Politics, sports don’t mix
The ratings are in, and the evidence is no longer anecdotal. Americans love their sports, but they refuse to have athletes, leagues and sponsors preach to them about social issues in order to enjoy a game. Instead, they opt out of the view, and do something else. Numbers came out on the NBA and MLB openings and the days that followed and the numbers tell a story.
MLB’s opening was a smash – but then some teams decided to get “woke.” Kneeling, long crepe ribbons and other demonstrations were displayed for the average fan to tell him or her that America is racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. It’s the mantra we hear every night on some news program or other. It’s nauseating.
The NBA, which made a spectacle of itself with allowing players to put so-called “Social Justice” slogans on their uniforms and around the arenas, did well in the opening game, but floundered after that. The numbers show a viewership that might fill every league arena combined, but not much more.
Counter that to the National Hockey League. One player – a Canadian – knelt during the “Star Spangled Banner,” but stood for “O Canada.” Since then, all players have stood and been respectful. The NHL is gaining respect, where other leagues are angering their fan base. People are tuning out. They do not want to be lectured about how prejudiced they are, when the facts belie that claim.
Sports are entertainment. As such, people are looking to escape the problems of everyday life, the Wuhan Virus and the constant political turmoil we’ve seen all summer, and look for a respite. Unfortunately, there is a large segment of our society – egged on by politicians who think it will help their re-election – who cannot separate any part of life from politics. Everything must have a political statement attached.
At Sunday’s Yankees-Red Sox game on ESPN, a nearly two-minute infomercial from black athletes pushed the usual social justice themes. The irony was lost on these players, though, that the very system they are decrying is the one that has made them not only famous, but living a life few Americans can attain. They just come off as pampered. What have THEY done to further their causes? The answer is not much.
And one should consider the source, ESPN, once the go-to channel for sports-hungry men and women has been bleeding outlets over the last several years. The decline directly corresponds with the decision to inject politics into sports reporting and game analysis.
In a few weeks the genesis of this idiocy, the NFL, will begin. Over the last four years, the leagues viewership has declined dramatically, and the fact that there will be no fans in the stands will not be much different than the regular season. The in-stadium attendance at NFL games plummeted because of the “wokeness.”
But the league’s leadership is nothing if it isn’t
Americans are tired of the strife caused by left-wing radicals who see nothing good in the American way of life. They are tired of seeing athletes, leagues and corporations kowtow to those who see racism is everything: law, grammar, math, culture.
Make no mistake, athletes are certainly allowed to have their political opinions. Leagues are allowed as corporations to have political opinions. But they have to be able to understand that Americans may have different opinions, and those opinions are not to be vilified or condemned because they are different. That is un-American and that is why people are tuning out.