Shit that Pissed me Off – 2/15/19
The Cleveland Browns Signed Kareem Hunt and Colin Kapaernick Still Doesn’t Have a Job
Hunt was kicked off his former team (the Chiefs) after video of Hunt assaulting a woman became public. They claimed they knew about the incident but that Hunt had “lied” about it to them.
So Hunt was out of Football. At least he might have been were he not so gosh darn talented.
I could point out that Colin Kapaernick is more talented than – well – just about every third string quarterback in the league, probably most of the second string ones and maybe even a few first string ones and he doesn’t have a job in the NFL. Because he didn’t hit a woman on camera. He kneeled during the National Anthem to call attention to systemic racism.
But Kareem Hunt deserves “another chance.”
I’m not even going to argue that he doesn’t deserve another chance. I don’t know. Maybe he really has figured his shit out and is going to make amends and be a decent guy.
Who doesn’t want to believe, right?
What I’m arguing is that a guy who punches women has an easier time getting a job in the NFL than a guy who kneels during the national anthem.
Moreover, the response to the Hunt allegations is muted. People are shocked but immediately say “we don’t really know enough to leap to judgement.” The response to Kapaernick isn’t muted at all. It is angry. Vocal. And filled with people who are telling him that they don’t give a fuck what he says until he says it the way they want to hear it (not that they plan on telling him what would make them listen).
The NFL is a business. And they know full well that in a game as violent as Professional Football, their audience has shown a willingness to accept players who are violent off the field. What they can’t accept is a player who peacefully points out institutional racism and – yes – violence.
Note: It was just announced that Kapaernick reached a settlement with the NFL in his collusion case that claimed the NFL colluded to keep him out of a job. Of course the terms are confidential so the NFL doesn’t need to actually admit to doing anything wrong…
Shit that Pissed me Off – 9/7/18
Here’s where we ask ourselves the question “why the fuck does the President of the United States keep inserting himself into this shit?”
I mean, that’s what we would ask if it wasn’t becoming so commonplace. But Trump has already made it clear that he is standing up for the American Flag against Kaepernick, who famously chose to kneel during the national anthem to protest racial injustice. He has chosen Football as a battleground and Kaepernick as the opposing general.
But let’s back up.
This weekend, Nike released the following image:
I’m going to say something that may be polarizing.
Nobody should have a problem with this.
Shit that Pissed me Off – 10/21
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Criticizes Colin Kaepernick
I missed this one last week so I’m making up for it now.
This makes me sad because I love RBG in almost all things. However, here is what she had to say about Kaepernick’s decision to kneel for the National Anthem:
I think it’s really dumb of them. Would I arrest them for doing it? No. I think it’s dumb and disrespectful.
Ginsburg has a right to her opinion. And she certainly agrees he has a right to act as he had. However, I’m really unpleased she chose the word “dumb” to describe her reaction to his act. Disrespectful? Sure. OK. I mean that’s kind of the point.
But dumb?
I’ll tell you what’s dumb, Colin. Throwing interceptions. That’s dumb.
To her credit, she walked back her comments later in the week. I’m still concerned she chose to make them in the first place.
I guess the problem is idol worship. Ginsburg is by far my favorite Supreme Court justice. As such, it saddens me when she says something with which I don’t agree. It’s like my brain has delivered a thought that completely disagrees with everything else I thought my brain believed.
Which is, I guess, unfair to Ginsburg. She gets to have bad opinions every now and again. At least she is pretty good at recognizing when she should keep those opinions to herself.
So we’re cool, RBG. Unless Donald Trump gets elected and you retire or die when he’s President. We won’t be able to get past that.
Shit that Pissed Me Off – 9/19
Canadian Judge Asked Rape Victim why She Didn’t Just Keep her Knees Together
If your plans in the event of a Donald Trump Presidency include moving to Canada, let me just remind you that there are a few assholes north of the border and at least one of them is a judge. For now.
Federal Judge Robin Camp is currently in a hearing to determine if he should keep his job. When you learn a little more about how he has been executing his job, you might wonder why the review is needed.
In addition to asking a nineteen year old rape victim why she didn’t just keep her knees together, he also mused that “Young women want to have sex, particularly if they are drunk.” He also suggested that sex and pain go together so maybe it isn’t so bad that her rape was painful. Because, I guess, that’s how sex is supposed to be. Consensual or not.
In the end, he let the accused walk free and told the rapist he needs to be “more careful.”
The ruling was overturned on appeal.
I wish that these kinds of judicial appeals were heard by Judge Judy.
Which is the only thing about this that makes sense.
I’ll tell you another thing that doesn’t make sense. This happened two years ago.
Judge Camp is originally from South Africa and his basic argument seems to be “I was really new at criminal law so I blew it because I didn’t really understand how to be a caring human being and a judge.”
I hope the first question they ask him in the hearing is “when you first thought about asking the victim why she had been such a victim, why couldn’t you just hold your lips together?” Read More…
Shit that Pissed me Off – 9/9
Gossip Columnist Attacks News Anchor for her Jeans
Jana Shortal has written about the fashion expectations surrounding women in news so it seems strange that Star Tribune gossip columnist C.J. chose to spend several paragraphs lambasting Shortal for the clothing she chose to wear while reporting on the discovery of Jacob Wetterling’s remains.
CJ’s fashion sense is, of course, her own and her column is not a hard hitting section of the paper. She has been quick to point out she is a columnist and not a journalist.
Seems to me that it shouldn’t matter. If you are an insensitive jackass, you can give yourself any label you want and you’ll still be an insensitive jackass.
Fun Fact: Google “insensitive jackass” and the first pictures that come up are of Roger Ebert!
Now CJ has since issued a notpology for her column that confirms she is, indeed, an insensitive jackass. She claims she was so upset by the Wetterling news that she was just thinking about the family’s feelings when she commented on Shortal’s fashion choices.
Her tweets immediately following the posting of the original article would suggest something entirely different but hey – if Donald Trump can change what he means every time he opens his mouth, so can the rest of us.
Shit that Pissed me Off – 9/2
Saudi Arabia Sentences Man to Prison For Being A Terrorist Atheist
Now nobody is arguing that Saudi Arabia is a haven for those who value free speech. It is a monarchy that relies on the hardline religious leaders (and oil money) for power. As such, it should surprise no-one that they have draconian laws when it comes to expression.
If you doubt me, please refer to this week when they sentenced a man to 10 years imprisonment and 2000 lashes for Tweeting that he was an atheist.
Please note that in America, a young man just finished serving three months in jail for viciously raping an unconscious woman.
One of these things is not like the other
At least he didn’t tweet about it, I guess.
If you think that thought crimes didn’t exist, I give you Saudi Arabia where stating you don’t believe in god has you branded as being a terrorist and put in jail for a decade. If you can’t get behind the Koran after that, well you are just a stubborn asshole.
Grail Diary 