Statement helps sell sneakers
Once upon a time, Robert Kraft said: “Spirituality, faith and democracy are the cornerstones of our country. We are all patriots. And tonight, the Patriots are world champions.” Note, the lowercase “p.” The Patriots owner was speaking after Super Bowl XXXVI in the wake of 9/11. The uppercase “P” Patriots had just pulled off the biggest upset in NFL history, even though John Madden told Tom Brady to take a knee.
In 2018, there is no longer a “we” in the United States. Our national dialogue has become an endless skirmish of “US” vs. “THEM.” There is virtually nothing that can solicit universal agreement in America. The Melting Pot has been extinguished due to concerns over global warming. The blame ranges from President Trump to Barack Obama to The New York Times to Fox News to my Twitter feed.
Our national motto of “E Pluribus Unum” — “out of many, one” — has morphed into “bellum omnium contra omnes” or “the war of all against all.”
The NFL has become a weekly flash card in division. Baseball was played during World War II to help civilians ease the stress of war. Now, the fields of the NFL are just another societal battleground. President Trump and NFL players verbally slugged it out last season over national anthem protests. The NFL displayed its incompetence by being completely illequipped to deal with the fallout.
Nike’s 30th anniversary “Just Do It” ad campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick — the Founding Father of NFL anthem protests — is our latest flashpoint. “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything,” the ex-quarterback says.
While the Nike spot is superbly produced, its core is one of empty platitudes.
“Sacrificing everything” carries many meanings. Kaepernick has been paid by Nike since 2011. But his “sacrifice” allegedly transcends sport. Attempts to put this foolishness into a sane real-world perspective are met with the stale cries of “fill-in-the-blank-ism.”
Oregon Gold Star mother Trina Hart lost her 21-yearold son, Lance Cpl. Ty Hart, in a 2011 Marine helicopter crash. Ty was a big-time Nike fan. “Let me tell you about sacrifice! This is the ultimate definition of it,” she wrote in a letter to Nike. “The tears come every time we stand for the National Anthem … You owe the American people an apology.” Police unions have also come out against the campaign.
The most destructive fallout resulting from the 49ers’ decision to bench Kaepernick after he went 1-10 in 2016 is that it eventually led to the Jimmy Garoppolo trade. Sacrifice, indeed. “What was Nike thinking?” asked President Trump.
Well, 56 percent of the $34.5 billion generated by Nike last year came from outside the United States. Nike doesn’t care if middleaged men in America burn their Monarchs when kids in China will pay $170 for a pair of LeBron 15s.
And an entire generation being raised on the “virtue” of socialism quickly became woke to capitalism, at least on Twitter, as Nike enjoyed a 31 percent boost in sales after the ad’s debut.
Meanwhile, the audience for the NFL’s opener has fallen three consecutive years. Viewership for the snoozer between the Eagles and Falcons was down 12 percent from 2017.
NFL apologists offer plenty of excuses: a rain delay, changing viewer habits and concerns about player injuries. Meanwhile, they fail to note a widespread disgust toward millionaires protesting the anthem, an increasingly unwatchable product, and the fact that neither players nor viewers know what constitutes a catch.
Still, NFL games remain the most popular form of entertainment in America. Even as the NFL continues to drop the ball.