This country has forgotten the meaning of respect, but love the freedom of speech, love to protest, riot, and are cruel when deciding politically who they support and who they ridicule, and it stinks

Respect is learned by those who serve in our military, not in politics and not in school

COMMENTARY: By ARNIE LESHIN, Santa Fe Today

Carlos Beltran, look what you started, although it took years before Colin Kaepernick had nothing better to do. When he decided where to place his knee. he was reprimanded and others took issue with it. Now he’s unemployed and his fellow jocks are following the bouncing ball, the one where you ignore our country’s national anthem.

I wonder if any of these professional athletes have served in the military, the United States military. None, zero, naught, because if they did, they would have learned to respect the red, white and blue.

Trust me, I served in the US Navy. I went through a brutal boot camp in Bainbridge, Md. I learned how to awake at 3 in the morning, even earlier, snap on my legging boots and do pushups, and whoever didn’t do enough of them would make the others suffer, like having to awaken even earlier. It was all team, respect for your fellow sailors.

We learned about what this country is all about, how you serve your country, how you respect it, and in other lands if you didn’t, you’d not be reprimanded, you’d be whipped, beaten, maybe tossed into the brig. Yes, they are all worse than the good old USA.

Here, we are a mess of our own. Our history of patriotism has faded like the American flags are ripped, burnt, and life goes on. Again, in other countries, you are locked up. No trial, just an act of disrespect where they sometimes throw the key away.

The main word here is race. I think of race as something you do in track and field, auto racing, horse racing, dog racing, all a contest of speed. It has nothing to do with racism, a word that gets tossed around with no meaning.

We have become a nation of followers, pied pipers following protesters, following street riots, standing up for their rights by trading bullets with the police and always blaming the police.

Wonder what this country would be without the police? Think of it, no one to protect us from killing, looting, robbing, and any other evil, and don’t forget rioting, protesting. Then see what these followers don’t see. They are the worst influence we can have, and they don’t care. The police protect us, the followers wreck cities.

Then there are those not happy with our country, not happy with our election results, but not bright enough to realize that no one is stopping them from making it out of here, going to another country.

Again, if they think they can show the disrespect they show here, can riot, can protest, can dispute the elections, can rip and burn the flag, they are in for a lesson to be learned, which in plain English means time in prison. Now gobble that up.

Now these pro athletes, the millionaire jocks who complain that people are not treated equality in this country, are not even told to tone it down. The latest addition to kneeling, not honoring the Star Spangled Banner, has become a team thing.

I watch sports events. I couldn’t care less what colors are playing the game. Black versus white, black versus black, white versus white, Asians, whatever it takes to play whatever game it is.

The NBA, primarily the champion Golden State Warriors, spoke out about not attending the usual visit to the White House to be honored by the current President. Individuals in the league have spoken out about following this path. Why? Well, they don’t like the man who was elected, they are upset that he won, they don’t like what he says, and like children they won’t accept the invitation that has since been nullified.

Race, they love to spread the word about race. To them, it’s not a contest of speed, it’s just a way to play around with the word. Here, play with this and go figure what they so upset about.

People really had to struggle to survive, but the ones who have become wealthy enough to afford mansions, expensive vehicles, boats, even airplanes. And don’t forget the jewelry they wear.

And why not mention the other side of being rich. Assault, battery, murder, going bankrupt, etc. Why? Well, there’s a lot you can do with money in the bank. It provides independence because they are celebrities. But I can name two dozen former and present athletes who are bankrupt.

The latest is not just going down the Kapernick road, but NFL teams have now decided to hide out in their locker rooms until the national anthem is finished. The organizations go along with it rather than have their players get upset and revolt. You know, with upset employees it can upset your season, upset your chance to haul in more money to pay the already rich players, so you have to follow along like the rest.

After the Beltran kneel, baseball hasn’t had many followers. Beltran even deciding to stand alongside the others when he was traded to the New York Mets.

World Series champions of recent years have had no problem showing up via invitations from Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barrack Obama. Same with the 11-time women’s national basketball champions from UConn. They were invited, and coaching genius Geno Auriemma escorted them.

But things have changed. Maybe the new breed would have gone to see Hillary Clinton?

The bottom line is it’s not a race problem because whoever wins, wins. It’s just that this is such a free country unlike others, politics have become somewhat of a war. It’s seen in the streets and some cities have been torn apart by violence. Shootings, killings, riots, protests, disrespect, whatever it takes makes no sense, but it continues.

College students are right up there with the followers. They believe they know more than others because they attend college, but they are growing up into pure protesters, rowdy rioters, window breakers, and this is our future?

As I said before, they can join the military and see how this country is being protected, see how you are supposed to respect this once patriotic nation, learn right from wrong. This applies to students and athletes and to whoever have no other way to turn.

Live and learn, but stay safe. Remember that.

I skipped the NFL Sunday menu. Watched some movies and some women’s college volleyball, where each team lined up alongside each other, placed their hands on their heart, and even sang along with the national anthem.

If the pro athletes can learn from that, it would be a blessing, but it doesn’t look like its going to happen until maybe the next national election. But that’s like saying the Brooklyn Nets will win the NBA championship.

One more thing, would these pro athletes have ripped Obama, disrespected him, called him names? It’s not a guessing game, they’ve already praised him without even giving it a thought.

That’s the country we live in now, and it stinks. But it doesn’t hurt to say God Bless America. AMEN!