditional 90 second arrangement of the Star Spangled Banner. If some > rockstar wants to over-emote the anthem, they should save it for their own concert.
There would be no question that the Marines honored America, and I guarantee they’d be happy to perform live.
This one small gesture must be crushed beneath the bone spurred heel of the white suprema cyst in chief.
Poor, poor Cadet Bone Spur.
No freedom right that illuminates his fantasy world can be allowed.
Poor, poor Cadet Bone Spur.
Don’t you know if the NFL did that, we’d all forget what patriotism was?
Odd how, apparently, things like Formula One races are done in other countries without massive displays of military fapping. Guess they just don’t love their countries as much as we love ours.
I am a combat veteran, a well decorated one, but let me say: Veterans have no role in this debate. No one is taking a knee to insult our Military. The Anthem is about America not it’s veterans. AmVets is a gross outfit anyway as is the VFW and American Legion. All they do is pump alcohol into aged veterans, sucking up their retirement or Social Security checks in the process. America…get over your Veteran thing. The vast majority spent a scant 20 years in service and never fought anything tougher than a clogged toilet. They go in at 18 and "retire at 38 with a check and healthcare for life. You do ENOUGH for them. Don’t let them co-opt America’s social issues for their personal gain. They are a protected and cared for class of people and have no standing in debates about racial inequality. And in this case don’t let them foist their Republican politics on you with lies.
I am named after an uncle that died storming Omaha Beach. My father served in WW2, Korea and Vietnam. I served in Vietnam. I am very comfortable saying what I said above.
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Thank you for your service, sir.
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It strikes me that a lot of veterans are actually supportive of the NFL players who choose to kneel. They get that these men are exercising their constitutional right to protest peacefully – the same Constitution they swore an oath to protect and defend.
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Google Nate Boyer. The civilized and thoughtful conversation he had with Colin Kaepernick will be refreshing.
Every veteran that’s still about U_S_A and not G_O_P is supportive. If you put a young man in a rubber bag to send home for his mother you’d know that’s what the kid died for. That right to kneel not to disgrace the Veteran community with cry baby Republican tricks.
I agree. If you can stomach it go to a VFW for the super bowl. See how many of those drunks ( most of the assholes in those joints are “associate” members and never saw a day of service ) stand when the Anthem comes on. That is if you can stomach going into one of those anti Veteran alcohol dens.
“Freedom of speech works both ways." True, that’s why the NFL can not prevent you from publishing your own magazine, with whatever content you wish to put in it, AND refuse ads from those with whom you disagree, or find offensive.
Who else is concerned about the conflation of politics with entertainment and government with corporate in this issue?
Why do they play the national anthem at NFL games anyway?
After waiting through the beer line, then waiting in the men’s room line, when the anthem plays they probably are standing, at the urinal.
This entire “Kneeling is Anti-American” bullshit is nothing but a smokescreen for rank racism.
They don’t give a shit about WHITE PLAYERS kneeling, just the Black ones.
They are upset that the “members of the plantation” are not being “respectful enough” of the supremacy of the White Owners (and fans.)
Go read the ACTUAL VERSES of the ENTIRE “Star Spangled Banner” poem sometime and it’s virulently RACIST third stanza;
And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave,
From the terror of flight and the gloom of the grave;
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free, and the home of the brave!
Who made AMVETS the arbitrator of patriotic ceremonies?
Patriotism comes from the heart.
I am comfortable saying your comment makes me comfortable.
Thank you for your service under our flag and listening to our anthem.
You are mentioned in our constitution, but no flag nor anthem is.
Thank you for helping sustain our constitution.
The odor of contrivance is pretty pungent - this is not the first time that a Super Bowl ad became a gimmick and the dithering over the nuances of content purposely hung up for manipulative reasons -
The wording selected by AMVETS was deliberate and intended to, not so subtly, stick a finger in the eyes of all of those “uppity” football players who “don’t know their place” - - and AMVETS refusal to tweak / modify / refine the wording was highly calculated.
Bottom line - AMVETS is banking on getting far more publicity & scoring big points with their bse by pissing and moaning about having their ad rejected (because they refused to budge) - far more publicity than if they just ran the damn ad with “Please Stand for our Veterans.” - - and the real kicker - they get the attention without actually paying to run the ad.
… and this is not the first time some organization purposely crafted a ad that was contrived to get rejected so they could wail in faux indignation - and scream “unfair” - while not having to spend millions on an actual ad.
That is obviously what “Please stand for our veterans” implies, as well.