YOU can decide if Kelly earned his reputation. Many reporters are digging around, gathering people’s opinions, and reporting on them. It’s an on going news story. For years now.
A new angle of the story is how players( like Kapernick?!) on Kelly’s new team (The 49ers?!) are reacting to him. It’s part of the reason the Kap story is so big.
So many people were interested in this, reporters wanted the reaction of players and the head coach of Kelly’s old team (The Eagles).
If he follows through with it, I’ve got to admit I was wrong to be so hard on him. At least he’ll be making an actual sacrifice for his beliefs. I guess it remains to be seen where the money is going to go, but either way it deserves some respect.
I’m with Ray Lewis on this one (one of the rare if only times I can ever remember saying THAT), but regardless yes. If he follows through and DOES something, or even just continues to donate regular large sums of money, I’ll ease up on him for at least following through on his words.
One thing that I think got lost in all of this is how ill-equipped professional athletes (especially younger ones) often are to become public mouthpieces. Colin Kaepernick is 28 years old. While some of you had already been shot at in service of our country, bedded 100 women, and achieved other Bill Brasky-like feats, this guy (and most NFL players) has never held an occupation other than “professional football player” or “scholarship athlete.” Why would we expect them to have reasonable, thoughtful, intelligent takes on every social issue of the day?
I often think back to LeBron James and the “Decision” which earned him so much scorn. I think that, unlike Kobe Bryant (who honestly does not care if anyone likes him), LeBron genuinely wants to be liked and was taken aback at how much negative attention he got for the Decision. It’s easy for those of us normal-people to look at it and say “Why was he surprised that he got crushed for it?” but when you’re 26 years old, have only ever worked as a professional athlete and have spent the last decade being told how terrific you are at sports, you’re probably somewhat poorly equipped to understand the fallout of any major public statement (although his PR guys should have been taken out back and shot for that, lol). But as for the athletes, these guys practically live in a vacuum! A couple years ago, when Jeremy Lin was exploding into the short-lived-but-hilariously-fun Linsanity, a couple reporters asked the Lakers (who were about to play the Knicks) what they thought of Jeremy Lin and they basically all said “Who’s that?” - even though the guy had been all over the news and SportsCenter for a couple days. Pro athletes are (often, not always) going to be ill-informed about the outside world.
We’ve all got our own opinions about whether he is right or wrong to sit/kneel for the anthem, but leaving that aside for the moment, another of the criticisms leveled at Kap throughout this thread was that he’s an entitled “limousine” protester doing something for convenient PR rather than actually sacrificing anything. Maybe that was/is all he ever intended to be; but after seeing the public reaction/outcry in response to his initial action, he decided that more of an “action” than merely not-standing-for-the-anthem was warranted. Going into this he was still basically a naive kid; now he’s learned something, maybe?
Okay, I will. Since I have yet to hear anything but the opinions of players, he has not earned the racist title. I need facts before I brand someone, not feelings.
NOW you understand why this is a “story.”
Kap wanted out of S.F.
Kelly is named SF head coach.
Kap is perceived as the perfect guy for Kelly’s offense.
Kelly has a reputation for not relating to black guys with big personalities.
Kap makes a “racially charged” protest.
What is going to happen next? Will it shed any light on the “true nature” of anyone involved?
I have to agree here. It’s not as if his whole team was white. 
Could it be he is a disciplinarian and demands a level of character from his players that, if not displayed, results in their being released/traded?
The truth could be exactly that. He is so hardcore, he cancelled junk food Friday.
And if he’s such a disciplinarian and character guy, what’s he gonna do with Kap?
And if Kap is a whinney cry baby who makes excuses, what’s he gonna say about Kelly?
Will there be a clash? Will they get along? Will the team win games?
Nothing.
He will make excuses. “I’m not playing because the coach is racist.”
Probably.
Probably not.
Probably not.
Hopefully. And I certainly leveled that criticism at him. I feel rightfully so, since up to that time he had not done anything nor so far as I could tell given any money, past or present, but I feel that is something that can be learned too so fair play there. Good point about players existing in a vacuum. I think that speaks more to how we treat and expect them to act, but it is true regardless.
It’s nice and all that douche nozzle is going to give 10% of his income to charity, but it doesn’t excuse the utter contempt and disrespect he continues to show to the men and women that have been brought home in a coffin draped in our colors.
Does it matter that he said " I have great respect for the men and women who have fought for this country."?
Not to me. Actions speak louder than words.
This is the ultimate truth.
100% AGREE. There are also another couple of points:
He and others showed their utter distain and contempt for the United States, when they refused to stand for the anniversary of 9/11. 431 first responders, cops, firefighters, medics and nearly 3,000 Americans died that day. An event that launched 15 years of war with another 3000 thousand deaths and over 22 thousand with missing body parts. And lets no forget the first responders dying today with lung disease and cancer. You want to protest the police , fine, but, shitting all over a country that gave you everything while you sacrificed nothing is beyond belief. Fuck you forever.
So, now he gets a break because he going to donate to charity? WTF? Money makes it better? Giving money means that shitting on our country is ok now, because he going to throw some money at some charity?
So, he is 28 and has no life experience, and, he gets a break? Did anyone ever give you a break at 28? So, when does he “grow up” 30-40? he has been a pampered pussy all his life and age makes a difference? tell that to a 19 year old Marine missing both legs or a NYPD or FDNY person dying of lung disease from 9/11.
And professional athletes are living in a vacuum? I have been in many shitholes in my life, and guess what, CNN is in every one of them. If they live in a vacuum, its their own choice to remain stupid. Since most of these “professionals” play their children’s games in the United States, its hard for me to imagine CNN not being in their hotel rooms.
No, he doesn’t “get a break” but it at least addresses one of the criticisms being leveled at him (not yours, I know, but just give us a minute to address someone else’s perspective, if you would) that he was protesting only to draw attention to himself instead of actually doing anything about the issue(s) inspiring said protest.
I tried to head off precisely this train of thought, but I was a little too flippant so perhaps it was not clear. My point was/is that many public figures (especially athletes and entertainers) are relatively young, naive people who have virtually no knowledge of domestic or foreign affairs and, as such, are quite poorly suited to be public mouthpieces on any social issues. The whole “tell it to a 19 year old Marine missing both legs” actually is part of my point because a 19 year old Marine missing both legs probably has a lot better understanding of societal issues than any professional athlete does. I also want to revisit this at the end of the post…
I hate to break it to you idealists, but professional athletes (and actors, and singers, and Donald Trump) just do not live in the same world as the rest of us. They almost never have to speak to, or even see, someone that doesn’t like them and/or tells them anything they don’t want to hear! Justin Bieber thinks he could be a professional basketball player if he wants to, mostly because he plays basketball against guys that are part of his entourage who probably don’t even try to block his shots for fear of losing their meal ticket, guys that he’s basically paying to fall down so he looks good. I am painting celebrities with a broad brush, and there are many who do choose to be informed, active citizens that champion important social causes. However, for every Warrick Dunn (whose charity is devoted to helping single-parent families find affordable housing) there are going to be a handful of athletes, singers, actors, etc who surround themselves with an entourage whose sole job is to do their bidding and tell them how great they are.
Does this really surprise you that they’re not suited to offer intelligent takes on social justice?
I’m glad that you mentioned CNN. Because if Colin Kaepernick did decide to flip on CNN for half an hour every night to take a gander at what was happening in the world today, there’s a pretty good chance that he would see at least one story on some sort of racial tension somewhere in the United States. I can think of three or four news stories from the past week fitting the generic “black guy shot by white cops under highly questionable circumstances” template. Are you really sure that “watching CNN” is going to take this in the direction you expect?
I asked a good friend of mine, a black veteran from inner-city Los Angeles who went into the service straight out of high school because he had no money for college, served five years, came back without half a leg but with some cash that could see him through college, and eventually wound up living with me though he was five years my senior. I thought he would have a unique perspective, given that he is effectively “on both sides” of this discussion as a black man (Racial Injustice) and a military veteran (Don’t Disrespect My Country’s Flag).
Using rather colorful language, he disagrees with the veterans who have expressed their contempt for Kaepernick under the guise of “He’s showing disdain and contempt for the United States and all the proud men and women who fought and died for it.” His perspective basically boiled down to (I am paraphrasing, tried to remember a couple of his direct quotes):
“They might feel different if they were black. All the time I have cops roll up to me and ask what I was doing when I’m just walking down the street. I served our country, came home and got a degree, have a good job, and I’m still looked at with a side-eye all over the place because I’m black. People say Colin Kaepernick is disrespecting the country because he won’t stand up for the anthem? Tell them to open their eyes. Black people get disrespected every day, people that say it’s different ain’t never walked in my shoes. Black dudes get shot at traffic stops, hell, one got shot at while he was laying flat on his back on the ground with his hands in the air. People that cry about Kap not standing for the anthem do that because it’s more convenient than actually talking about race. Just trying to discredit the source instead of address the issues.”
I am neither endorsing nor condemning my friend’s viewpoint, but presenting it for comment, as I thought he would have an interesting perspective. Again, this is a guy who served for five years in the Middle East, has half a leg on one side and a couple other bullet holes in him. He is also a proud black male from an inner city which has seen its share of racial tension.
Lol, well I’m about to go on a rant…
No disrespect to your friend, but this is complete bullshit.
This:
Goes both ways.
White people need to think more about black people. White people need to change so “structural” racism can change.
Does this not count:
Yes, let’s open our eyes:
Black people represent 13% of the US population yet they are responsible for the highest, 52.4%, number of murders.
We can’t talk about that, though. That’s not what BLM and the current movement is about. Those black lives don’t seem to matter. It’s about a handful of highly publicized events regardless of their legality. It’s about the victimhood mentality of a significant portion of the US population. I mean, what happened in NC, Baltimore, Fergusen, etc… Riots, looting, and violence.
Let’s recap:
*White people are triggering when they want to help protest, but:
*White people need to think more about how black people feel so white people can change.
*Black people are responsible for the highest percentage or murders in the US per the FBI while representing one of the lowest percentages of the population.
As far as the issue is concerned, I don’t believe anyone here or the vast majority of American’s for that matter think the police should not be held accountable for their actions. No one is above the law.
At the same time, police officers are put in an impossible position. They’re supposed to patrol high crime areas, like Chicago while exercising incredible judgment when making snap decision that can result in life or death. All in communities where a significant portion of the population hates them.
Meanwhile:
Then you get this shit:
https://twitter.com/hautedamn/status/758121464889356288/video/1
https://twitter.com/PrisonPlanet/status/764763330980511745/video/1
https://twitter.com/TheeCurrentYear/status/778453869302906880?ref_src=twsrc^tfw
In Baltimore rioters burnt down a $16M dollar facility being built for senior citizens of the community.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/28/us/baltimore-community-center-fire/
This is sweet too…
http://www.thedemands.org/
Almost forgot about the knockout game:
Open them eyes indeed:
