Most liked posts in thread: Players taking the knee

What a bizarre post. Who in their right mind would stop going to watch the club they love just because of a few seconds' gesture before the game starts? Answer - maybe a handful of far right, overtly racist morons, but no one else.

 

If you think you are speaking for the majority of people about this issue, you are deluded.

 

Or because it's over your head..!!

This debate should not be closed unless and until a poster is abusive to another, unless it's towards me as I can brush it off..

 

Once it gets to that stage its no longer a debate, merely a you're wrong and I'm right.

 

Another version of the old "If you're not with me you're against me" line: "if you're not with me, you're a (insert insulting remark here)." As a debating technique that has become all too common, but it is not really conducive to further discussion. Your opponent becomes an *-ist (or *-phobe, to use the latest buzzword) and of course such people are not to be taken seriously, are they?

Though an increasing number of people do seem to see the world in such simple, black and white (as it were), terms, it nonetheless remains an infinite range of shades of grey. It is possible to agree with a principle, yet disagree with how that is expressed. In this case, the principle -- that people should not be unjustly killed by the police -- is fine, but one can question the how. The two most obvious points have already been mentioned by others above: Is a sporting event a suitable place for such declarations? What about the connexions with the BLM movement, which has some truly nasty elements?

If you are going to allow sportspeople to make political (for want of a better term) statements on the field, then you're going to have to allow the spectators to offer their judgements on said statements. Some will feel strongly enough to applaud, others -- perhaps for the reasons I've just mentioned -- to boo. Most will fall between those extremes -- those shades of grey again -- and remain silent. All in all, I think the gesture is divisive and the venue inappropriate; it should have stopped, or been stopped, long ago.

RCB

 

That wasnt what my reply was to. The only real fact on here is that people's posts on here are merely opinions and as such are not right and wrong. I didn't agree with Tony yesterday but that doesn't mean I don't respect his right to have that opinion. Seems to be the fashion these days on social media that you have take sides and anything against is shot down with terms like Racism or Nazi. Shame because underneath the slurs there is a good debate to be had.

 

Great points. Its a complex subject, with few easy answers and unfortunately is doomed to fail from the start because racism and prejudice will never be eradicated.

Personally, I think that far too much of the narrative focuses on the negative and the aspects that divide, rather than the positive. Look at the example with Saka, Rashford, Sancho from the summer. They received online abuse by a relatively small number of idiots (mainly online), most of which look to be based outside of the UK (not that it make's it ok, or that social media platforms don't need to do more). But look at the outpouring of support they received. Look at the large number of black players who forge careers in professional football and who represent England. Football is a great platform for black players to have successful and prosperous careers, but it never seems to be at the forefront of the discussion. I think much more emphasis needs to be on what unites rather than divides and the instances of racism that occur should be dealt with appropriately and visibly, whilst being starved of the oxygen for that most idiots who perpetrate these offences seem to crave.

The symbolism of taking the knee will be an issue for some - I think its time to look at something that's less divisive.

 

What's wrong with prison or police expansion

What's wrong surveillance and keeping data if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to fear.

What's wrong with keeping data on gangs that commit crime.

The only one I agree with on there is if a police officer is convicted of using excessive force he/she should be removed from duty that said I have personally seen officers attacked without warning and then go in heavy handed and rightly so IMO.

The one thing the black community should be doing is finding the reason why black on black crime is the biggest problem within its community. People only seem interested if the culprits are white. Well that's fine but they need to get their own house in order you can't pick and choose what is right and wrong then turn a blind eye and say black on black crime isn't a problem.

I ain't framing at any side at all I merely pointing out the only time there is uproar is when a white person is the culprit maybe rather than looking at just that the black community should look at things within. We know black knife crime for instance is a major issue yet we don't see the mass protest and violence on the streets do we.

BLM only create a issue when the culprits are white and/or are police officers tell me I am wrong. When was the last time you saw a mass protest by BLM when a black person was attacked by another black person?.

 

Yeah, we've got global wars, a pandemic where hundreds of thousands have died and a culture of knife crime to name but three, but the chinese nation are incensed because Dave from Bradford has used the term 'chinky to describe his local takeaway. First world problems eh?

 

They have to keep thinking of more ways to feed the monster.

 

The excellent Jordan Peterson summed up hate crime succinctly with this,

'Be careful about what you regiulate as speech. Who's gonna regulate it? Who's gonna define hate? That's the real issue, it's not that theres not hate ,there's plenty of it. Question is who defines hate and how is it prosecuted?

 

Why is it 29 pages of crap? Just people discussing a topic on a forum.

 

It will be interesting to see our England players really take a standand boycott the world cup in Qatar. 6000 have died building those stadiums and the country has an appalling human rights record.

I wont hold my breath though - we all know taking the knee is really just virtue signalling crap and BLM only matter when it suits and isnt profitable.

 

That's probably Tony

 

Qatar mate. Why are we even there? Why is ANYONE there?!

 

Should be up to the individual