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Nike – Fanning the Flames of the Culture War

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General George Washington, Major George Ross, Robert Morris, Betsy Ross with the first American flag, approved by Congress on June 14, 1777 – By Everett Historical @ Shutterstock.com

As shameful and contrary to what we believe today, it’s important to acknowledge “slavery was quite literally a global norm until about 200 years ago,” Steve Cortes reminds readers in RealClearPolitics.

Which Brings Us to Nike

Several days before America’s 4th of July celebration, Nike acquiesced to demands of the politically correct mob. The company recalled a new line of athletic shoes commemorating the original Betsy Ross flag, which was delivered to Gen. Washington during the American Revolution.

Then Kaepernick Took Exception

Nike endorser Colin Kaepernick objected that the founding flag of our country represents racism because America then allowed slavery.

Yet according to conservative estimates, 380,000 Unionists soldiers were killed during America’s bloody Civil War. Given population growth, that is equivalent of the U.S. losing about 5 million Americans in battle today.

This staggering sacrifice represented the first foundational step on a long, and often bumpy, road toward racial justice. But in 2019 America, race is becoming increasingly insignificant as our country increasingly lives out our principles and focuses on the mind and character of our fellow citizens, rather than externalities.  For example, interracial relationships have become totally unremarkable. This country, which once viewed blacks as property, elected a black man to the Oval Office — twice, in fact. The most admired woman in America, per Gallup polling, is his wife, and No. 2 is the self-made African American mogul Oprah Winfrey.

Liberals Fixated on Deriding Trump as Racist

… without evidence.

… simply slandering the president as bigoted entails a far easier lift than the actual hard work of expanding opportunity for Americans of color, as Trump continues to do.

Kaepernick’s 1-11 Win/Loss Record Conveniently Ignored

Colin Kaepernick first claimed that prejudice and political bias prevented NFL teams from hiring him, conveniently ignoring the 1-11 win/loss record he compiled as a starter in his last season in 2016. Similarly, Kaepernick and his sympathizers insincerely claimed that his national anthem protests objected not to the U.S. flag but rather to police brutality. Well, this aversion to our Revolutionary War ensign proves otherwise.

The American Experiment

The banner sown by Betsy Ross at George Washington’s request represents the fight for an experiment in liberty and opportunity.

The nation it represents, though highly imperfect, still embodies the exceptionalism of the American experience. To remain exceptional, we must not fall prey to the seductive group-think of tribalism that the left seeks to inflict.

Instead, in the afterglow of another glorious birthday celebration for America, we must believe anew, because there is no DNA test for American nationalism; it is, rather, a commonality of beliefs.

More to the point, as U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, Missouri Republican tweeted: “Nike thinks American flag is symbol of oppression? What planet are you on? Nike gladly allows Chinese Communist Party to tell it what products to sell while building its business around sweatshop labor. Nike is anti-American, pure & simple.”

The Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism has a database with more than 150 “hate symbols.” And guess what? The Betsy Ross flag is not among them, writes Jonah Goldberg in NRO.

Nonetheless, it’s true that if you search through enough old photos of Klan rallies and neo-Nazi pageants, you can spot a Betsy Ross flag from time to time.

Do you know what else you can probably spot if you look long and hard enough? Nike sneakers. Does that make Nikes symbols of white supremacy?

If Nike had gone ahead with the special-edition sneakers, it would have been, in marketing terms, the equivalent of Godzilla versus Bambi. A few neo-Nazis and a few more social-justice warriors would have complained, and everyone else would have gone about their day totally unconcerned.

Nike– Following the Advice of a Washed-Up Self Promoter?

Instead, Nike followed the advice of a man whose business model is to stir grievance and controversy for its own sake.

Suddenly, millions of people who once thought the Betsy Ross flag was just an admirable bit of Americana now associate it with hate groups. Worse, other entirely decent and patriotic Americans will now likely start brandishing the flag to offend people who, until recently, had no idea some hate groups adopted the flag in the first place.

Read more here.

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Debbie Young

Debbie, editor-in-chief of Richardcyoung.com, has been associate editor of Dick Young’s investment strategy reports for over three decades. When not in Key West, Debbie spends her free time researching and writing in and about Paris and Burgundy, France, cooking on her AGA Cooker, driving her Porsche Boxter S through Vermont and Maine, and practicing yoga.