WhatFinger


His cause is not worthy. He is slandering America's police officers as racist thugs, and accusing the rest of the country of accepting this. None of it is true.

Enough with the nonsense that Kaepernick's cause is worthy and it's just his method of protesting that's offensive


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By —— Bio and Archives September 18, 2017

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Let's dispense with a serious bit of nonsense where Colin Kaepernick is concerned. This is the nonsense that says people need to get over the manner of his protest - refusing to stand for the national anthem - and listen to what he's saying. The premise here is that people are getting too caught up in a protest style they find offensive, and that as a result they're missing his truly worthy message. If only people would focus exclusively on Kaepernick's message, this argument suggests, they would agree with him.

No evidence of widespread racist cop shootings

If that's true, it's a real shame, because Kaepernick's cause is not worthy, and his substantive message is far worse than his refusal to stand for the national anthem. Kaepernick's message is two fold: 1. America is overrun with racist white cops who are shooting black men just because they are black men; 2. American society as a whole accepts racist white cops shooting black men just because they are black men. Both 1 and 2 are false. Notion 1 came about as a result of sensationalist media reporting that makes race the focal point of every shooting incident in which the cop is white and the target is black, regardless of whether race is actually a factor in these incidents. Every time this happens, the usual suspects jump to the conclusion that the incident was a racial one, when in fact the reason the gun was fired could have had nothing to do with race at all. Before he got himself fired for helping Barack Obama whitewash Hillary Clinton's crimes, James Comey admitted there is no evidence of widespread racist cop shootings. But most people think there is because they keep hearing there is, and because Colin Kaepernick says so. In a forum that took place in Detroit last week, Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross disappointingly ascribed credibility to Kaepernick's nonsense:
Gilbert sat behind a desk, talk show host-style, on the stage at the Detroit Institute of Art's Film Theatre to a host a chat with billionaire real estate baron and Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green. Ross is a Detroit native and University of Michigan mega-donor, and Green is from Saginaw and played college basketball at Michigan State.
The trio were assembled as part of the fourth annual Detroit Homecoming, a gathering of former Detroiters produced by Crain's Detroit Business. They discussed Detroit's recovery and business and their college rivalries, but then the two billionaires and a millionaire took the light-hearted conversation to a serious place. Gilbert asked the pair about former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick kneeling last season during the national anthem to raise awareness of racial injustice in the United States. The mention of Kaepernick drew applause and cheers from some in the audience. Ross, who created a national anti-racism initiative a few years ago, backs the right of players to protest. "This is a country where people are allowed to express themselves," he said. Ross' Miami Dolphins lost their starting quarterback during training camp but opted to sign Jay Cutler, the longtime Chicago Bears passer who'd been cut by the Bears, as a replacement instead of Kaepernick because Dolphins coach Adam Gase had coached Cutler in the past. "I would have hired (Kaepernick)," Ross said, then explaining that his coach wanted Cutler because of their familiarity.


Athletes kneeling during the anthem has become a national topic, which plenty of heated opinions for and against Kaepernick, who remains unsigned. He's the biracial adopted son of white parents, and a cadre of sports pundits say Kaepernick has been blackballed by NFL owners because his protests are a distraction. The protest is important, Ross said. "It started a conversation that needed to be had," Ross said, adding that he believes Kaepernick will get signed. "It's unfortunate it hasn't happened yet." Gilbert noted that some people support Kaepernick's agenda but oppose his form of protest because they see the flag as a symbol to honor the military. He said his father, a veteran, would be spinning in his grave over the kneeling. Green, 27, is African-American and backs Kaepernick's use of his celebrity platform to spark change. "America is the land of the free," he said. "I don't see the big deal about him taking a knee. He didn't burn or throw down the flag." Green drew cheers when he said critics aren't listening to what Kaepernick is saying. They're instead focusing on his form of protest. "How about you listen to what he said first?" he said.

What Mr. Ross said is abhorrent and appalling

I've listened to what he said, Mr. Ross. What he said is abhorrent and appalling. He not only cast aspersions on cops throughout the country (that's his feet that those pig socks are adorning in the photo above), but he wrongly accused an entire country of accepting the racist atrocity Kaepernick thinks is going on. That is so horrendously wrong, I don't even know where to start. When there is actually a case of a racist white cop shooting a black man just because he is black, the entire nation condemns this and should. If Kaepernick doesn't understand that this is true, then he is listening exclusively to left-wing race mongers and he isn't paying attention to real people across this country. I realize the media and guilty white liberals love to affirm the idea that America is an abjectly racist nation, and perhaps guilty white liberals like Stephen Ross think that too. If you know very many Americans, however, you know that thing Kaepernick believes we all accept is something we would never accept - if it were going on to any significant degree, which I'm glad to say it's not. When someone makes a claim that is completely false, you don't give them credit for "starting a conversation." You declare that they're wrong and admonish them to stop making up lies about people. That's the right way to deal with Colin Kaepernick.

I don't really care about Kaepernick's style of protest

A lot of you have gotten mad at me for saying this in the past, but I really don't get worked up when someone doesn't give proper reverence to the flag or to the national anthem. For some reason in people's minds this got all tied up with "disrespecting the troops," as if patriotic symbols don't stand for anything but people who have served in the military. Those are symbols of the whole country, and I realize those who refuse to respect them are demonstrating a certain disrespect for the country - or at the very least they're rejecting the traditional ways we show respect for the country. I think this is obnoxious but I'm not all that interested in compelling people to do these things if they don't want to do them. If expressions of patriotism are obligatory and under compulsion, then they really are meaningless. I don't really care about Kaepernick's style of protest. If that's the part that bothers you, you're missing the point. I do care when he slanders some of the finest and bravest people in this country by calling them racist thugs when they are not. And no, he doesn't do anything positive by doing it. He's not starting a useful conversation. He's just lying about good people. He deserves to be utterly condemned for that. I hope he never plays in the NFL again. And if Stephen Ross respected police officers at all, he would take back what he said about being willing to sign him.

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Dan Calabrese’s column is distributed by HermanCain.com, which can be found at HermanCain

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