I may be all alone -but- I could care less about - - -

[BLUTO]

An individual NFL player's personal views about race, politics, sex, abortion or his ideas about our country and the National Anthem.

I pay money to watch a game played by the best football athletes in the world. That's all I want. It's a product not a moral pursuit.

GO BILLS!

[Thurmal]

An individual NFL player's personal views about race, politics, sex, abortion or his ideas about our country and the National Anthem.

I pay money to watch a game played by the best football athletes in the world. That's all I want. It's a product not a moral pursuit.

GO BILLS!

This is what athletes and movie stars and musicians and other celebrities don't get. They have had their asses kissed for so long, that they think that they are actually smarter than the average Joe, which they're clearly not. This last election was a hilarious repudiation of their lecturing and a true portrayal of how little influence they have outside of their little niche. Getting a reality check that brutal obviously crushed them, which is why you are seeing the meltdown and histrionics.

[Night Train]

They...made it a moral pursuit.

Trump said something insanely stupid and the NFL tried to one up him in the stupidity race.

So now the game is secondary in the eyes of the media and talking heads doing the game.

I'll just record next weeks game so I can fast forward through it in 40 minutes and do something else worth my time Sunday. I don't wish to hear what a bag of hammers has to say.

[ICRockets]

I love how so many white people think they get to tell black people that they're OBVIOUSLY stupid to think racism is a problem.

[jimmifli]

I love how so many white people think they get to tell black people that they're OBVIOUSLY stupid to think racism is a problem.

It's like they're watching horse racing.

[djjimkelly]

An individual NFL player's personal views about race, politics, sex, abortion or his ideas about our country and the National Anthem.

I pay money to watch a game played by the best football athletes in the world. That's all I want. It's a product not a moral pursuit.

GO BILLS!

how about i truly DONT want to know their views on politics or religion or race they are in their early 20's and are pampered athletes i in fact truly could care less what they think

[sahlensguy]

how about i truly DONT want to know their views on politics or religion or race they are in their early 20's and are pampered athletes i in fact truly could care less what they think

So are you (and the OP) bothered at all by the protest. I'm not sure what you guys are getting at.

Since you don't care, are you ignoring it and just paying attention to the game?

[ICRockets]

how about i truly DONT want to know their views on politics or religion or race they are in their early 20's and are pampered athletes i in fact truly could care less what they think

And as we all know, they were raised in laboratories and hyberbaric chambers and incubation tanks, so they never knew a life without thousands of money.

[sudzy]

I love how so many white people think they get to tell black people that they're OBVIOUSLY stupid to think racism is a problem.

Is that what he's saying? Because, I thought he was saying, that it would be nice to watch sports entertainment, without politics being involved. But, those days are gone.

[ICRockets]

Is that what he's saying? Because, I thought he was saying, that it would be nice to watch sports entertainment, without politics being involved. But, those days are gone.

Yes, that's what he's saying. Did you miss the "bag of hammers" part of his comment?

[sudzy]

Yes, that's what he's saying. Did you miss the "bag of hammers" part of his comment?

I'm glad your here to translate everything said into Millennial "I'm going to twist everything into PC crap, so I can overreact and get offended."

[Mace]

This is what athletes and movie stars and musicians and other celebrities don't get. They have had their asses kissed for so long, that they think that they are actually smarter than the average Joe, which they're clearly not. This last election was a hilarious repudiation of their lecturing and a true portrayal of how little influence they have outside of their little niche. Getting a reality check that brutal obviously crushed them, which is why you are seeing the meltdown and histrionics.

Lmao, you just described Trump, and didn't even realize it.

I learned long ago that life is too complex and accepted it won't cater to me, for better or worse. I don't believe seeking a lazy, tunnel vision existence catering to one's personal preferences develops an individual with thoughtful perspectives.

All that said, it's fine to just want to pay attention to the football, so just do it and ignore the rest.

I don't have any problem distinguishing the players as people from the players as players, and separating the social statement from the sport, I mean it is what it is.

Celebrities don't make themselves. We create them and give them a platform to lip off from, good or bad, and a football player is no different from the host of "The Apprentice".

In the end, it doesn't change my enjoyment of a football game.

[El Guapo]

I am just curious -- how many of you go to your jobs and protest a political ideology every morning?

In my line of work, I have never seen anyone protest anything political before/during/after they started working.

At my work, we are from all different walks of life. I know we all have differing political and social views, but we are there to work and get a job done (and get paid for that effort). I could care less how Joe feels about climate change or a border wall. I need Joe to do his job so I can do mine. Chelsea needs me to do my job so she can do her job. She could care less how I feel about the electoral college.

This is what people are upset about. This is the players' job (playing football). It's not a platform for political gain.

I want to watch football. That's it. If I want to listen to politics, there are plenty of other channels I can turn to in order to get my fill of politics. If players want to make a statement, do it on your time, not the organization's time. There will be an audience. ESPN will cover it, trust me.

Final thoughts. Trump was wrong to get involved in this. The NFL was wrong to take the bait.

Go Bills!

[OpIv37]

This is what athletes and movie stars and musicians and other celebrities don't get. They have had their asses kissed for so long, that they think that they are actually smarter than the average Joe, which they're clearly not. This last election was a hilarious repudiation of their lecturing and a true portrayal of how little influence they have outside of their little niche. Getting a reality check that brutal obviously crushed them, which is why you are seeing the meltdown and histrionics.

Here's the problem though- celebrities have something that most of us do not: people who listen to them.

Yeah, preachy celebrities can get annoying. Some are smart- most are not. And TBH, often when I agree with a celebrity on a certain issue, it still bothers me because they do such a terrible job of communicating the point and explaining the logic behind it that it does more harm than good.

But we all have issues about which we feel strongly. If I was famous, I think I'd have a hard time staying silent on certain issues even if my opinions on those issues had nothing to do with why I was famous.

The other part of the problem isn't with the celebrities- it's the way the general public reacts to them. They pay attention to the people who are famous rather than the people who are actually knowledgeable.

[kishoph]

I love how so many white people think they get to tell black people that they're OBVIOUSLY stupid to think racism is a problem.

I love it when idiots ^ think only white people are racist or that black people are the only people that have endured suffering in this country.

Don't you have an old veteran somewhere you need to go and harass ?

[El Guapo]

One more thought don't tell me to just ignore it. It has been discussed before, during and after the games. It is all the sports media cares to talk about.

[Ingtar33]

I love how so many white people think they get to tell black people that they're OBVIOUSLY stupid to think racism is a problem.

now this.... this right here is why we have a problem in the first place. I'm not really talking about ICROCKETS personally. I don't know him at all. I'm sure he's a good guy to have a beer with. Or not, who knows, he might be a dick. The point is I don't know him. And yet here were are, in a forum where personal attacks are supposed to be banned (or they were way back when this place was created, who knows what goes anymore), and ICRockets is snarkily calling some guy(s) racist for complaining about people talking about the anthem kneeling. Sure "Shut up and play football" might not go over well to some people. I'm sure some people saying it might even be racist and it might even be racial code words for "shut up N**** and entertain me", but it's also far more likely to mean exactly what is said. "Shut up and play football".

How do I know? Because I find even listening to the news about the blowhard in the whitehouse causes me to change the channel. Same with listening to people talk about him who oppose him. I didn't vote for our president. I REALLY don't like hearing him talk. I also REALLY don't like hearing about him. It raises my blood pressure. Especially when it spills onto the football field. I deal with black, white, whatever color football players every day at the college level. These protests ARE a source of conversation in our locker room. It sucks too, because the locker room needs to be a refuge from "the real world". So when I settle down to watch NFL football (something I'm doing less and less of these past two years), the last thing I want is for my blood pressure to raise and be forced to deal with this, yet again, after hours.

Now I'm sure ICRockets might just say I'm a racist or a neanderthal for this, I can't argue with someone who sees everything in racial terms, nor will I start. I am just a dumb assed ex-football player and coach. And used to be a huge fan of NFL football. This whole thing leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Both sides. On one side you have a bunch of millionaires pretending outrage or are so sensitive they're actually outraged over what an idiot said about a basketball player on twitter, or protesting that he was elected, or that cops shoot too many blacks, or... well I'm not even sure why anyone is kneeling anymore, and I'm not entirely sure they do either. Meanwhile on the other hand you have a bunch of people who just want to watch football, pretend to wrap themselves in the flag to express outrage over this issue likely due to the same irritation I'm feeling about it, or they actually love their country but not the first amendment, or they just feel it's disrespectful, who all just want to forget about all the crap that goes on in their lives for a few hours. It just gives me a migraine.

I'm not going to wrap my complaints in the flag. I think this phrase expresses my unfiltered opinion about the issue just fine, "Now shut up and let me watch my football in peace."



BTW: after reading through this I realize I didn't mention the people who really irritate me in all this. The network coverage teams. Show the protest, don't' talk about it. I don't think it would irritate me at all. People kneeling has never bugged me.

[tomz]

I am just curious -- how many of you go to your jobs and protest a political ideology every morning?

In my line of work, I have never seen anyone protest anything political before/during/after they started working.

At my work, we are from all different walks of life. I know we all have differing political and social views, but we are there to work and get a job done (and get paid for that effort). I could care less how Joe feels about climate change or a border wall. I need Joe to do his job so I can do mine. Chelsea needs me to do my job so she can do her job. She could care less how I feel about the electoral college.

This is what people are upset about. This is the players' job (playing football). It's not a platform for political gain.

I want to watch football. That's it. If I want to listen to politics, there are plenty of other channels I can turn to in order to get my fill of politics. If players want to make a statement, do it on your time, not the organization's time. There will be an audience. ESPN will cover it, trust me.

Final thoughts. Trump was wrong to get involved in this. The NFL was wrong to take the bait.

Go Bills!

??? How are they not doing it on their own time? The games still go on.

Don't give me the part about 'it's during the broadcast.' So is the jingoistic super-militaristic stuff at the beginning of every game. There were times when it has been laid on so thick that I thought I was at a modern day Nuremberg rally instead of a Bills game. I am not so excited about knee jerk patriotism but I certainly don't feel obliged to complain about it.

And stupid end zone celebrations are being widely denigrated as over the top.

The bottom line is that anyone with any platform is allowed to use it as they see fit. At least these guys honestly worked for what they got as opposed to the reality show morons like the duck dynasty folks or the ones with 8 million kids or the honey boo boos or the real wives of whatever. All of who are free to hawk their garbage and their idiotic pseudo philosophies in any way. At least the athletes are promoting a worthy ideal. And many of the athletes are intelligent and cogent as opposed to most of the entertainment celebrities who are foisted on the public.

Watch the game and ignore the rest.

[ParanoidAndroid]

This is what athletes and movie stars and musicians and other celebrities don't get. They have had their asses kissed for so long, that they think that they are actually smarter than the average Joe, which they're clearly not. This last election was a hilarious repudiation of their lecturing and a true portrayal of how little influence they have outside of their little niche. Getting a reality check that brutal obviously crushed them, which is why you are seeing the meltdown and histrionics.

Histrionics? Precious. That's Trump's shtick.

[Mr. Miyagi]

I may be all alone -but- I could care less about - -

So you COULDN'T care less about it?