Pence Staged Exit.

[*jason*]

(10-10-2017, 12:00 PM)Sociopathicsteelerfan Wrote: It is interesting, it would have been smart to do, but when has Goodell ever done something smart?  The NBA has this rule, and has for some time.  I'm not even going to look into it, but I'm willing to bet heavily the NBA made this rule after that muslim player on the Knicks started protesting the National Anthem in the mid/late 90's.  They nipped that in the bud and it was a smart business decision to do so.

One thing that is constantly ignored in the national discussion on these protests is that these guys are protesting, in uniform, at their place of employment.  The 1st amendment does not protect you from expressing your views at your place of employment, so limiting the ability to protest would in no way violate anyone's constitutional rights.  I found myself in the rare position of agreeing with Stephen A. Smith the other day, Trump has poisoned these protests (although I believe Kaepernick did a good job of that on his own) and they no longer mean what they where meant to mean by many.  What many people don't get is that you don't get to decide how your actions are perceived by others.  I'm afraid the dye is well and truly cast on this subject for most Americans, on both sides.

The NBA did come up with that rule because of Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. I'm surprised how little he's been brought up during this news story. When I first heard about Kaepernick's sitting last summer, Abdul-Rauf was the first thing that came to mind. Heads would have literally exploded had this been a Muslim at the center of the controversy in the post 9/11 world. That Alabama rally with Trump would have gotten very lively.

Abdul Rauf actually played for the Nuggets at the time. They get very little national TV time, and he had been sitting on the bench for quite some time before it even became a story. Of course the ensuing outrage forced David Stern's hand, and he enacted the current rule. Abdul-Rauf then began to stand with his arms in a posture for prayer. Of course to many, this was just as bad, and he was pelted with objects from the stands. His teammates began to stand around him to discourage such asshole behavior from fans, but the whole thing effectively ended his career. I just read a follow-up on him the other day. He doesn't regret a thing, and would do it again.