Obvious? . . .

(from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/colin-kaepernick-removed-from-black-history-month-resolution-in-wisconsin-his-home-state/)

". . . The Wisconsin Legislature's Black Caucus, which is composed entirely of Democrats, drafted the annual resolution to honor dozens of prominent African-Americans from Wisconsin. An early draft included (Colin) Kaepernick, the one-time San Francisco 49ers quarterback who started the movement of kneeling in protest during the national anthem at games. . . The resolution draft credited Kaepernick, a Milwaukee native, as an athlete and political activist who "has sought to raise attention to racial injustice and systemic oppression." . . . But Republicans blocked the resolution until Democrats agreed to leave Kaepernick out. He does not appear in the updated text. A final version has not been approved. . . State Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke, a Republican, said GOP lawmakers would not endorse Kaepernick's inclusion "for obvious reasons" and to avoid including controversial figures. The resolution's author, Democratic Rep. David Crowley, called the move a "slap in the face" and a "textbook example of white privilege," noting that he he had to "get the blessing of all of my white counterparts" to get the resolution passed. . . "

. . . obviously, misguided "lawmakers"

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Siding . . .

. . . is NOT what this is about . . .


(http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/08/23/cruz-challenger-beto-orourke-dinged-for-saying-nothing-more-american-than-kneeling-during-anthem.html)
". . . Beto O’Rourke, the Democrat challenging GOP Sen. Ted Cruz in the midterm elections, is being slammed by Republicans for saying (included in detailed, thorough, intelligent and respectful remarks in answer to a question from the audience) there is “nothing more American” than kneeling during the national anthem. . . O’Rourke, a Democratic congressman, was asked at a recent campaign event about NFL players who kneel during the anthem. O’Rourke replied, “I can think of nothing more American than to peacefully stand up, or take a knee for your rights anytime, anywhere, any place.”. . . Cruz tweeted (in a not so thorough, intelligent and respectful manner), "Most Texans stand for the flag, but Hollywood liberals are so excited that Beto is siding with NFL players protesting the national anthem that Kevin Bacon just retweeted it. That means all of us us can now win Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon!" . . . "

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Obvious . . .

". . . we don't watch the NFL anymore for 'obvious' reasons . . . "



(from https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/4539225/take-a-knee-nfl-us-national-anthem-donald-trump/)
". . . NFL players across America are continuing to "take a knee" during the country's national anthem in a display of protest and defiance. . . NFL players and owners across the US knelt or stood with arms their arms linked during the national anthem to highlight racial injustice and police brutality in America . . . "


(from https://www.snopes.com/do-police-kill-more-whites-than-black-people/)
Any “analysis” of police killings will of course show that in absolute numbers, more white people are killed in police shootings than black people, because (non-Hispanic) whites comprise a roughly five times greater share of the U.S. population (62% vs. 13%). So any “analysis” that is based on nothing more than absolute numbers and does not take demographics into account is inaccurate and misleading. . . Because the federal government doesn’t keep an accurate log of police shootings, news outlets such as the Washington Post and journalists such as D. Brian Burghart have begun tracking such data independently. The Post described the statistical breakdown of fatal police shootings in 2015 thusly:   According to the most recent census data, there are nearly 160 million more white people in America than there are black people. White people make up roughly 62 percent of the U.S. population but only about 49 percent of those who are killed by police officers. African Americans, however, account for 24 percent of those fatally shot and killed by the police despite being just 13 percent of the U.S. population. As The Post noted in a new analysis, that means black Americans are 2.5 times as likely as white Americans to be shot and killed by police officers. . . According to Fatal Encounters, the database created by former Reno News & Review editor and journalism instructor Burghart (which tracks all deaths resulting from interactions with police), a total of 1,388 people were killed by police in 2015, 318 (23%) of them black, and 560 (40%) of them white. So roughly 23 percent of those killed by any police interaction in 2015 were black and just over 40 percent were white. According to those statistics (adjusted for racial demographics), black people had a 2.7 higher likelihood of being killed by police than whites. . . ."

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Oh What A Tangled. . .

. . . and dishonest web. . .

. . . we weave . . .


The NFL made $10.5 billion in 2013 and paid its chief executive Roger Goodell $44.2 million. Taxes? The National Football League pays taxes through its various money-making offshoots such as NFL Properties and NFL Ventures. The league office in midtown Manhattan, which paid Goodell pays non. Why?  Because in 1942 the IRS ruled the NFL was a trade association (for its current 32-member teams) and therefore exempt from taxes as a nonprofit under section 501(c)6 of the tax code. In 1966, when two powerful Louisiana politicians, Sen. Russell Long and Rep. Hale Boggs, wanted a football team in New Orleans, then NFL Comissioner Pete Rozelle got his wish for antitrust protection and confirmed tax-exempt status for the league office, slipped into an unrelated federal bill on investments and depreciation and the New Orleans Saints were born.  (thanks to http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/22/us/nfl-nonprofit-taxes/)

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OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
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Sorting It Out. . .

To me, American football is an entertainment and marketing phenomenon.  The sheer number of fans

(i.e. Fanatic)
Definition of FANATIC
:  marked by excessive enthusiasm and often intense uncritical devotion <they're fanatic about politics>

alone boggles the mind.


(from wikipedia.com)
". . . The first instance of professional play in football was on November 12, 1892, when William "Pudge" Heffelfinger was paid $500 to play a game for the Allegheny Athletic Association in a match against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club. This is the first recorded instance of a player being paid to participate in a game of American football, although many athletic clubs in the 1880s offered to help players attain employment, gave out trophies or watches that players would pawn for money, or paid double in expense money. Football at the time had a strict sense of amateurism, and direct payment to players was frowned upon, if not outright illegal.

Professional play became common, and with it came rising salaries, unpredictable player movement, and the illegal use of amateur collegiate players in professional games. The National Football League, a group of professional teams that was originally established in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, aimed to solve these problems. This new league's stated goals included an end to bidding wars over players, prevention of the use of college players, and abolition of the practice of paying players to leave another team. The NFL by 1922 had established itself as the premier professional football league.

The dominant form of football at the time was played at the collegiate level, but the upstart NFL received a boost to its legitimacy in 1925 when an NFL team, the Pottsville Maroons, defeated a team of Notre Dame all-stars in an exhibition game.[18] A greater emphasis on the passing game helped professional football to further distinguish itself from the college game during the late 1930s. Football in general became increasingly popular following the 1958 NFL Championship game, a match between the Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants that is still referred to as the "Greatest Game Ever Played". The game, a 23–17 overtime victory by the Colts, was seen by millions of television viewers and had a major impact on the popularity of the sport. This helped football to become the most popular sport in the United States by the mid-1960s. . . "

I used to try to understand it so I could watch it with others and participate in the enthusiasm and fellowship of the occasion.  I have to confess, I never fully grasped the concept.  In time I even stopped trying.  Don't get me wrong, I truly understand and appreciate the concept of cheering for the local team (in any sport) and feel that the camaraderie that results is good for the individuals as well as the society.  But I still don't understand, nor at this point in my life need or want to understand,  the game of football.

Nevertheless I most certainly do intend to fully participate in the 'good vibes' inherent in the process next Sunday at the party, drinking and enjoying good friendship when we all gather to watch football, even though I still don't understand the game.

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