Veteran defends Colin Kaepernick's not standing for the National Anthem.

[WinterBorn]

I am not going to waste a lot of time arguing with people about this. But I found a perfect explanation of what I feel.

Jim Wright is a veteran and a blogger. Here is his response to all the threats of violence, harassment, and anger aimed at Colin .


"AS A VETERAN, what do I think about Colin Kaepernick's decision to sit during the National Anthem?

As a veteran?

Very well, as a veteran then, this is what I believe:

The very first thing I learned in the military is this: Respect is a two-way street. If you want respect, true respect, sincere respect, then you have to GIVE IT.

If you want respect, you have to do the things necessary to earn it each and every single day. There are no short cuts and no exceptions.

Respect cannot be compelled.

Respect cannot be bought.

Respect cannot be inherited.

Respect cannot be demanded at the muzzle of a gun or by beating it into somebody or by shaming them into it. Can not. You might get what you think is respect, but it's not. It's only the appearance of respect. It's fear, it's groveling, it's not respect. Far, far too many people both in and out of the military, people who should emphatically know better, do not understand this simple fact: there is an enormous difference between fear and respect.

Respect has to be earned.

Respect. Has. To. Be. Earned.

Respect has to be earned every day, by every word, by every action.

It takes a lifetime of words and deeds to earn respect.

It takes only one careless word, one thoughtless action, to lose it.

You have to be worthy of respect. You have to live up to, or at least do your best to live up to, those high ideals -- the ones America supposedly embodies, that shining city on the hill, that exceptional nation we talk about, yes, that one. To earn respect you have to be fair. You have to have courage. You must embrace reason. You have to know when to hold the line and when to compromise. You have to take responsibility and hold yourself accountable. You have to keep your word. You have to give respect, true respect, to get it back.

There are no short cuts. None.

Now, any veteran worth the label should know that. If they don't, then likely they weren't much of a soldier to begin with and you can tell them I said so.

IF Kaepernick doesn't feel his country respects him enough for him to respect it in return, well, then you can't MAKE him respect it.

You can not make him respect it.

If you try to force a man to respect you, you'll only make him respect you less.

With threats, by violence, by shame, you can maybe compel Kaepernick to stand up and put his hand over his heart and force him to be quiet. You might.

But that's not respect.

It's only the illusion of respect.

You might force this man into the illusion of respect. You might. Would you be satisfied then? Would that make you happy? Would that make you respect your nation, the one which forced a man into the illusion of respect, a nation of little clockwork patriots all pretending satisfaction and respect? Is that what you want? If THAT's what matters to you, the illusion of respect, then you're not talking about freedom or liberty. You're not talking about the United States of America. Instead you're talking about every dictatorship from the Nazis to North Korea where people are lined up and MADE to salute with the muzzle of a gun pressed to the back of their necks.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I wore a uniform.

That's not why I held up my right hand and swore the oath and put my life on the line for my country.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I am a veteran.

Not so a man should be forced to show respect he doesn't feel.

That's called slavery and I have no respect for that at all.

If Americans want this man to respect America, then first they must respect him.

If America wants the world's respect, it must be worthy of respect.

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

But doesn't it also mean that if Kaepernick wants respect, he must give it first? Give it to America? Be worthy of respect himself? Stand up, shut up, and put his hand over his heart before Old Glory?

No. It doesn't.

Respect doesn't work that way.

Power flows from positive to negative. Electricity flows from greater potential to lesser.

The United States isn't a person, it's a vast construct, a framework of law and order and civilization designed to protect the weak from the ruthless and after more than two centuries of revision and refinement it exists to provide in equal measure for all of us the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The United States is POWER.

All the power rests with America. Just as it does in the military chain of command. And like that chain of command, like the electrical circuit described above, respect must flow from greater to lesser FIRST before it can return.

To you the National Anthem means one thing, to Kaepernick it means something else. We are all shaped and defined by our experiences and we see the world through our own eyes. That's freedom. That's liberty. The right to believe differently. The right to protest as you will. The right to demand better. The right to believe your country can BE better, that it can live up to its sacred ideals, and the right to loudly note that it has NOT. The right to use your voice, your actions, to bring attention to the things you believe in. The right to want more for others, freedom, liberty, justice, equality, and RESPECT.

A true veteran might not agree with Colin Kaepernick, but a true veteran would fight to the death to protect his right to say what he believes.

You don't like what Kaepernick has to say? Then prove him wrong, BE the nation he can respect.

It's really just that simple."

 

[Fang]

I'm not going to waste time reading this. I'm just going to say Colin Kaepernick is a piece of shit and selfish prick.

 

[mudwhistle]

I am not going to waste a lot of time arguing with people about this. But I found a perfect explanation of what I feel.

Jim Wright is a veteran and a blogger. Here is his response to all the threats of violence, harassment, and anger aimed at Colin .


"
AS A VETERAN, what do I think about Colin Kaepernick's decision to sit during the National Anthem?

As a veteran?

Very well, as a veteran then, this is what I believe:

The very first thing I learned in the military is this: Respect is a two-way street. If you want respect, true respect, sincere respect, then you have to GIVE IT.

If you want respect, you have to do the things necessary to earn it each and every single day. There are no short cuts and no exceptions.

Respect cannot be compelled.

Respect cannot be bought.

Respect cannot be inherited.

Respect cannot be demanded at the muzzle of a gun or by beating it into somebody or by shaming them into it. Can not. You might get what you think is respect, but it's not. It's only the appearance of respect. It's fear, it's groveling, it's not respect. Far, far too many people both in and out of the military, people who should emphatically know better, do not understand this simple fact: there is an enormous difference between fear and respect.

Respect has to be earned.

Respect. Has. To. Be. Earned.

Respect has to be earned every day, by every word, by every action.

It takes a lifetime of words and deeds to earn respect.

It takes only one careless word, one thoughtless action, to lose it.

You have to be worthy of respect. You have to live up to, or at least do your best to live up to, those high ideals -- the ones America supposedly embodies, that shining city on the hill, that exceptional nation we talk about, yes, that one. To earn respect you have to be fair. You have to have courage. You must embrace reason. You have to know when to hold the line and when to compromise. You have to take responsibility and hold yourself accountable. You have to keep your word. You have to give respect, true respect, to get it back.

There are no short cuts. None.

Now, any veteran worth the label should know that. If they don't, then likely they weren't much of a soldier to begin with and you can tell them I said so.

IF Kaepernick doesn't feel his country respects him enough for him to respect it in return, well, then you can't MAKE him respect it.

You can not make him respect it.

If you try to force a man to respect you, you'll only make him respect you less.

With threats, by violence, by shame, you can maybe compel Kaepernick to stand up and put his hand over his heart and force him to be quiet. You might.

But that's not respect.

It's only the illusion of respect.

You might force this man into the illusion of respect. You might. Would you be satisfied then? Would that make you happy? Would that make you respect your nation, the one which forced a man into the illusion of respect, a nation of little clockwork patriots all pretending satisfaction and respect? Is that what you want? If THAT's what matters to you, the illusion of respect, then you're not talking about freedom or liberty. You're not talking about the United States of America. Instead you're talking about every dictatorship from the Nazis to North Korea where people are lined up and MADE to salute with the muzzle of a gun pressed to the back of their necks.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I wore a uniform.

That's not why I held up my right hand and swore the oath and put my life on the line for my country.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I am a veteran.

Not so a man should be forced to show respect he doesn't feel.

That's called slavery and I have no respect for that at all.

If Americans want this man to respect America, then first they must respect him.

If America wants the world's respect, it must be worthy of respect.

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

But doesn't it also mean that if Kaepernick wants respect, he must give it first? Give it to America? Be worthy of respect himself? Stand up, shut up, and put his hand over his heart before Old Glory?

No. It doesn't.

Respect doesn't work that way.

Power flows from positive to negative. Electricity flows from greater potential to lesser.

The United States isn't a person, it's a vast construct, a framework of law and order and civilization designed to protect the weak from the ruthless and after more than two centuries of revision and refinement it exists to provide in equal measure for all of us the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The United States is POWER.

All the power rests with America. Just as it does in the military chain of command. And like that chain of command, like the electrical circuit described above, respect must flow from greater to lesser FIRST before it can return.

To you the National Anthem means one thing, to Kaepernick it means something else. We are all shaped and defined by our experiences and we see the world through our own eyes. That's freedom. That's liberty. The right to believe differently. The right to protest as you will. The right to demand better. The right to believe your country can BE better, that it can live up to its sacred ideals, and the right to loudly note that it has NOT. The right to use your voice, your actions, to bring attention to the things you believe in. The right to want more for others, freedom, liberty, justice, equality, and RESPECT.

A true veteran might not agree with Colin Kaepernick, but a true veteran would fight to the death to protect his right to say what he believes.

You don't like what Kaepernick has to say? Then prove him wrong, BE the nation he can respect.

It's really just that simple.

Are we going to be a nation that goes the way of Rome and decides that all of the critics have a point, or are we going to be a country that stands up for it and all that it stands for?

These kids haven't been around long enough to know what this country has been through. The kind of people that would kick Colin's pampered ass are all dying out.

These kids don't know just how bad it is in other countries like I discovered when I was serving my country.

These kids are just thinking about a movement that is based on half-truths and outright lies. A movement that rewards you for showing hatred for the country you were born in and grew up in.

If this country was really as bad as they claim, they wouldn't even have the right to do what they're doing and say what they're saying. I've been in countries where they will lock you up for showing disrespect for it's currency. Step on a Baht which has a picture of the King of Thailand on it, they throw you in prison. In Singapore they'll beat you with a staff for vandalism. In some countries the players would have beat the crap out of him for not standing up. He can thank God for being born in a country that allows him to take a piss on everything it stands for. Where a political party and an ideology rewards people that act like him. I think that's his true motivation. Not that he's right, but that he will gain some recognition for this.

 

[B. Kidd]

Just another stupid national distraction cheered on by the media.

 

[WinterBorn]

I am not going to waste a lot of time arguing with people about this. But I found a perfect explanation of what I feel.

Jim Wright is a veteran and a blogger. Here is his response to all the threats of violence, harassment, and anger aimed at Colin .


"
AS A VETERAN, what do I think about Colin Kaepernick's decision to sit during the National Anthem?

As a veteran?

Very well, as a veteran then, this is what I believe:

The very first thing I learned in the military is this: Respect is a two-way street. If you want respect, true respect, sincere respect, then you have to GIVE IT.

If you want respect, you have to do the things necessary to earn it each and every single day. There are no short cuts and no exceptions.

Respect cannot be compelled.

Respect cannot be bought.

Respect cannot be inherited.

Respect cannot be demanded at the muzzle of a gun or by beating it into somebody or by shaming them into it. Can not. You might get what you think is respect, but it's not. It's only the appearance of respect. It's fear, it's groveling, it's not respect. Far, far too many people both in and out of the military, people who should emphatically know better, do not understand this simple fact: there is an enormous difference between fear and respect.

Respect has to be earned.

Respect. Has. To. Be. Earned.

Respect has to be earned every day, by every word, by every action.

It takes a lifetime of words and deeds to earn respect.

It takes only one careless word, one thoughtless action, to lose it.

You have to be worthy of respect. You have to live up to, or at least do your best to live up to, those high ideals -- the ones America supposedly embodies, that shining city on the hill, that exceptional nation we talk about, yes, that one. To earn respect you have to be fair. You have to have courage. You must embrace reason. You have to know when to hold the line and when to compromise. You have to take responsibility and hold yourself accountable. You have to keep your word. You have to give respect, true respect, to get it back.

There are no short cuts. None.

Now, any veteran worth the label should know that. If they don't, then likely they weren't much of a soldier to begin with and you can tell them I said so.

IF Kaepernick doesn't feel his country respects him enough for him to respect it in return, well, then you can't MAKE him respect it.

You can not make him respect it.

If you try to force a man to respect you, you'll only make him respect you less.

With threats, by violence, by shame, you can maybe compel Kaepernick to stand up and put his hand over his heart and force him to be quiet. You might.

But that's not respect.

It's only the illusion of respect.

You might force this man into the illusion of respect. You might. Would you be satisfied then? Would that make you happy? Would that make you respect your nation, the one which forced a man into the illusion of respect, a nation of little clockwork patriots all pretending satisfaction and respect? Is that what you want? If THAT's what matters to you, the illusion of respect, then you're not talking about freedom or liberty. You're not talking about the United States of America. Instead you're talking about every dictatorship from the Nazis to North Korea where people are lined up and MADE to salute with the muzzle of a gun pressed to the back of their necks.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I wore a uniform.

That's not why I held up my right hand and swore the oath and put my life on the line for my country.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I am a veteran.

Not so a man should be forced to show respect he doesn't feel.

That's called slavery and I have no respect for that at all.

If Americans want this man to respect America, then first they must respect him.

If America wants the world's respect, it must be worthy of respect.

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

But doesn't it also mean that if Kaepernick wants respect, he must give it first? Give it to America? Be worthy of respect himself? Stand up, shut up, and put his hand over his heart before Old Glory?

No. It doesn't.

Respect doesn't work that way.

Power flows from positive to negative. Electricity flows from greater potential to lesser.

The United States isn't a person, it's a vast construct, a framework of law and order and civilization designed to protect the weak from the ruthless and after more than two centuries of revision and refinement it exists to provide in equal measure for all of us the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The United States is POWER.

All the power rests with America. Just as it does in the military chain of command. And like that chain of command, like the electrical circuit described above, respect must flow from greater to lesser FIRST before it can return.

To you the National Anthem means one thing, to Kaepernick it means something else. We are all shaped and defined by our experiences and we see the world through our own eyes. That's freedom. That's liberty. The right to believe differently. The right to protest as you will. The right to demand better. The right to believe your country can BE better, that it can live up to its sacred ideals, and the right to loudly note that it has NOT. The right to use your voice, your actions, to bring attention to the things you believe in. The right to want more for others, freedom, liberty, justice, equality, and RESPECT.

A true veteran might not agree with Colin Kaepernick, but a true veteran would fight to the death to protect his right to say what he believes.

You don't like what Kaepernick has to say? Then prove him wrong, BE the nation he can respect.

It's really just that simple.

Are we going to be a nation that goes the way of Rome and decides that all of the critics have a point, or are we going to be a country that stands up for it and all that it stands for?

These kids haven't been around long enough to know what this country has been through. The kind of people that would kick Colin's pampered ass are all dying out.

These kids don't know just how bad it is in other countries like I discovered when I was serving my country.

These kids are just thinking about a movement that is based on half-truths and outright lies. A movement that rewards you for showing hatred for the country you were born in and grew up in.

If this country was really as bad as they claim, they wouldn't even have the right to do what they're doing and say what they're saying. I've been in countries where they will lock you up for showing disrespect for it's currency. Step on a Baht which has a picture of the King of Thailand on it, they throw you in prison. In Singapore they'll beat you with a staff for vandalism. In some countries the players would have beat the crap out of him for not standing up. He can thank God for being born in a country that allows him to take a piss on everything it stands for. Where a political party and an ideology rewards people that act like him. I think that's his true motivation. Not that he's right, but that he will gain some recognition for this.

Yes, he can thank God he was born here and not in many other places.

But many of those "other places" would force him to stand. That is not him respecting anything. That is him faking it to avoid prosecution. We do not force people to show patriotism. That cheapens us and true patriotism. People didn't dare refuse to salute Hitler, Stalin, Mussilini, or Kim Jong-un. Those dictators forced people to salute and pretend to be patriots, whether they felt it or not.

I did not wear a uniform, swear and oath, and (potentially) offer my life for a nation that forces its people to fake patriotism. I did it to defend the freedoms to show respect only when it is real.

 

[Zander]

I don't give a fuck what he says or does.

NEXT!!

 

[yiostheoy]

I am waiting to see what the NFL is going to do about it. I am hoping for fines. Even better would be a suspension.

 

[DigitalDrifter]

Holy shit that OP was painful to read.

 

[Zander]

Kapacrapper is an attention whore.

Deny him.

 

[mudwhistle]

I am not going to waste a lot of time arguing with people about this. But I found a perfect explanation of what I feel.

Jim Wright is a veteran and a blogger. Here is his response to all the threats of violence, harassment, and anger aimed at Colin .


"
AS A VETERAN, what do I think about Colin Kaepernick's decision to sit during the National Anthem?

As a veteran?

Very well, as a veteran then, this is what I believe:

The very first thing I learned in the military is this: Respect is a two-way street. If you want respect, true respect, sincere respect, then you have to GIVE IT.

If you want respect, you have to do the things necessary to earn it each and every single day. There are no short cuts and no exceptions.

Respect cannot be compelled.

Respect cannot be bought.

Respect cannot be inherited.

Respect cannot be demanded at the muzzle of a gun or by beating it into somebody or by shaming them into it. Can not. You might get what you think is respect, but it's not. It's only the appearance of respect. It's fear, it's groveling, it's not respect. Far, far too many people both in and out of the military, people who should emphatically know better, do not understand this simple fact: there is an enormous difference between fear and respect.

Respect has to be earned.

Respect. Has. To. Be. Earned.

Respect has to be earned every day, by every word, by every action.

It takes a lifetime of words and deeds to earn respect.

It takes only one careless word, one thoughtless action, to lose it.

You have to be worthy of respect. You have to live up to, or at least do your best to live up to, those high ideals -- the ones America supposedly embodies, that shining city on the hill, that exceptional nation we talk about, yes, that one. To earn respect you have to be fair. You have to have courage. You must embrace reason. You have to know when to hold the line and when to compromise. You have to take responsibility and hold yourself accountable. You have to keep your word. You have to give respect, true respect, to get it back.

There are no short cuts. None.

Now, any veteran worth the label should know that. If they don't, then likely they weren't much of a soldier to begin with and you can tell them I said so.

IF Kaepernick doesn't feel his country respects him enough for him to respect it in return, well, then you can't MAKE him respect it.

You can not make him respect it.

If you try to force a man to respect you, you'll only make him respect you less.

With threats, by violence, by shame, you can maybe compel Kaepernick to stand up and put his hand over his heart and force him to be quiet. You might.

But that's not respect.

It's only the illusion of respect.

You might force this man into the illusion of respect. You might. Would you be satisfied then? Would that make you happy? Would that make you respect your nation, the one which forced a man into the illusion of respect, a nation of little clockwork patriots all pretending satisfaction and respect? Is that what you want? If THAT's what matters to you, the illusion of respect, then you're not talking about freedom or liberty. You're not talking about the United States of America. Instead you're talking about every dictatorship from the Nazis to North Korea where people are lined up and MADE to salute with the muzzle of a gun pressed to the back of their necks.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I wore a uniform.

That's not why I held up my right hand and swore the oath and put my life on the line for my country.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I am a veteran.

Not so a man should be forced to show respect he doesn't feel.

That's called slavery and I have no respect for that at all.

If Americans want this man to respect America, then first they must respect him.

If America wants the world's respect, it must be worthy of respect.

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

But doesn't it also mean that if Kaepernick wants respect, he must give it first? Give it to America? Be worthy of respect himself? Stand up, shut up, and put his hand over his heart before Old Glory?

No. It doesn't.

Respect doesn't work that way.

Power flows from positive to negative. Electricity flows from greater potential to lesser.

The United States isn't a person, it's a vast construct, a framework of law and order and civilization designed to protect the weak from the ruthless and after more than two centuries of revision and refinement it exists to provide in equal measure for all of us the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The United States is POWER.

All the power rests with America. Just as it does in the military chain of command. And like that chain of command, like the electrical circuit described above, respect must flow from greater to lesser FIRST before it can return.

To you the National Anthem means one thing, to Kaepernick it means something else. We are all shaped and defined by our experiences and we see the world through our own eyes. That's freedom. That's liberty. The right to believe differently. The right to protest as you will. The right to demand better. The right to believe your country can BE better, that it can live up to its sacred ideals, and the right to loudly note that it has NOT. The right to use your voice, your actions, to bring attention to the things you believe in. The right to want more for others, freedom, liberty, justice, equality, and RESPECT.

A true veteran might not agree with Colin Kaepernick, but a true veteran would fight to the death to protect his right to say what he believes.

You don't like what Kaepernick has to say? Then prove him wrong, BE the nation he can respect.

It's really just that simple.

Are we going to be a nation that goes the way of Rome and decides that all of the critics have a point, or are we going to be a country that stands up for it and all that it stands for?

These kids haven't been around long enough to know what this country has been through. The kind of people that would kick Colin's pampered ass are all dying out.

These kids don't know just how bad it is in other countries like I discovered when I was serving my country.

These kids are just thinking about a movement that is based on half-truths and outright lies. A movement that rewards you for showing hatred for the country you were born in and grew up in.

If this country was really as bad as they claim, they wouldn't even have the right to do what they're doing and say what they're saying. I've been in countries where they will lock you up for showing disrespect for it's currency. Step on a Baht which has a picture of the King of Thailand on it, they throw you in prison. In Singapore they'll beat you with a staff for vandalism. In some countries the players would have beat the crap out of him for not standing up. He can thank God for being born in a country that allows him to take a piss on everything it stands for. Where a political party and an ideology rewards people that act like him. I think that's his true motivation. Not that he's right, but that he will gain some recognition for this.

Yes, he can thank God he was born here and not in many other places.

But many of those "other places" would force him to stand. That is not him respecting anything. That is him faking it to avoid prosecution. We do not force people to show patriotism. That cheapens us and true patriotism. People didn't dare refuse to salute Hitler, Stalin, Mussilini, or Kim Jong-un. Those dictators forced people to salute and pretend to be patriots, whether they felt it or not.

I did not wear a uniform, swear and oath, and (potentially) offer my life for a nation that forces its people to fake patriotism. I did it to defend the freedoms to show respect only when it is real.

Yes.....he has the right to be this way.

The problem I have is he's being misled. He'll probably be speaking to college students about this in no time.

One thing he did say that made sense....someone who is guilty of a crime is running for president (Hillary) and that's wrong.
So I'll cut him some slack. But I won't buy his jersey.

 

[Brynmr]

I am not going to waste a lot of time arguing with people about this. But I found a perfect explanation of what I feel.

Jim Wright is a veteran and a blogger. Here is his response to all the threats of violence, harassment, and anger aimed at Colin .


"
AS A VETERAN, what do I think about Colin Kaepernick's decision to sit during the National Anthem?

As a veteran?

Very well, as a veteran then, this is what I believe:

The very first thing I learned in the military is this: Respect is a two-way street. If you want respect, true respect, sincere respect, then you have to GIVE IT.

If you want respect, you have to do the things necessary to earn it each and every single day. There are no short cuts and no exceptions.

Respect cannot be compelled.

Respect cannot be bought.

Respect cannot be inherited.

Respect cannot be demanded at the muzzle of a gun or by beating it into somebody or by shaming them into it. Can not. You might get what you think is respect, but it's not. It's only the appearance of respect. It's fear, it's groveling, it's not respect. Far, far too many people both in and out of the military, people who should emphatically know better, do not understand this simple fact: there is an enormous difference between fear and respect.

Respect has to be earned.

Respect. Has. To. Be. Earned.

Respect has to be earned every day, by every word, by every action.

It takes a lifetime of words and deeds to earn respect.

It takes only one careless word, one thoughtless action, to lose it.

You have to be worthy of respect. You have to live up to, or at least do your best to live up to, those high ideals -- the ones America supposedly embodies, that shining city on the hill, that exceptional nation we talk about, yes, that one. To earn respect you have to be fair. You have to have courage. You must embrace reason. You have to know when to hold the line and when to compromise. You have to take responsibility and hold yourself accountable. You have to keep your word. You have to give respect, true respect, to get it back.

There are no short cuts. None.

Now, any veteran worth the label should know that. If they don't, then likely they weren't much of a soldier to begin with and you can tell them I said so.

IF Kaepernick doesn't feel his country respects him enough for him to respect it in return, well, then you can't MAKE him respect it.

You can not make him respect it.

If you try to force a man to respect you, you'll only make him respect you less.

With threats, by violence, by shame, you can maybe compel Kaepernick to stand up and put his hand over his heart and force him to be quiet. You might.

But that's not respect.

It's only the illusion of respect.

You might force this man into the illusion of respect. You might. Would you be satisfied then? Would that make you happy? Would that make you respect your nation, the one which forced a man into the illusion of respect, a nation of little clockwork patriots all pretending satisfaction and respect? Is that what you want? If THAT's what matters to you, the illusion of respect, then you're not talking about freedom or liberty. You're not talking about the United States of America. Instead you're talking about every dictatorship from the Nazis to North Korea where people are lined up and MADE to salute with the muzzle of a gun pressed to the back of their necks.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I wore a uniform.

That's not why I held up my right hand and swore the oath and put my life on the line for my country.

That, that illusion of respect, is not why I am a veteran.

Not so a man should be forced to show respect he doesn't feel.

That's called slavery and I have no respect for that at all.

If Americans want this man to respect America, then first they must respect him.

If America wants the world's respect, it must be worthy of respect.

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

But doesn't it also mean that if Kaepernick wants respect, he must give it first? Give it to America? Be worthy of respect himself? Stand up, shut up, and put his hand over his heart before Old Glory?

No. It doesn't.

Respect doesn't work that way.

Power flows from positive to negative. Electricity flows from greater potential to lesser.

The United States isn't a person, it's a vast construct, a framework of law and order and civilization designed to protect the weak from the ruthless and after more than two centuries of revision and refinement it exists to provide in equal measure for all of us the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The United States is POWER.

All the power rests with America. Just as it does in the military chain of command. And like that chain of command, like the electrical circuit described above, respect must flow from greater to lesser FIRST before it can return.

To you the National Anthem means one thing, to Kaepernick it means something else. We are all shaped and defined by our experiences and we see the world through our own eyes. That's freedom. That's liberty. The right to believe differently. The right to protest as you will. The right to demand better. The right to believe your country can BE better, that it can live up to its sacred ideals, and the right to loudly note that it has NOT. The right to use your voice, your actions, to bring attention to the things you believe in. The right to want more for others, freedom, liberty, justice, equality, and RESPECT.

A true veteran might not agree with Colin Kaepernick, but a true veteran would fight to the death to protect his right to say what he believes.

You don't like what Kaepernick has to say? Then prove him wrong, BE the nation he can respect.

It's really just that simple.

Are we going to be a nation that goes the way of Rome and decides that all of the critics have a point, or are we going to be a country that stands up for it and all that it stands for?

These kids haven't been around long enough to know what this country has been through. The kind of people that would kick Colin's pampered ass are all dying out.

These kids don't know just how bad it is in other countries like I discovered when I was serving my country.

These kids are just thinking about a movement that is based on half-truths and outright lies. A movement that rewards you for showing hatred for the country you were born in and grew up in.

If this country was really as bad as they claim, they wouldn't even have the right to do what they're doing and say what they're saying. I've been in countries where they will lock you up for showing disrespect for it's currency. Step on a Baht which has a picture of the King of Thailand on it, they throw you in prison. In Singapore they'll beat you with a staff for vandalism. In some countries the players would have beat the crap out of him for not standing up. He can thank God for being born in a country that allows him to take a piss on everything it stands for. Where a political party and an ideology rewards people that act like him. I think that's his true motivation. Not that he's right, but that he will gain some recognition for this.

Yes, he can thank God he was born here and not in many other places.

But many of those "other places" would force him to stand. That is not him respecting anything. That is him faking it to avoid prosecution. We do not force people to show patriotism. That cheapens us and true patriotism. People didn't dare refuse to salute Hitler, Stalin, Mussilini, or Kim Jong-un. Those dictators forced people to salute and pretend to be patriots, whether they felt it or not.

I did not wear a uniform, swear and oath, and (potentially) offer my life for a nation that forces its people to fake patriotism. I did it to defend the freedoms to show respect only when it is real.

I will show contempt for anyone who disrespects my country. Is that clear enough for you.

 

[DigitalDrifter]

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

MLK felt the same way about the Star Spangled Banner as Colin does:

KING: Why I'll never stand again for 'The Star-Spangled Banner'

"Now that I have learned the truth about our national anthem and its author, I'll never stand up for it again.

"First off, the song, which was originally written as a poem, didn't become our national anthem until 1931 — which was 117 years after Key wrote it.

"Most of us have no true idea what in the hell we've been hearing or singing all these years, but as it turns out, Key's full poem actually has a third stanza which few of us have ever heard. In it, he openly celebrates the murder of slaves.

"Yes, really."

Get lost, I think I hear them calling you back to your cricket game.

 

[Brynmr]

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

MLK felt the same way about the Star Spangled Banner as Colin does:

KING: Why I'll never stand again for 'The Star-Spangled Banner'

"Now that I have learned the truth about our national anthem and its author, I'll never stand up for it again.

"First off, the song, which was originally written as a poem, didn't become our national anthem until 1931 — which was 117 years after Key wrote it.

"Most of us have no true idea what in the hell we've been hearing or singing all these years, but as it turns out, Key's full poem actually has a third stanza which few of us have ever heard. In it, he openly celebrates the murder of slaves.

"Yes, really."

This is race-baiting bull shit.

The Star Spangled Banner lyrics "...and slave" is a direct reference to the British practice of Impressment (kidnapping American seamen and forcing them into service on British man-of war ships). This was a Important cause of the War of 1812

 

[georgephillip]

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

MLK felt the same way about the Star Spangled Banner as Colin does:

KING: Why I'll never stand again for 'The Star-Spangled Banner'

"Now that I have learned the truth about our national anthem and its author, I'll never stand up for it again.

"First off, the song, which was originally written as a poem, didn't become our national anthem until 1931 — which was 117 years after Key wrote it.

"Most of us have no true idea what in the hell we've been hearing or singing all these years, but as it turns out, Key's full poem actually has a third stanza which few of us have ever heard. In it, he openly celebrates the murder of slaves.

"Yes, really."

Get lost, I think I hear them calling you back to your cricket game.

Do you know the third verse of that racist, blood-soaked screed?

Star-Spangled Bigotry: The Hidden Racist History of the National Anthem

"And where is that band who so vauntingly swore,
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a Country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave."

Colin for Commander-in-Chief

 

[the_human_being]

I'm a ten-point combat connected veteran and I say he is unpatriotic and should have his ass kicked. You stand for the Anthem and you salute the Flag. You disrespect neither.

 

[NCC1701]

I am a veteran too, disrespect is intolerable in the service

 

[whitehall]

Actually it doesn't look as if military veteran Jim Wright is defending Kaepernick's opinion but rather he is defending the NFL player's (worth 22 million) right to express his opinion. Wright seems to acknowledge that we can't force Kaepernick to respect his Country or his Flag or anything else but left leaning Veterans and sports celebrities often forget that the 1st Amendment goes both ways. While (hypocrite) Kaepernick has the 1st Amendment right to disrespect his Country, Americans also have just as much 1st Amendment right to protest and ridicule and disrespect Kaepernick.

 

[NCC1701]

Actually it doesn't look as if military veteran Jim Wright is defending Kaepernick's opinion but rather he is defending the NFL player's (worth 22 million) right to express his opinion. Wright seems to acknowledge that we can't force Kaepernick to respect his Country or his Flag or anything else but you can't force Americans to respect Kaepernick's opinion. Left leaning Veterans and sports celibreties often forget that the 1st Amendment goes both ways and Americans have just as much right to protest and ridicule and disrespect Kaepernick as he has the right to disrespect his Country.

the point is while I am a veteran and support the first amendment, I don't have to go out of my way to say kapershit has the right to do what he did, we all know he will not be arrested

 

[georgephillip]

America must be worthy of respect. Torture, rendition, indefinite detention, unarmed black men shot down in the street every day, poverty, inequality, voter suppression, racism, bigotry in every form, obstructionism, blind patriotism, NONE of those things are worthy of respect from anybody -- least of all an American.

MLK felt the same way about the Star Spangled Banner as Colin does:

KING: Why I'll never stand again for 'The Star-Spangled Banner'

"Now that I have learned the truth about our national anthem and its author, I'll never stand up for it again.

"First off, the song, which was originally written as a poem, didn't become our national anthem until 1931 — which was 117 years after Key wrote it.

"Most of us have no true idea what in the hell we've been hearing or singing all these years, but as it turns out, Key's full poem actually has a third stanza which few of us have ever heard. In it, he openly celebrates the murder of slaves.

"Yes, really."

This is race-baiting bull shit.

The Star Spangled Banner lyrics "...and slave" is a direct reference to the British practice of Impressment (kidnapping American seamen and forcing them into service on British man-of war ships). This was a Important cause of the War of 1812

No, it's not.
It's a direct reference to the Colonial Marines who were freed slaves fighting alongside the British. Francis Scott Key was a white supremacist who got his ass kicked by the marines at Bladensburg, and he never got over it.
Star-Spangled Bigotry: The Hidden Racist History of the National Anthem

 

[JOSweetHeart]

I have a question. Where does this particular veteran draw the line?

God bless you always!!!

Holly

P.S. If the anthem is not going to be stood for, in my opinion, a person's appreciation for their freedom had better be shown in some way.