From a slew of you
What do make of the Brainerd coach's protest?
Gang - Here's what we sat down and wrote this morning:
Where do we draw the line?
Brian Gwyn, the Brainerd High School football coach is going to lead his team in protest tonight. As written by TFP sports editor Stephen Hargis in this morning's paper, Gwyn and the Panthers will have a closed fist over their hearts tonight during the national anthem.
Gwen said it is a designed and intended part of the protest started last month by San Francisco back-up quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
One thing missing from the details this morning is where does the Hamilton County Department of Education draw the line on what is acceptable civil disobedience from the folks who are teaching our children?
Are we OK giving the social sensibility meter completely to a gym teacher or a counselor?
What if the football coach, who can force players to do things they do not want to do - from running sprints to making extra efforts - decided that he wanted to protest the a gender issue? Or a religious issue?
God forbid that a coach leads a team in a pregame prayer, since that will draw overwhelming interest from the Freedom of Religion folks.
Coach Gwyn, you are not an NFL coach. You are an educator, and if the HDCE lets this one teacher lead a protest, then it better be open to every teacher in every public school deciding what they feel is important enough to protest.
And you know what that's called?
Equality. Equal treatment for those working for and being paid by our tax dollars.
And know this, the wheels of politics are already moving this morning. Here is a copy a text message I receiver this morning that was also sent to someone in the central office from Hamilton County commissioner Tim Boyd:
"I suggest you remind the Superintendent to tell the Brainerd HS football coach he is being paid to coach football and not lead political protest (see front page of today's paper). If he leads the protest he should be immediately removed as coach. I am not standing by and having our coach/teachers use our public schools and students as a platform for their personal political views. Please let me know when this coach is instructed to stand down on the protest during the national anthem. Thanks. Tim"
Giddy-up.
No matter what side of this discussion you fall - whether you believe Kaepernick is an attention-seeker who wears socks making fun of cops or if you believe he should be in discussion for Sportsman of the Year - Boyd's point must be discussed.
Is there any issue, regardless of merit and meaning, that you want a public school employee leading your children in a protest?
Maybe Gwyn got parental permission from each and every player and there was uniform support. Maybe there were a handful of civic group meetings to discuss this around the Brainerd area. I know that last week at the Baylor-Howard game almost half the fans on the Howard side sat as the anthem was being played.
Buckle up, because this could take a nasty turn.
San Francisco 49ers safety Eric Reid (35) and quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) kneel during the national anthem before an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) From Justin
Aren't a majority of sports fans conservative? How could the NFL think this is a smart move?
Justin -
Here's betting the NFL hates this. Simply hates it.
A league that fines players for going outside the limits of a dress code certainly does not want to be a stage for national protests and civil controversy.
And whether the decline in ratings of the opening weekend compared to the last two years is tied into Kaepernick or not remains to be seen.
What the NFL can't do though is voice a contradictory opinion, because of appearances.
So it goes. We're all for inclusivity until someone voices a dissenting opinion and then they get drilled by the media.
Ask Dabo Swinney how that works out for you.
Actor Daniel Day-Lewis arrives Sunday at the 70th Annual Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.From Jomo
Rushmore 3 name actors- Billy Bob Thornton, the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman, James Earl Jones, Billy Dee Williams...........I would need a ruling from JG on Daniel Day-Lewis, don't know if hyphen rules out?
Joao -
Great call on James Earl Jones, arguably the best voice in the history of movies considering he was Mustafa in Lion King and Luke's dad in some movie about space and the force and stuff.
We think Daniel Day Lewis stands, and we'll go Julia Louis Dreyfuss and Tommy Lee Jones.
As for TLJ's Rushmore, The Fugitive is a dunk, as is Lonesome Dove. We'll add Coal Miner's Daughter and Men in Black as the four.
FILE - In this April 3, 2016, file photo, Kenny Chesney performs at the 4th Annual ACM Party for a Cause Festival in Las Vegas. Police said an officer shot several times near Philadelphia got a call from country singer Chesney with an apology for saying he was dead. Chesney gave a shoutout to Officer Christopher Dorman at the Saturday, June 25, 2016, concert in south Philadelphia but mistakenly said he had died. (Photo by Eric Jamison/Invision/AP, File) From Fat Vader
Kenny Chesney is awful. I'm sorry. We went to the Friday night concert and had a pretty good time taking with fellow football fans until he started. The Band Perry was Fantastic. Old Dominion was great. Chesney just isn't. The things I do for Mrs. Fat Vader.
The loudest Boos of the night came when Michael and Marcus Vick (i think it was Marcus) shared the Jumbotron screen. I was almost in tears when the drunk woman behind us shouted out "Oh no! Has anyone seen Smokey?" On the other side of the coin, Beamer was honored with a standing ovation by hokies and smokies alike.
Oh, and Jay, one more thing. I can now say that I am a part of a Guinness World Record. Can you say that?
Big-boned Vader -
No, we can't say we're a part of a world record. Had the Georgia state record for most points in a quarter for a short time with 21 but it got topped by Steven Goolsby, a guard who played at Marietta and then went to Wake Forest a while back.
What would be a good world record to break?
Know this: The women that was on the back of the book with the world's longest finger nails was wicked creepy.
And, yes, Fat Vader, we know your question was rhetorical, but the one-liner about Mike Vick and Smokey deserved an extra run.
Enjoy the weekend gang,