I was talking with a friend of mine last week and we disagreed on something. I can’t even remember what it was. She said, “everyone is entitled to their own opinion”. My reply, “I don’t think that’s true anymore”. I then went on to explain about what recently happened to Drew Brees.
For those of you who don’t know, Drew Brees is the quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. On Twitter he said:
“I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country.”
He followed up with more tweets saying that when he is saluting the flag, he is paying respect to his two grandfathers who both served in World War II. Sounds reasonable, right? It’s his opinion and he should be entitled to it. Sadly, Mr. Brees faced a huge backlash and was forced to apologize for having that opinion.
Recently, Brett Farve, an ex-NFL quarterback, had this to say about Colin Kaepernick:
“I can only think of, right off the top of my head, Pat Tillman is another guy who did something similar. And we regard him as a hero. So, I’d assume that hero status will be stamped with Kaepernick, as well.”
As you probably know, Colin Kaepernick is an ex-NFL player who “took a knee” during the playing of our national anthem to protest “racial injustice”. He has since made tens of millions of dollars from endorsement deals, mostly with Nike. Pat Tillman played for the Arizona Cardinals and turned down a multi-million dollar contract renewal to join the army and become a Ranger after the September 11th attacks on America. Pat Tillman was subsequently killed in a friendly fire incident in Afghanistan.
First, let me say that to draw an analogy between Pat Tillman and Colin Kaepernick is ridiculous. Hell, even saying both of their names in the same breath is disrespectful.
But, was Brett Farve hounded by the media and others until he was forced to apologize for his opinion? He was not.
Now, whether or not you agree with what either of them had to say, you should be able to agree that they each have the right to voice their own opinions. If it’s OK for Brett Farve to compare someone kneeling with someone who died to protect his right to kneel, then it should also be OK for Drew Brees to believe that all Americans should show respect for the American flag. What’s considered a right for one person, is considered a right for all. That’s how America works.
Or rather, that’s how America is supposed to work. It seems like these days “everyone is entitled to their own opinion” is only true if that opinion supports the cause du jour.
