The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

It was September 11th, 2001. We were a nation under attack, looking amongst our brothers and sisters, searching for answers. Soon we were told who the enemy was and how we were to stand together against this common foe. Hands were held. Flags were raised. Tears were shared. Songs were sung. Regardless of whether we were men or women, black or white, Christian or Muslim, gay or straight, Republican or Democrat, we were Americans. As we went to war, our president told us, "You're either with us or you're against us." There was no middle ground to be had. Dissenters were deemed traitors, as 90% were unified in trusting the president's call to action. Anti-civil rights legislation was passed in the name of security. Protesters were still scorned. Liberty was preached and praised, yet criticized. This all occurred as we were being told the attacks were due to envy of our way of life, a way to disrupt our freedoms. Fast-forward to 17 years later. Another president who...

An Ode to Faux-Christianity and Patriotism Standing upright, A hand over the heart, Singing one verse off key, Ignorant of the others, Wavering high in the sky, Red, white, and blue, Cherry-picking history, All empathy subdued, Placed around the neck, Showcasing blind faith, As the eyes close, And we pray our sins away, A symbol of love, A symbol of sacrifice, This cross often ignored, A crutch for self-forgiveness, Burning the Constitution while saluting the flag, Pissing on the poor while preaching the good word, The antithesis of true Christian beliefs, The antithesis of patriotism.

They're all old, rich, white, and disapprove of black NFL players protesting oppression pre-game during the National Anthem. Also, their attempt to appear patriotic is nothing more than a charade. All they really care about is power and money. According to the U.S. flag code, these five men consistently disrespect the flag by using it in advertising, apparel, and presenting it in a flat and horizontal manner. They have absolutely no room to talk when it comes to patriotism. The flag may symbolize freedom, represent a free and great country to them, but their ancestors were never brought here from Africa as slaves. They never had to place their lives at risk in order to be provided the right to vote. They've never had to fear authority figures following and suspecting them of wrong doing due to the color of their skin. They've never felt the oppression blacks and other minorities have experienced throughout their lives. If they truly want everyone to find a reason to stand f...

It's being reported that NFL referees have decided to take a stand against former NFL vice president of officiating and current rules analyst, Mike Pereira, by giving him the silent treatment in response to his recent criticism of them. In Sunday's NFC Wild Card game between the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions, Pereria harshly criticized the officials for picking up a flag for defensive pass interference midway in the 4th quarter, and also for not calling defensive holding on the play, which largely aided the Cowboys in their 24-20 come-from-behind win. He's continued his criticism in the days following, even allegedly saying behind closed doors that, "Stevie Wonder could have seen those penalties!" and "These officials lend credence to that old phrase, 'I'm blind, I'm deaf, I wanna be a ref!" In response, NFL officials have vowed to give Pereira the silent treatment until he apologizes, by saying, "If you wear stripes, you're a...

While, at the end of the day, the Dallas Cowboys came back from 14 points down to defeat the Detroit Lions 24-20 on Sunday, all the talk is about the phantom flag (phantom flags would be more appropriate). With 8:25 left in the 4th quarter and the Lions up 20-17, Detroit faced a 3rd-and-1 from the Dallas 46-yard line. Quarterback Matthew Stafford then threw a pass toward tight end Brandon Pettigrew near the 25-yard line. Cowboys linebacker Anthony Hitchens had his back to Stafford as the pass was coming in toward Pettigrew and appeared to make contact with Pettigrew as the pass hit Hitchens in the back. Almost immediately, a flag was thrown for pass interference on Hitchens. In the NFL, if a defender "face-guards" a receiver, but doesn't make contact with him, it's not a penalty. However, if contact is made, then it constitutes as pass interference, according to Rule 8, Section 5, Article 2 (1) of the NFL rule book (prohibits "contact by a player who is not pla...

I assume in light of the controversy surrounding the Dallas Cowboys' 24-20 win over the Detroit Lions yesterday, where the refs picked up a flag for pass interference at a critical point in the game and later stated that it was because the Dallas defender was face-guarding, which is legal in the NFL, a previous post I made with regard to face-guarding has received more views in the past 24 hours than groupies that have slept with Gene Simmons. Due to that, I'll indeed make a post about the controversial call later in the day. Whether or not the refs want to make the claim that the defender was face-guarding (he wasn't), however, the Detroit Lions got jobbed on the play, which I'll explain later.

Following the game last night between the New England Patriots and the Carolina Panthers, which ended in a controversial fashion, where a referee threw an apparent flag for pass interference on a Panthers defensive back in the end zone, but got that call overruled, referee Clete Blakeman had this explanation for reporters: "So it was determined at that point in time that when the primary contact occurred on the tight end that the ball, in essence, was coming in underthrown and in essence it was [immediately] at that point intercepted at the front end of the end zone. So there was a determination that, in essence, uncatchability, that the ball was intercepted at or about the same time the primary contact against the receiver occurred." While I personally think the refs should have compromised on the matter, called defensive holding, and given the Patriots one more chance from the 13-yard line after the five-yard penalty, I love Blakeman's response. I wonder if he broke...

I've been both flustered and fascinated by this. Why is it that it seems symbols and bumper-sticker slogans hold such greater value to conservative Republicans than to liberal Democrats? Why do they spend so much time caring that a symbol of a cross be displayed in as many places as possible? That they sport an American flag on a shirt or other articles of clothing? That drivers know via a sticker they support the troops, believe in freedom, and love God? I've never understood this and with every election that passes, it appears to be occurring with more frequency as the Republican Party moves further and further to the right. To outsiders, the American flag is just a piece of cloth, which showcases stars and stripes and the colors red, white, and blue. To Americans, this piece of cloth holds greater significance than to the outsiders. However, I often times wonder how many people whom sport the flag so frequently on clothing and the like actually think about why they are doi...