I don't follow sports.
I don't follow sports. Not at all. Not even a little. But, I've seen Kaepernick's name popping up all over the place for days. From various buts here and there I pieced together what had happened and aside from one Twitter reply to a fellow veteran who was disgusted, I've remained silent about the whole situation.
Had I spoken up or had I spoken out, I would have said something similar to this defense of Kaepernick, it much less eloquently. Because, while I have the same feelings regarding respect as the author, I wouldn't have thought to tie it to standing for the national anthem. Instead, I would have relied on the tried and true freedom of speech argument that protest, no matter how silent, is protected by the first amendment. I would have argued that he has a moral obligation to stand up for what he believes in - or sit down, as it were. And in the end, I would have argued that sitting or standing for a song, burning a flag, not reciting the pledge of allegiance or any of countless other "disrespectful" actions are not only permissible, but imperative, when the governments of this country and so-called patriots are not giving standing by their responsibilities outlined in our social contract.
http://thefreethoughtproject.com/veteran-response-kaepernick-tyrants/
Had I spoken up or had I spoken out, I would have said something similar to this defense of Kaepernick, it much less eloquently. Because, while I have the same feelings regarding respect as the author, I wouldn't have thought to tie it to standing for the national anthem. Instead, I would have relied on the tried and true freedom of speech argument that protest, no matter how silent, is protected by the first amendment. I would have argued that he has a moral obligation to stand up for what he believes in - or sit down, as it were. And in the end, I would have argued that sitting or standing for a song, burning a flag, not reciting the pledge of allegiance or any of countless other "disrespectful" actions are not only permissible, but imperative, when the governments of this country and so-called patriots are not giving standing by their responsibilities outlined in our social contract.
http://thefreethoughtproject.com/veteran-response-kaepernick-tyrants/
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