bookmark_borderIn praise of Aaron Rodgers

New York Jets (and former Green Bay Packers) quarterback Aaron Rodgers recently went on Joe Rogan’s podcast and shared his views on vaccine mandates and standing up for what he believes in. 

“I’m going to continue talking about this because it’s important to me. I don’t want the memories to be lost. I don’t want what I went through to get brushed over… Look at my situation, I lost friends, allies in the media, millions of dollars in sponsorship because I talked about what worked for me in my own beliefs and my own health reasons why I didn’t get vaccinated.”

I agree with Rodgers 100%. It seems that, for the most part, people have forgotten about the violations of people’s fundamental rights that were committed in the name of fighting the Covid pandemic. I will never forget the fact that my hometown of Boston decided that people like me would not be allowed into restaurants, bars, gyms, theaters, museums, or other indoor public places. The signs in restaurant windows, announcing that proof of vaccination was required to enter, will forever be seared into my memory. This policy was immoral and wrong. The people who enacted it should not be allowed to just continue with their lives, and move on to other issues, with no negative consequences.

Rodgers is right. The memories should never be lost. Violating people’s rights should never be brushed over. 

Rodgers continued: 

“You stand for something, you stand courageously for what you believe in or the opposite side of that is saying nothing or being a coward. I wasn’t willing to do that. Say whatever you want about the way I went about doing it…

In the end, I believe what I did and what I stand for is a tough position to be in. But I think it’s (an) important responsibility to continue to speak up and use my voice to give other people the permission to stand up as well because there’s a lot of people that believe a lot of the things that I believe in that don’t have the opportunity to do it, don’t have the courage to do it, don’t have the platform to do it in. I feel like I can speak for some of those people and hold the line to some of those people regardless what crosshairs that puts me in with certain media members.”

I absolutely love these sentiments.

Amen.

Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, the article about Rodgers and Rogan’s interview, which was originally published in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and also published on Yahoo News, demonstrated the bias that is typical of media outlets. 

The article states:

“Rodgers claimed that people ‘didn’t do critical thinking’ during the pandemic and alleged that ‘as more research comes out, there’s more papers published in very reputable scientific publications that talk about all of the things I was stumping for and talking about.’ What exact scientific publications he was referring to wasn’t clear.”

The fact that people didn’t do critical thinking during the pandemic is not merely something that Rodgers is claiming; it is true. Far too many people failed to think critically during the pandemic, as demonstrated by the widespread enactment of, and public support for, policies that violate people’s rights. 

It’s also unnecessary to mention that it is unclear which scientific publications Rodgers refers to. The author could have simply omitted this sentence. It doesn’t add any information or explanation but is merely the author’s way of expressing his skepticism of, and disdain for, Rodgers. And expressing one’s opinions or feelings about the subject of an article is exactly what journalists should avoid doing.

Another thing mentioned in the article is that Rodgers lost his weekly appearances on “The Pat McAfee Show” due to his controversy with Jimmy Kimmel. This angers me, because Rodgers didn’t do anything wrong and does not deserve to be punished in any way for his comments on Kimmel. As I explained in an earlier post, Kimmel is the one who behaved wrongly in this situation, and therefore the one who deserves to be punished. Kimmel deserves to lose his late-night talk show more than Rodgers deserves to lose his radio appearances.

bookmark_borderJimmy Kimmel, not Aaron Rodgers, is the real a**hole

A little while ago, Jimmy Kimmel posted the following tweet: 

In reality, Jimmy Kimmel, and not Aaron Rodgers, is the a**hole in this situation. 

It doesn’t matter whether Kimmel had any contact with Jeffrey Epstein, or whether his name appears on any Epstein-related list. Regardless of whether or not he is guilty of what Rodgers accused him of, Kimmel is wrong to issue such a pompous, stuck-up, and self-righteous statement. 

“Soft-brained wackos”? Really? 

“Nonsense” that Rodgers “can’t seem to distinguish from reality”? Really?

“Reckless words” that “put my family in danger?” Really?

Apparently, in Kimmel’s eyes, anyone who disagrees with him is “soft-brained” and a “wacko.” 

Apparently, in Kimmel’s eyes, any idea with which he disagrees is “nonsense.”

And apparently, in Kimmel’s eyes, any person with ideas that differ from his own is unable to distinguish “nonsense” from “reality.”

The fact that Kimmel would speak and write this way about people with whom he disagrees is a far more important issue than whether or not Kimmel had anything to do with Jeffrey Epstein. Regardless of whether or not Rodgers’s allegations are factually correct, it’s unacceptable for anyone to speak or write this way about people with whom they disagree. Doing so is the very essence of bigotry and intolerance. Doing so demonstrates a person to be a pompous, stuck-up, and self-righteous bully.

Honestly, it is completely lacking in empathy for Kimmel to be so angry and upset at Rodgers’s accusations, regardless of whether they are true or false. Did Kimmel speak out against government policies requiring people to undergo medical procedures against their will? Did he stand up for the historical figures who have been murdered en masse over the past three and a half years? Did he stand up for the autistic people who have had to witness public spaces across the country being redesigned in order to ensure that we cannot feel included?

No?

Then, quite frankly, he has no right to be upset about anything. 

For these are the things that are actually upsetting. These are the things that should cause Kimmel to be filled with pompous, self-righteous anger, not comments by Aaron Rodgers.

This is why Jimmy Kimmel, and not Aaron Rodgers, is a true a**hole.

bookmark_borderJoy Reid’s despicable attack on Aaron Rodgers

Racist and authoritarian MSNBC commentator (perhaps that’s redundant) Joy Reid continues to spew vicious, hurtful, and hateful comments. Her latest target is Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

I didn’t even have the energy to read the article, because seeing this Facebook post was enough to make me upset and angry. First of all, how exactly are a person’s medical decisions “selfish”? And how exactly is Rodgers’ voicing of his political views “arrogant”? Why would one say that Rodgers has a “victim mentality,” and how could that be “exhausting”? How was Rodgers’ season “humiliating”?

Apparently, Reid is so bigoted, intolerant, and mean that she cannot permit the existence of anyone who thinks differently than her. Anyone who makes different decisions with regard to health precautions is condemned as “selfish,” and anyone who holds different political views is branded as “arrogant.” I’m not sure if I would characterize Rodgers as having a “victim mentality,” but he would be justified in having one, given that he has indeed been treated unjustly by our society. It boggles the mind that Reid would describe Rodgers’ completely accurate comments about political correctness, media, and Covid protocols as “exhausting,” when she is the one going out of her way to attack people (like Rodgers) who have done nothing wrong. Living in a world where Reid and her ideological allies are free to constantly spew vicious insults at innocent people with impunity is truly exhausting.

Ironically, Reid embodies all of the negative qualities that she accuses Rodgers of having. Reid, not Rodgers, is the one who should feel humiliated, because she is the one acting despicably. Unfortunately, she seems to be blind to the hypocrisy and shamefulness of her behavior. The only humiliating thing here is the fact that Reid, who has no talents and no accomplishments other than sitting on her butt and spewing racist insults day after day, decided to attack Rodgers, a talented, hardworking, and accomplished athlete with the courage to speak truth to power on issues of medical freedom.