POLL: What should the punishment be for protesting football players?

[Pogo]

Punishment for exercising one's 1st Amendment rights? This IS America, is it not?

The options aren't legal punishments, they are employer punishments. The first amendment does not require an employer to allow employees to protest during work. There are also, supposedly, rules already in place in the NFL which require players to be on the field and standing for the national anthem, but they are not being enforced.

I don't get upset by the protests, but if the NFL decides to punish the players according to already written rules, there would be no first amendment issue.

Actually, there are no rules in the NFL that say anything about what the players are supposed to be doing during the national anthem. Matter of fact, they didn't start having the players on the field for the anthem until 2009, and it was marketing to make them look more "patriotic".

Anyone ever consider the fact that if the NFL hadn't done that marketing ploy, it wouldn't have given the players a platform to protest from?

And consider this....................a boycott by the fans won't have much effect. The real cash cow for the NFL is selling advertisements for stuff like beer and man products.

I don't really see beer sales going down just because some NFL players take a knee during the national anthem.

There is a "social media" meme going around claiming that the NFL rulebook says something like that. It doesn't. I busted that earlier in the day -- the NFL rulebook makes no mention of a national anthem at all.

 

[Geaux4it]

Re-write the contracts that under terms of employment you must stand for the National Anthem

-Geaux

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Okay, yes, another thread on this, sue me.

Let's get specific on what should not be done to players who kneel or sit or dance or sleep or do yoga during the national anthem. Please pick and explain.

My answer was "No punishment". If the team is okay with it, so am I.
.

The marketplace will ultimately make this decision.

 

[Pogo]

Re-write the contracts that under terms of employment you must stand for the National Anthem

-Geaux

Why would you do that? Dafuk does a national anthem have to do with a football game?

Spoiler: Answer here

Exactly as much as a valve cover gasket for a 1983 Datsun

 

[Aries]

Okay, yes, another thread on this, sue me.

Let's get specific on what should not be done to players who kneel or sit or dance or sleep or do yoga during the national anthem. Please pick and explain.

My answer was "No punishment". If the team is okay with it, so am I.
.

Players use to remain in the locker rooms during the anthem. In the early 2000s they started bringing them out with the hopes of improving military recruitment.
If they aren't allowed an opinion, keep politics out of their games. If they are going to be used as political pawns, deal with the protests.

 

[SassyIrishLass]

Just saw on the tube, a NFL player is arrested every seven days.

Perhaps they should be concentrating on different matters and cease being thugs

Which NFL player is arrested every 7 days?

Google it

 

[Pogo]

Fine and suspend. I go to watch football NOT politics.

Pinky, you must be proud then of your two Senators who exposed this paid-patriotism scandal that brought the politics into the game in the first place huh.

I'll bet you sent them 214 letters of approval. Amirite? 107 each?

 

[Peach]

The BUY TO BURN effort may not last long:
_______________________________________

I don't solely blame Trump. But yesterday wouldn't have happened without him. There would be no headlines on this issue today without him. Just like NK, he ginned it up - he made it what it is right now.

Trump likes crisis, he likes confrontation. That's who he is, which is fine - but not when he's leading a nation. We have enough problems without the guy in charge creating new ones.

 

[ABikerSailor]

Okay, yes, another thread on this, sue me.

Let's get specific on what should not be done to players who kneel or sit or dance or sleep or do yoga during the national anthem. Please pick and explain.

My answer was "No punishment". If the team is okay with it, so am I.
.

Players use to remain in the locker rooms during the anthem. In the early 2000s they started bringing them out with the hopes of improving military recruitment.
If they aren't allowed an opinion, keep politics out of their games. If they are going to be used as political pawns, deal with the protests.

Exactly. If they hadn't started to roll the players out as a political pawn in the first place, then the players wouldn't have had a platform to protest from.

 

[Pogo]

Punishment for exercising one's 1st Amendment rights? This IS America, is it not?

Joe McCarthy rated this post "ironic".

He has in his hand a list of football players................


And yet ------------ there's this:

​

Having it both ways --- Priceless.

 

[OldLady]

First Amendment rights of free speech don't apply at a work place and on private property. Employees represent their company and if they say or do things that reflect badly on their employer, that company has the right to fire them.

Haven't seen any employers complaining yet.
.

If they are fine with it, then that is telling all the fans that is how they feel. It certainly is their right to do so. The fans will return the favor by boycotting them if they feel insulted by the message being sent by team owners and the NFL.

A long, long, time ago the NFL went on strike and the season didn't start until way late. The fans were absolutely FURIOUS. (That was pre-internet) After a time, they got over it though. Same here, so long as the media doesn't keep stirring the pot.

 

[ABikerSailor]

First Amendment rights of free speech don't apply at a work place and on private property. Employees represent their company and if they say or do things that reflect badly on their employer, that company has the right to fire them.

Haven't seen any employers complaining yet.
.

If they are fine with it, then that is telling all the fans that is how they feel. It certainly is their right to do so. The fans will return the favor by boycotting them if they feel insulted by the message being sent by team owners and the NFL.

A long, long, time ago the NFL went on strike and the season didn't start until way late. The fans were absolutely FURIOUS. (That was pre-internet) After a time, they got over it though. Same here, so long as the media doesn't keep stirring the pot.

If Trump would quit tweeting about the NFL, the furor would go down a lot quicker. He keeps stirring up his base with distractions like this, and his followers eat it up hook line and sinker.

Wonder how many people today know that N. Korea has taken what some of Trumps tweets were about them and are calling it a declaration of war?

North Korea says Trump’s tweet is a declaration of war

 

[theHawk]

Punishment for exercising one's 1st Amendment rights? This IS America, is it not?

Joe McCarthy rated this post "ironic".

He has in his hand a list of football players................


And yet ------------ there's this:

​

Having it both ways --- Priceless.

How is it ironic? No one is suggesting the teams don't have a right to protest or send out whatever message they want. All President Trump did was state the obvious fact that choosing to send out an anti-American message will have massive backlash.

 

[DigitalDrifter]

Take the power away from the activist players.
Keep the entire team in the locker room until the anthem is over.

Such a simple solution.

 

[g5000]

Just saw on the tube, a NFL player is arrested every seven days.

Perhaps they should be concentrating on different matters and cease being thugs

Which NFL player is arrested every 7 days?

Google it

Meaning you just parroted it without seeing for yourself.

 

[g5000]

Just saw on the tube, a NFL player is arrested every seven days.

Perhaps they should be concentrating on different matters and cease being thugs

Which NFL player is arrested every 7 days?

NFL Arrest Statistics

 

[Pogo]

Just saw on the tube, a NFL player is arrested every seven days.

Perhaps they should be concentrating on different matters and cease being thugs

Which NFL player is arrested every 7 days?

Google it

Meaning you just parroted it without seeing for yourself.

I'm still waiting for SIL to show me where I "plagiarized a link" about the Klan. Weeks ago.

 

[Pogo]

Take the power away from the activist players.
Keep the entire team in the locker room until the anthem is over.

Such a simple solution.

That is in fact what they did until a few years ago -- when the Pentagon came pimping with our tax dollars.

 

[bendog]

Okay, yes, another thread on this, sue me.

Let's get specific on what should not be done to players who kneel or sit or dance or sleep or do yoga during the national anthem. Please pick and explain.

My answer was "No punishment". If the team is okay with it, so am I.
.

Make them suffer a one hour "in depth" interview with Josina Anderson

 

[Pumpkin Row]

Okay, yes, another thread on this, sue me.

Let's get specific on what should not be done to players who kneel or sit or dance or sleep or do yoga during the national anthem. Please pick and explain.

My answer was "No punishment". If the team is okay with it, so am I.
.

They should be free to do whatever they want, so long as they aren't infringing on the rights of others. If the viewers have a problem with it, they'll boycott the product, and the station or whatever will feel it in their pockets, at which point it's up to them to decide how to handle the situation.