Happy Hour: The Confederate flag and television coverage
Throughout the week you can send us your best questions, jokes, rants and just plain miscellaneous thoughts to [email protected] or @NickBromberg. We’ll post them here and have a good time.
It has not been a slow week in terms of feedback.
The role of the Confederate flag in NASCAR has generated a lot of responses from y’all. So has Wednesday’s post about Fox and NBC. We’l start with the main course, which is the flag. Then we’ll move on to the side dish, television, and dessert later.
Let’s get to it. And, as always, these emails are not edited unless absolutely necessary.
Do you really think Nascar fans give a rip about if they’re “in favor” with Nascar or not when they fly the Stars & Bars? damn yankee, go cover curling – Mike
Well, we’d imagine so, especially if it means race attendance is at stake. For clarity’s sake, Mike wrote this email before NASCAR tracks issued Thursday’s statement asking fans not to bring Confederate flags to the track. But really, is a Confederate flag worth potentially having a conflict with track personnel and/or getting kicked out of a race you’re attending?
Hell no, it’s not. By openly disregarding NASCAR’s request you’re not standing up for something. You’re being a defiant idiot risking a lot for very little.
And by the way, we live in SEC country and cover college football and NASCAR. If we’re a yankee, we ain’t much of one.
——–
The outcry over this iconic flag has surpassed the ridiculous. The “politically correctness” in this great nation of ours is slowly destroying America. Since its inception NASCAR has honored its beginnings in the South. Never before has this flag been vilified as a symbol of oppression as it is today, and all over one persons evil deed. Our Southern Heritage is a part of this country, and a very large part of NASCAR. If people would really seek truth before lashing out against something out of this outcry would never exist … Freedom of expression is fast becoming a thing of the past. If you and I cannot say what we believe in America, without being labeled, America as a country will cease to exist. This applies to everyone’s views. We are all entitled to a viewpoint, and if it is in opposition to another persons viewpoint , that is freedom of expression. – James
So the fading away of a battle flag associated with a group of states that fought to … wait for it … secede from the United States is ruining the United States? The idea of being exceptionally proud of the Confederate flag to the point of not understanding its shortcomings in the eyes of others while espousing it as an American virtue seems difficult to mesh together. But we’re also not trying to rationalize those thoughts on a regular basis.
Besides, what is this “truth” that we’re seeking. That many, many, many people see the flag as a symbol of a horrible period in our nation’s country? Our nation has evolved a great deal in its existence and will continue to do so. You can either adapt with the times or get left behind.
——–
Mr. France is a moron,jumping on a bandwagon with another moron, Mr Obama. a lot of people lost there lives fighting for this flag. to use it as an excuse because one nutcase took some innocent lives is [garbage]. I could go on,but i’m sure it won’t make a differance. all everyone does is coddle him or her,give them what they want,we’re getting to be a country full of [pansies]. – Dan
Ah, you knew there had to be a President Obama reference coming, right? The people who lost their lives fighting for this flag were fighting to secede from the country. Yes, many people are descendants of members of the Confederacy. But not being able to display your flag is not a request to disown your heritage. It’s simply a request of social awareness. And it’s also highly entertaining to see the offense when people are offended by something.
So many people only think being offended only matters if they’re the ones offended.
——–
Does NASCAR not fear that no one will show up for said events? The way I understand it is a lot of folks will be tuning out from TV,and track attendance will be minimal. Having said that, I am a season ticket holder at Kentucky Speedway. And I for one am on the verge of throwing them in the garbage. I cannot stomach the fact that NASCAR is going to bend to this type of political correctness. And if I do show up I will surely be flying an ISIS Flag just because!!! To show everyone the extent of from which NASCAR’S beliefs lye. I for one am appalled by NASCAR’S decision to ban it and censorship of free citizens. – Anthony
None of this email makes sense. None. There have been no public boycotts (that we’ve seen, anyway) of NASCAR races before the request made Thursday. Have there been any public boycotts to stop watching NASCAR now that the request was made? If so, we can’t imagine they’ll be very big.
It’s imperative to note that this is not a free speech issue in the slightest. Tracks and other sporting events ban guns from the property. No one screams about the Second Amendment being violated. Private business can do what they want. The First Amendment is about the government and freedom of expresssion. This can’t be emphasized enough, because there’s a massive tendency among those who cite the First Amendment as a defense to not know just what the hell the First Amendment actually is.
While we don’t encourage bringing an ISIS flag to the race at Kentucky, we can’t stop wondering just all of the things that could go wrong if it happened.
——-
I disagree on NBC. Did you have brain failure about their 1st Nascar run??? They were HORRIBLE!!!!!!!!! Nothing they did was interesting or made for good racing broadcasts!! That ESPN Pit Crew guy who was the host 1st time around was a BOMB!! OMG, they were awful! I am baffled you think they will be any good! Burton, good guy but he was not anyone I looked forward to hearing from on the side shows he has done. Latarte, he never offered anything worth listening to as Gordon or Earnhardt’s crew chief.- Joe
Judging NBC by what happened eight years ago is a bit harsh. No one in the booth then is currently employed by the network now. And judging Steve Letarte by crew chief soundbites is foolish and premature.
We’ll fully admit that we’re probably guilty of building the anticipation to NBC, but it’s important to not have too high of expectations. We’re just to the point where it won’t take much to be better than a Fox telecast of the Cup Series.
——-
Your remarks about Michael Waltrip ! He is a fresh breath to nascar . He loves the sports it shows on every day !
Micheal spilling a taco hell you don’t think the fans can’t relate to that ! He off the wall a clown at times but he inspires fans ! My wife loves the guy ! Our favorite phrase is his clowning around redneck style and he takes it all the way to the bank ! – John
You think Michael Waltrip uses Scope or Listerine? Hell, if he used a name brand mouthwash we’d probably already know via sponsor mentions, right? Maybe he uses the Kirkland stuff and buys it three-at-a-time at Costco.
To each their own. Tacos and Sprint Cup cars always go together.
—–
Thanks for the article about Fox/NBC. What a waste of paper. Why don’t you write about something you know about? – Jim
Jim must have printed out our post to read when he had an opportunity. We love you, people who print internet articles.
——–
I wanted to troll those NASCAR fans out there that STILL can’t get over Toyota running in the sport. The Toyota Camry has officially passed the Ford F-150 as the vehicle with the highest percentage of US sourced parts. – Darrell
Darrell don’t lie. We’ve been telling the Toyota-haters that their slams were untrue for years.
Days like Sunday are why we have four televisions in the basement. We’re just happy the Women’s World Cup will have a 45-minute head start on the race.
– – – – – – –
Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
