Kneeling for the National Anthem

Kneeling during the national anthem as a sign of protest. If you haven't heard about it you've been gleefully living under a rock, free from the cares of wondering what a football player thinks.

Below are what I thinks.

The Flag

What does the flag mean to you? Chances are if we asked 50 people this question we might get near 50 answers. The flag is a symbol and what that symbol means to you is influenced by what people under that flag have done.

To a WWII veteran the flag may stand for enduring freedom and the war against fascism.

To a Native American the flag may stand for broken promises. rape, murder, and the destruction of your homeland.

Great things have been done by people carrying the flag. Terrible things have been done while
carrying the flag.

No one group has a monopoly on what the flag means. Not the military, the government, the ACLU, not anyone. If you choose to see it and think of the military that's fine but assuming everyone does and should is wrong. Conversely, seeing it and thinking of repression and hate is wrong as well.

Football

Remind me again why we even sing the national anthem at a football game. Also remind me why anyone cares what a football player thinks about anything besides football.

I go to work everyday and not once has anyone ever played the national anthem and asked me to stand. Yet these guys go to work in sports entertainment and are asked to do so and if they don't, well, here we are.

I have never understood why people care what celebrities think. Actors are good at acting, not deciding healthcare policy. Football players are good at football, not the complex idea of what freedom means. Yet we have pages of news following these people and their views on such things. I would guess that most people know more about what Colin Kaepernick thinks than they do their congressperson - and they probably know nothing about what their statehouse rep thinks.

Let's stop caring what these people think and start caring about what our elected officials think.

Freedom

Does not standing for the national anthem negate the sacrifices of those who fought for freedom? Is this taking Freedom of Speech too far, akin to yelling 'fire' in crowded theater? Are some things so sacrosanct that they cannot be disrespected? These are serious questions that I would like for people to answer.

I am a Christian and in Christianity blasphemy is a sin. I will never say the Lord's name in vain. But for someone who doesn't believe I am of the opinion that it is their right to blaspheme as much as they wish.

Freedom of Speech is a tricky one. It's great when people use it to agree with you but hard when they use it to disagree.

Take some time to really think through what Freedom of Speech means.

Thanks,
Steve

Columbus Day

If you haven't heard, things at Akron City Council went bananas over a proposal to rename Columbus Day to National Indigenous People's Day. Read all about it here.

Here for your enjoyment are my two cents on the subject.

Columbus Sucked

In grade school you're given a children's understanding of Columbus.

In fourteen hundred and ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean blue

You learn the names of the ships. You're taught that Columbus was a bold explorer that knew that the earth was round (everyone thought the earth was round, since the ancient Greeks), etc. etc.

But that's for children. When you get older you learn that Columbus was a wretched human who murdered for profit. He killed and abused the natives. Not to mention he was eventually hated and despised even by his own countrymen. One writer notes that Columbus fell so far out of favor that the lands he discovered ended up being named for a map maker instead of him.

Columbus brought the eastern and western hemispheres together permanently, for better and for worse. But the rest of his life ruins and taints this accomplishment forever.

Italian Heritage

The holiday itself was started by Italians to celebrate Italian heritage. To this I say, great! But why in the world would you pick someone like this to represent your culture? Were Mussolini and Caligula holidays already taken?

No historical figure is perfect but there are many more Italians who have a solid history and represent your country much better.

Heck, the writers of the Ninja Turtles were able to find FOUR awesome Italians to name their
characters.

Italians, step up your game. Pick someone else.

America's History is Messy

We just have to admit it. Our history is messy and not always nice. We as a country have done some really terrible things that fly in the face of everything we say we stand for.

A mature country should be able to look at its past, acknowledge both the good and bad, and be able to reconcile and move forward. We can learn from the mistakes of our past and do better.

Columbus, Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and more were all great men. They also had great flaws just like the rest of us. Denying that makes us look like simpletons and makes these people into poorly written comic book characters instead of the complicated, enduring people they are.

We don't have to throw out the baby with the bath water. Our country has great values and has risen to the occasion many times. Let's work towards doing that more and doing bad less. The start of this could be to stop honoring someone who did many terrible things and honoring those who did good.

Steve