Alejandro Villenueva
- Thread starter Pennick44
- Start date
Highest selling Steeler jersey and third highest in the NFL from what I heard on the radio, though I have not personally confirmed that fact. He was a hero before the NFL as a Ranger. I wish him well. He has real courage.
And the President, however much of a bonehead you or I may think he is, also has the right to voice his opinion on the subject. I personally think he should use his time for more substantive issues than the NFL players kneeling during the national anthem, but there is a tone out there whereby his opinion is somehow wrong, or he shouldn't voice his opinion at all. I am not sure where that idea comes from.
I think it has come from the fact that he is quicker to condemn NFL players for peaceful protests before condemning Neo-Nazis.
exactly. locker rooms are sacred. i guarantee villanueva fully supports his teammates too.
I don't think his coach was happy but tough *hit.
Exactly. His coach intentionally trips players running down the sideline. He has no room to criticize (especially publically) a former Army Ranger who proudly stands in respect for his country... His coach will have to suck it up. That's what difference in opinion is all about!
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When I see NFL players kneeling, I think how many of them would give up there pay checks and go fight in a war and possibly give up also there life. What do you think Pat Tillman thinks of all this bullshit?
I think Pat Tillman made a deeply personal, respectable decision to represent his country and sadly, paid a terrible price in a friendly fire accident that cost him his life.
I think standing on the grave of a quality American whose story has no connection to the protests in NFL, other than to sensationlists who would conflate the two in an attempt to pull at the heart strings of Americans, is not how you honor a proud patriot who fought to defend the constitution that allows the players the ability to protest in the way they are.
IrishJohn,
You seem like a great guy and I have no gripe with you... That said, Ben Shapiro, a very well spoken and highly educated, proud constitutional conservative publically called out Piers Morgan for standing on the graves of the Sandyhook victims by suggesting that gun owners don't care about the safety of children. I thought it was a low tactic used by Morgan and Shapiro was perfectly right to call him out. I feel you're doing the same in this case.
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I have always liked Mike Tomlin, but this is one case where saying nothing would have been the best strategy.
There is nothing new with taking a knee on the football field. Tim Tebow did it to pray, and he was criticized
By all the Liberal Media and just about every one on the Left. " there should be no expression of ones
Religion on the football field ! "
Even high school coaches were fired or suspended. Very odd that one can not kneel during a football game,
But one or a group of player can kneel during the National Anthem to express a political view ?
No place for God, but just and right to disrespect our country, our police, and military and our veterans !
By all the Liberal Media and just about every one on the Left. " there should be no expression of ones
Religion on the football field ! "
Even high school coaches were fired or suspended. Very odd that one can not kneel during a football game,
But one or a group of player can kneel during the National Anthem to express a political view ?
No place for God, but just and right to disrespect our country, our police, and military and our veterans !
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May want to rethink your new hero. Looks like it was just an accident:
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/...ammates-under-the-bus-during-national-anthem/
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/...ammates-under-the-bus-during-national-anthem/
I think they have been protesting for over a year now. He condemned the nazi' s within a few days so not sure how that works.
He was already a hero long before the picture was taken. He still is. Peer pressure is a powerful thing and it permeates from grade school all the way up to adulthood.
Bodizephax
I've posted how many times?
Bodizephax
I've posted how many times?
That Alejandro Villenueva would rather honor the troops and the millions of Americans who have died fighting for our country than his teammates who are well paid professional athletes who play a game.
Ummmm yeah I get it. That's why I applauded him earlier in this thread when I stated that "he was a former Army Ranger who proudly stands in respect for his country". Not sure what I'm missing there. As a serviceman of my own country, I deeply respect the choice Alejandro made and I'm happy his teammates had his back.
and he apologized for what he termed " throwing his teammates under the bus ". he wasn't supposed to be out there, nor was that his intention.
He didn't really not condemn the neo-nazis, he simply suggested that both sides of the altercation were at fault. At that time the counter protesters were perceived as the good guys, and obviously white supremacists/neo-nazis/KKK et al are seen by the overwhelming majority as bad guys, thus the suggestion of sharing of the blame rankled many people. Since that time the supposed good guys have shown themselves on multiple occasions to be a bunch of anarchist thugs looking for a fight, and have been summarily condemned by everyone except maybe the far far left. So I am not sure why Charlottesville is even a topic of conversation right now.
Directly after 9/11 the New York Giants wanted to put the Twin Towers symbols on their helmet I believe it was and Rodger Goodell said he did not want this to become political
Why is it that Rodger Goodell is allowing this to happen?
I think it remains a focal point because there were really three groups as opposed to the two you suggest. The third consisted of Independent protestors who showed up to protest the white supremacists. I am not positive, but I believe the young lady who was killed falls into this later group. I like the fact that these thugs who have adopted the name for what was a noble effort to fight fascism in Hitler's Germany and Franco's Spain, are being identified and called out for the leftist anarchists they are, but wish the condemnation was more universal and a hell of a lot louder! Trump would have been on solid ground and avoided the appearance of being soft on white supremacists if he had made this distinction, but as is often the case, he shoots from the hip and allows emotion and bias to overrun facts.
There was another group there and I think they were actually the folks that started the whole ruckus. They were the people that were there to honor a civil war statue that was being torn down. These are the people POTUS refererred to when he spoke of the good people. These are the people that remarked "It's almost as though POTUS talked to one of us". After his statement.
These are people from an america that allowed it's people to celebrate their heroes and history. Nobody had to agree with them. They used to have the right to express their opinion regardless. Now everything needs to be approved by msm and the globalists. If it doesn't fit their narrative, it needs to be removed.
is he still after he apologized for throwing his teammates under the bus as he put it ?
Why do you believe he thinks he was throwing his teammates under the bus I got to admit that is a bit bizarre
Well, he's clearly embarrassed over the attention and standing apart from his fellow teammates. And hell yes, it had the appearance and affect of throwing this teammates under the bus. Hard to believe the silly explanation that he got unknowingly separated because of a flag. He clearly wants and needs to make things right with his teammates, and that's what he is doing. I think we'll each interpret this through the lens of how we each view the kneeling and sitting displays of protest.
I agree with you. I was referring to the talking point that he is a white supremacist because two groups of morons showed up looking for a fight yet you must be a racist if that is how you perceive the situation. And anyone following the Antifa crap going on at college campuses saw this coming months ago
He owes nothing to his teammates. He gave them more than enough three times
In Villanueva's own words, he said some on the team want to kneel and some want to stand for the anthem. In order to not portray division among the team, the Steelers as a team (not Tomlin) decided to remain in the tunnel (not the locker room) during the playing of the anthem.
Some clearly had second thoughts about the team decision afterwards. Villanueva wasn't one of them. He was merely a few steps in front of his teammates in the tunnel, as it turns out, by accident.
It's a touchy subject for everybody and the Steelers tried to get together and decide, as a group, how they would handle it. Things didn't go as planned and their decision seems to have backfired - through no fault of anyone.
"IF" you're plan is to show support for the cause, but at the same time remain unified as a team - then I think staying in the locker room (or tunnel) is the right way to do it. They are all still standing, just not on the sidelines. Showing your support in this manner doesn't give the cameras and media personnel the opportunity to plaster images of teammates kneeling all over the TV.
I think the team's collective hearts were in the right place. It just wasn't executed in the manner they planned or would have liked it to be.
For the record, I am totally in support of free speech. For all causes, for all subjects. You can't have "free speech" for only the ideals that you believe in or for subjects you deem important. You have to accept the bad with the good. You have to respect EVEYBODYS right to free speech, whether you agree or disagree.
That being said, I think exercising this right during the national anthem is not the time or the place. Some things are sacred. Same as protesting in some way during a funeral in front of the grieving widow and family. It just wouldn't feel right to do that. It's sacred.
There is a time and place for everything and I feel this kneeling agenda during the anthem isn't the time or the place. Maybe, instead of dancing or spiking the football in a display of "look at me" after a score, the players would all be better served kneeling in the endzone with a raised fist as their form of protest. Would that be too much to ask? The protest would surely still be front and center like they want, but would not create more divisiveness among fans, players, coaches, owners etc.
Some clearly had second thoughts about the team decision afterwards. Villanueva wasn't one of them. He was merely a few steps in front of his teammates in the tunnel, as it turns out, by accident.
It's a touchy subject for everybody and the Steelers tried to get together and decide, as a group, how they would handle it. Things didn't go as planned and their decision seems to have backfired - through no fault of anyone.
"IF" you're plan is to show support for the cause, but at the same time remain unified as a team - then I think staying in the locker room (or tunnel) is the right way to do it. They are all still standing, just not on the sidelines. Showing your support in this manner doesn't give the cameras and media personnel the opportunity to plaster images of teammates kneeling all over the TV.
I think the team's collective hearts were in the right place. It just wasn't executed in the manner they planned or would have liked it to be.
For the record, I am totally in support of free speech. For all causes, for all subjects. You can't have "free speech" for only the ideals that you believe in or for subjects you deem important. You have to accept the bad with the good. You have to respect EVEYBODYS right to free speech, whether you agree or disagree.
That being said, I think exercising this right during the national anthem is not the time or the place. Some things are sacred. Same as protesting in some way during a funeral in front of the grieving widow and family. It just wouldn't feel right to do that. It's sacred.
There is a time and place for everything and I feel this kneeling agenda during the anthem isn't the time or the place. Maybe, instead of dancing or spiking the football in a display of "look at me" after a score, the players would all be better served kneeling in the endzone with a raised fist as their form of protest. Would that be too much to ask? The protest would surely still be front and center like they want, but would not create more divisiveness among fans, players, coaches, owners etc.
Thought this areally good article on Villanueva and the larger issue.
http://ftw.usatoday.com/2017/09/ale...them-first-amendment-nfl-protests-army-ranger
http://ftw.usatoday.com/2017/09/ale...them-first-amendment-nfl-protests-army-ranger
Thoughts on Titans WR Rishard Matthews coming out today saying that he will kneel until the President issues an apology for calling the NFL players "SOBs"?
Matthews' brother was killed in Afghanistan serving in the United States military and his father is a 23 year military vet. Apparently the family supports his his prostest. Are they entitled, disrespectful, scum as well? Curious what the board thinks.
And thank you to both members of the Matthews family for your service and sacrifice towards the betterment of humanity.
Matthews' brother was killed in Afghanistan serving in the United States military and his father is a 23 year military vet. Apparently the family supports his his prostest. Are they entitled, disrespectful, scum as well? Curious what the board thinks.
And thank you to both members of the Matthews family for your service and sacrifice towards the betterment of humanity.
The family has the right to feel that way. The majority of Americans feel it is disrespectful to kneel during the anthem. It is a losing proposition for NFL players and the NFL owners.
Do we have concrete indication that the majority of Americans feel this way, or are you speculating? I'm just curious because I've yet to see any statistics on the matter and NFL stadiums still appeared full this weekend and the ratings although down a little bit, didn't reflect a "majority". I'm genuine interested in how the country generally feels in this one.
