Drew Brees comments spark outrage

[Ex Lurker]

When New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees responded to a question about the NFL's response to players potentially kneeling once again this season to protest racial injustice and police brutality – as Colin Kaepernick and others have done, starting in 2016 – he probably didn't expect the reaction on social media to resemble an all-out blitz.

But as Brees turned the question into a debate about patriotism and the national anthem, saying he will "never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America," the reaction from fellow athletes was almost universally negative.

Will he be kicked out of the NFL loke Kaepernick?

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.usatoday.com/amp/3137565001

[geomon666]

1. lol no

I wonder what his black teammates will do or say though.

[BamaRefugee]

5. He can expect quite a few opponents slipping through the defense for some fun tackling practice

[sfstaxprep]

2. Well, There Goes My Last Remaining Interest In The NFL

Had been a Saints fan for many years, but now I'm done.

[Wellstone ruled]

3. Going to College in Salt Lake is all you need to know.

[redstatebluegirl]

8. Nope Purdue University in West Lafayette.

Very very conservative public school.

[Wellstone ruled]

11. Stand Corrected,

forgot he was a Boilermaker. Yet again a very Conservative School.

[jimfields33]

4. Nobody disrespects the United States flag

Why do we allow this lie to continue.

[qazplm135]

6. As a proud Boilermaker...

unfortunately I also know that my school is way way conservative to the point of ridiculousness. Drew seems like a decent dude, but clearly some conservative bullshit has rubbed off onto his brain.

[redstatebluegirl]

9. We were there for 5 years while my husband did his graduate work.

We found the University a great institution, the state not so much. It was also a very conservative campus where students of color were not treated as anywhere near equals.

[qazplm135]

10. I was a student of color there in the late 80s

so believe me, it was less so then.

I remember being a freshmen, meeting up with a gorgeous redhead, and then hearing her talk about her fetish for black men.

It went downhill from there, including bullying and whatnot.

I still love the school, some of it's people can kiss my ass.

Drew better find the apology button real fast IMO.

[CatWoman]

13. ....

Link to tweet

?s=20

[qazplm135]

14. Drew has political aspirations

and he's almost assuredly a republican. Having said that, he's also the kind of guy who will feel obligated to sit with the President whomever it is.

I doubt he's a Trump fan based on what I know of him. I think he's a decent guy overall.

But his mom was a left of center politician and they had a very strained relationship, and then she committed suicide, so I think that's affected him as well.

So I think he's someone I'd never vote for lol but I don't think he's a Trump fan/asshole. I do think he's blind to his privilege, and too wedded to an "ideal" of America.

[JonLP24]

16. Drew Brees lost me when he defended Guantanamo Bay

And when he did an ad for the LGBT hate group Focus on the Family.

I think there are far better people out there than Drew Brees.

Brees On Gitmo: "The Worst Thing We Can Do Is Shut That Baby Down"

Let's go to the Brees tape:

I can say this after that experience — the worst thing we can do is shut that baby down, for a lot of reasons. But I think there's a big misconception as to how we are treating those prisoners — those detainees over there. They are being treated probably ten times better than any prisoner in a U.S. prison. They're on a 6,500 calorie-a-day diet whereas a normal U.S. prisoner is on a 2,000 calorie-a-day diet.... I think the international media — there's just been so much scrutiny over the way that we're treating these guys, it's almost like we're going overboard to treat them so well.

I mean, they're allowed to call and write letters home, and receive letters and calls. They get five opportunities a day to pray, and they have arrows in the prison pointing towards where Mecca is. And the prison goes dead silent so these guys can have their religious time. They have rooms where they can watch movies and play Nintendo Wii. So I think that just goes ahead and says it right there.

And you just talk to all the guards that are Army and Navy personnel, they'll tell you stories about how these prisoners, they'll be walking the cell blocks as they're keeping an eye on these guys and they'll be throwing their feces and urine in the faces of the guards as they walk by, and the guards are not allowed to do anything. They're not allowed to physically retaliate or do anything hardly to try to restrain these guys at all. These guys get away with whatever they want.

And it was interesting because at one point, we were walking from one detention center to another and some of the prisoners saw us. And they started yelling, 'Torture! Torture!' We teach them English, by the way. But they assume since we're in civilian clothes that we were members of the media so they started yelling, 'Torture! Torture!' So you know, anything that they can do to show a poor light on the U.S. military, they're going to do it. Because it seems like they're being treated very, very well over there.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/29262906/saints-drew-brees-says-never-agree-anybody-disrespecting-flag%3fplatform=amp

[qazplm135]

18. I didn't say he was a Saint (pun intended)

I just said he was a decent dude. But yeah, he has some blind spots, and he's what I'd call a "company man" in a not flattering way.

[qazplm135]

20. I've been to the detention facility at GITMO

First of all, holding people without trials is illegal, immoral, criminal and unethical. So THAT's the problem. And it's the part that Brees misses.

Second, yeah, the conditions are not that bad. But that's not the point, the point is that people are being held without trials or even charges indefinitely. So yeah, they aren't "tortuted," except by being detained indefinitely without charges or trials.

So it's another example of Drew's blind spot. He buys the company line without much thought or consideration. Which is quite disappointing as he's again not an asshole and he's an intelligent guy. But he seems deeply invested in a version of America that does not exist, and it gets him into trouble.

He apologized for Focus on the Family, and I suspect an apology is incoming on this as well, if he has any brains.

Doesn't make him great, and I've never claimed that.

[JonLP24]

22. There was torture going on

The torture report detailed it. You do make a great point about being held without charges but the torture report said that torture occurred. It bothers me someone is yelling "torture!" and Drew Brees doesn't believe him especially when the torture report revealed torture happened.

[qazplm135]

23. I have no direct information

or knowledge on torture. I certainly have no reason to believe it didn't occur, and if a report says it did, then it did. But it doesn't really matter in the sense that Drew was talking about. Let's assume they weren't being tortured...so what? They are still being held without a trial indefinitely.

It doesn't matter how "well" you treat them. I don't think Drew thinks there was torture and doesn't care. I suspect he'd be against it. But he doesn't think beyond...terrorists bad, need to be safe. Largely because of his typical conservative white guy my country is a beacon on a hill thought process that doesn't allow him to love the country like an adult versus how a five year old loves his mommy.

[gopiscrap]

7. should be

[Hortensis]

12. Fealty to the flag instead of the principles our nation is founded on

is like worshiping a rock originally meant to just represent the deity.

Some people are not able to understand this without counseling, especially with scoundrels and fellow useful idiots insisting it's the height of morality. Seems to me this guy's one of the few who could get counseling if the team and league decided it was in their interest.

Itm, his manager might have pointed out that polls of the market for his product made this predictable.

[Hav]

15. He was always a QB I liked to watch play

That's very disappointing. I think you have missed the message for many years if you argue it was about disrespecting the flag. The last days couldn't have made that clearer if anyone needed a reminder.
And if we are talking about patriotism, that should never be something primarily about the abstract (flag, country) but always about caring for your people.

[sop]

17. Drew: These two issues - police violence directed at blacks and respect for the American flag -

are separate issues. One can be against the first, and for the second, just like Colin Kaepernick. Don't conflate the two.

[ProfessorGAC]

19. Here's What Bree's Should Have Said

Nothing!
Just say "I'm not prepared to discuss that."
This was an idiotic and tone deaf response given the situation and the fact that 60% of the city where he plays is black.
I thought he was smarter than this.
His whole military thing was nonsense years back. It's much worse to voice it now!

[lunatica]

21. Parrots repeat parrot things but make no sense.

Linking the mouth with correct information keeps you looking smart.