Let me lay out a hypothetical situation for you:
What if Donald Trump won the election in the year 2020? (He didn't, but hear me out.)
As America prepared for the World Cup, what if Donald Trump floated the idea of the United States Men's National Team wearing a Gun Armband to the tournament? His rationale? Instead of the Rainbow Armband that the European Teams were debating on wearing or not, the USMNT should show support for the 2nd Amendment. Trump would wax poetically that there would be fewer dictatorships and fewer monarchies in the Middle East if their countries simply had Constitutions with Gun Protections for their citizens like in America.
The USMNT would quickly distance themselves from such a topic and left-wing talking heads would immediately explode on the airwaves to condemn Trump, pointing out that there's already too many shootings in America.
But let me tell you something, 45% of Americans own guns.
The gun pitch isn't necessarily as far fetched as you might think. What if Iran had swiftly moved to incorporate a shi'a islamic sword on their armband to promote their rule-
Then Poland moved for an anti-Russia armband to protest the Russian invasion of Ukraine-
Then Morrocco...
Don't you see how quickly that got out of control?-
"Dammit Hateful Fred Hunt, what don't you understand? LOVE IS LOVE! There should only be one armband, one with the rainbow on it."
How did "we" come up with that decision? Seriously.
The World Cup is a soccer tournament watched by a billion people. Because a billion people are congregated together watching a sport, all different kinds of world denizens from all walks of life want their messages to be heard, whether it be advertisers, politicians, or activists.
Do I personally think that the USMNT should have worn a rainbow armband?
Uh, no. I don't think they should have worn any armbands. (And, for the record, the US didn't. They were sneaky and changed their EMBLEM at the last minute.)
If I had to design an armband? How about my Free Speech Beacon? Maybe they should put a picture of me on an armband-
Editor's Note: The author is not good looking enough to be on an armband.
You think that's too self-aggrandizing? How 'bout this, I'm a Christian, do I want a cross on an American Soccer jersey? No, but I bet a ton of other Americans would approve of that.
The left in Western Societies are actively promoting moving the culture wars into the Middle East. What if the right in the same countries tried pushing their agendas? Technically a gun armband would be a stronger message to Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani than a rainbow armband. All I am saying is that if you let ANY political or religious messages in the World Cup, you are sliding down the slippery slope.
"Fred Hunt, you are the dumbest person I know. If you can't tell love from hate, you shouldn't have free speech."
Where is that free speech line?
When a liberal agenda is supported by a sympathetic liberal press, that is not the definition of free speech. I believe that LGBTQ+ Citizens have the right to live their lives without harassment, just like you and me. And I also believe that world religions (not Scientology, that's a cult), have the right to dictate their own rules.
Is that hate?
Last week, there was a massacre at Colorado Springs' Club Q. Headlines at CNN screamed that violence was a plague against marginalized and minority populations. But then CNN saw that the shooter was non-binary and stopped reporting on the story because it didn't fit their narrative. Of course the Daily Mail then ran with the report, LGBT on LGBT crime is right in their wheelhouse.
Your argument is that the Qatari Government bribed FIFA officials to get the 2022 World Cup so they deserve to be harassed? Oh, you're right about that, since no one from Qatar actually went to jail.
But did you see Saudi Arabia upset Argentina yesterday? The 2022 World Cup should have been in Saudi Arabia. Your argument is that Saudi Arabia is no better than Qatar when it comes to human rights?
IN SOCCER, SAUDI ARABIA IS LIGHT YEARS AHEAD OF QATAR, BOTH IN QUALIFYING FOR WORLD CUPS AND IN SOCCER TRADITION! We are talking about a SOCCER tournament.
Here's part of the bribery scandal. Try not to fall asleep reading the gist of it....
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