# Was Colin Kaepernick actually trying to protest police brutality or just trigger conservatives **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 15, 2019, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148 "2019-07-15T20:58:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/61 "2019-07-16T19:56:54Z")
Kaepernik knelt because he hates the country and the anthem is a symbol of the country. Police brutality is part of the reason he hates this country and was in the news. I hear he is a good guy and would not do anything just to make people mad. ---
**Author:** ![CAH66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@CAH66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAH66)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/62 "2019-07-16T19:58:30Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > I’m curious: let’s say a guy comes to you and says, man, that Kaepernick — I want to show _disrespect_ to that guy; if I ever meet him, I’d sure like to find an offensive way to express that disrespect. Anyhow, I think I’ve hit on the perfect solution, and so I want your advice: if I meet Kaepernick, I’ll kneel to him. That’ll show him, huh? Oh, yeah, there I’ll be, just deferentially genuflecting before the guy for a full minute; and can’t you just picture the look on his face? > > How would you reply? I would reply that he makes no sense whatsoever. There’s a long-established protocol for the anthem that says people should stand and face the flag. While simply not standing would be a refusal to participate, actively kneeling is doing exactly the opposite of that. If the custom was “everyone take a knee” and he stood up straight and tall it would be the same sort of gesture. ---
**Author:** ![Airbeck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/airbeck/32/6574_2.png) [@Airbeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airbeck)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/63 "2019-07-16T20:01:19Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > Kaepernik knelt because he hates the country and the anthem is a symbol of the country. Police brutality is part of the reason he hates this country and was in the news. > I hear he is a good guy and would not do anything just to make people mad. “Hates this country” != “this country is not currently living up to its ideals” If you talk to your kid about something they have done wrong does that mean you hate your kid? ---
**Author:** ![Airbeck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/airbeck/32/6574_2.png) [@Airbeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airbeck)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/64 "2019-07-16T20:03:50Z")
> [@CAH66](#): > > I would reply that he makes no sense whatsoever. > > There’s a long-established protocol for the anthem that says people should stand and face the flag. While simply not standing would be a refusal to participate, actively kneeling is doing exactly the opposite of that. If the custom was “everyone take a knee” and he stood up straight and tall it would be the same sort of gesture. A veteran told him that kneeling was more respectful than sitting it out. You keep stating your opinion as if its iron-clad fact. You are not the only one that has views on what is or isn’t respectful. He listened to someone that had a different view and he followed his advice. Why do you keep ignoring this? [https://www.npr.org/2018/09/09/646115651/the-veteran-and-nfl-player-who-advised-kaepernick-to-take-a-knee](https://www.npr.org/2018/09/09/646115651/the-veteran-and-nfl-player-who-advised-kaepernick-to-take-a-knee) ---
**Author:** ![CAH66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@CAH66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAH66)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/65 "2019-07-16T20:46:27Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > It really would help the credibility of that assertion if you’d tell us what means of protest you \*would \*like. Without that, other motives can be inferred. And do please recognize that a protest that raises emotion is more effective than one that does not - the causes for that emotion then become open to examination, and that can lead to addressing the problem that caused the protest. I understand why he did what he did, which was to get the maximum rise out of people and achieve notoriety for his cause. There are some here who think what he did was actually a form of respectful protest. I disagree. If he had sat unmoving, that would have been a way of registering protest by refusing to participate. Taking the knee appears to me anyway to be making a statement of opposition. It’s like comparing not waving hello to giving the someone the finger. I’ve seen that someone reportedly advised him that kneeling would be seen as more respectful, but I don’t think that turned out to be the case judging by the media. > [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > It does seem odd that format animates you but content does not. I’m discussing the format of his protest apart from the content because the form his protest took is what the thread topic is all about. Because we are typing at each other instead of talking, it might seem like I am “up in arms” about him, but I’m not. I do value the flag and the anthem as symbols, and I very much dislike it when people denigrate it. But it’s not a “set my hair on fire, boycott the NFL and Nike!” reaction. It’s an “I don’t like that” reaction. The only thing that _truly_ animates me here is being told that there’s no daylight between disliking his actions and being someone who “makes excuses for police brutality as long as it is directed against scary non-whites” or “hate it when black people stand up for themselves” as the OP puts it. ---
**Author:** ![CAH66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@CAH66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAH66)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/66 "2019-07-16T20:59:49Z")
> [@Airbeck](#): > > A veteran told him that kneeling was more respectful than sitting it out. You keep stating your opinion as if its iron-clad fact. You are not the only one that has views on what is or isn’t respectful. He listened to someone that had a different view and he followed his advice. Why do you keep ignoring this? > > [https://www.npr.org/2018/09/09/646115651/the-veteran-and-nfl-player-who-advised-kaepernick-to-take-a-knee](https://www.npr.org/2018/09/09/646115651/the-veteran-and-nfl-player-who-advised-kaepernick-to-take-a-knee) I am stating my opinion as if it’s my opinion. I’m fully aware that others do not share it. So what? Because that other veteran that told him that this would be better than sitting quietly was voicing his opinion too. ---
**Author:** ![Airbeck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/airbeck/32/6574_2.png) [@Airbeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airbeck)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/67 "2019-07-16T21:08:09Z")
> [@CAH66](#): > > I am stating my opinion as if it’s my opinion. I’m fully aware that others do not share it. So what? Because that other veteran that told him that this would be better than sitting quietly was voicing his opinion too. I’m just saying that yours isn’t the only interpretation of respect, and he did take the advice of someone that told him how to do it respectfully. You can consider that or you can ignore it, but if it doesn’t alter at all your view of his intentions then that is unfortunate. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/68 "2019-07-16T21:29:03Z")
> [@Airbeck](#): > > He scored a 38 on the Wonderlic test before the NFL draft. The average score is 20. He is in the 98th percentile. > > [https://wonderlictestsample.com/wonderlic-test-scoring/](https://wonderlictestsample.com/wonderlic-test-scoring/) The wonderlic test isn’t a mensa entrance exam. Think about the population of those being examined. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2019, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/69 "2019-07-16T22:17:08Z")
Second point first yourself. > [@CAH66](#): > > As far as the flag not having “jack shit” to do with the military… It doesn’t belong \*\*exclusively \*\*to the military, no. It is nevertheless a very central part of military culture and if there is any segment of the population that holds the flag most dear, it is the military. People’s _feelings_ don’t give them **ownership**. If they’re going to put such value on them, they need to be told, Trumpist-fashion, to “fuck [their] feelings.” Good advice in this case, because the flag belongs to and stands for **every last single fucking American equally.** Even to and for unpatriotic souls like me. Their sensitive feewings give them no additional claim. As far as your first point goes: > [@](#): > > The protocol for showing respect for the flag and the anthem is to stand and salute if in uniform, to remove your hat and place your hand over your heart if not. No, that’s the protocol for showing _allegiance_. Do you salute other countries’ flags and anthems? If not, you shouldn’t be confused on this point. > [@](#): > > Taking a knee is absolutely the opposite of that, intentionally and _pointedly_ so. No, the opposite would be to raise a ruckus, curse the flag, spit at it, and try to grab it and throw it down or set it afire. Taking a knee was about the most minimal way possible to visibly differ from those expressing their allegiance. And allegiance is not a requirement for citizenship in good standing, fwiw. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/70 "2019-07-17T00:51:37Z")
> [@CAH66](#): > > There are some here who think what he did was actually a form of respectful protest. I disagree. You do indeed refuse any possibility of being dissuaded from your opinion, as already stated. Then you’re welcome to stew in it. > [@](#): > > I’m discussing the format of his protest apart from the content because the form his protest took is what the thread topic is all about. Better go reread the OP, or even just the thread title, then. ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/71 "2019-07-17T01:01:55Z")
> [@CAH66](#): > > “respectfully taking a knee” is oxymoronic when there is established protocol for showing respect to the anthem. Cite, please. And requiring people to salute the flag is not respect for anything but jingoistic, militaristic nationalism and is fundamentally disrespectful to America and the idea of freedom. Forcing people to salute the flag and recite a pledge to it is something that grew from Cold War hysteria, it’s not some fundamental American value and was in fact one of the favorite pasttimes of fascist countries historically. > [@](#): > > The idea that I support Trump in **ANY** way, let alone on his ban on transgendered troops, attacks on McCain, and pretty much anything he’s ever done is 100% wrong. I’m center-left and a registered Democrat for fuck’s sake. You’re here supporting him in his attack on a black man engaging in peaceful, respectful protest, so your **ANY** is violated by this very post. > [@](#): > > which boils down to not painting every person that doesn’t like CK’s kneeling as some sort of racist asshole. You can dislike the method of the protest regardless of the message. If you oppose respectful, peaceful protest of an action then you are in favor of that action. Supporting the violent murder of innocent black people is racist. ---
**Author:** ![CAH66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@CAH66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAH66)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/72 "2019-07-17T03:09:31Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > Second point first yourself. > People’s _feelings_ don’t give them **ownership**. If they’re going to put such value on them, they need to be told, Trumpist-fashion, to “fuck [their] feelings.” > > Good advice in this case, because the flag belongs to and stands for **every last single fucking American equally.** Even to and for unpatriotic souls like me. Their sensitive feewings give them no additional claim. Uh… I actually said the military has no exclusive ownership over the flag. You even quoted it. I only illustrated why many in the military would be more likely to take offense. As for the rest. shall I follow your advice and “Trumpist fashion” say “fuck your callous disregard”? > [@RTFirefly](#): > > As far as your first point goes: > No, that’s the protocol for showing _allegiance_. Do you salute other countries’ flags and anthems? If not, you shouldn’t be confused on this point. > No, the opposite would be to raise a ruckus, curse the flag, spit at it, and try to grab it and throw it down or set it afire. > > Taking a knee was about the most minimal way possible to visibly differ from those expressing their allegiance. And allegiance is not a requirement for citizenship in good standing, fwiw. True, there’s a \*bunch \*of ways to act in opposition to the standard anthem customs, and there’s no allegiance required to be a citizen. CK can protest all he wants, and I am perfectly free to think he’s being a jerk for doing so the way he chooses to do so. It seems plain that he wanted the notoriety, and it was worth it to him to offend people to get it. ---
**Author:** ![CAH66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@CAH66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAH66)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/73 "2019-07-17T03:13:45Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Better go reread the OP, or even just the thread title, then. Huh? The OP that posits he was taking a knee just to piss people off and not really seriously protesting? ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/74 "2019-07-17T03:22:42Z")
> [@CAH66](#): > > Uh… I actually said the military has no exclusive ownership over the flag. You even quoted it. I only illustrated why many in the military would be more likely to take offense. I guess my response is, why would they take offense? Why do they necessarily have to take offense? My dad was a veteran. I still have the flag folded in triangular form that was displayed next to his coffin at his funeral. I like and respect the American flag generally, but it’s also a complex symbol, and I don’t understand why it follows that some in the military can’t seem to understand that. Look, Kaepernick is kneeling for the anthem. He’s not torching or desecrating a flag. There’s clearly some actual effort involved in taking a position that Kaepernick is being disrespectful to the US or to the military. It seems like veterans who criticize Kaepernick are either incapable of basic analytical reasoning or they want to thrust themselves into the controversy because they want to fight someone. > [@CAH66](#): > > True, there’s a \*bunch \*of ways to act in opposition to the standard anthem customs, and there’s no allegiance required to be a citizen. CK can protest all he wants, and I am perfectly free to think he’s being a jerk for doing so the way he chooses to do so. It seems plain that he wanted the notoriety, and it was worth it to him to offend people to get it. You can think he’s a jerk if you want, but why do you think he’s a jerk when it’s obvious he wasn’t in any way aiming his protests at the military? If you pass by a guy and his girl having on argument on the street and you hear the guy call her a bytch, that doesn’t mean that he’s talking about your wife, sister, mother, or aunt. It’s clearly aimed at someone else. As long as he doesn’t start pimp slapping her, stay out of other people’s fights. ---
**Author:** ![CAH66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@CAH66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAH66)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/75 "2019-07-17T03:46:12Z")
> [@Pantastic](#): > > Cite, please. And requiring people to salute the flag is not respect for anything but jingoistic, militaristic nationalism and is fundamentally disrespectful to America and the idea of freedom. Forcing people to salute the flag and recite a pledge to it is something that grew from Cold War hysteria, it’s not some fundamental American value and was in fact one of the favorite pasttimes of fascist countries historically. [https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/36/301](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/36/301) Customs, courtesies and protocols != requirements. Nobody is _forcing_ him to do anything. The US Flag Code doesn’t have force of law, and hasn’t in ages. > [@Pantastic](#): > > You’re here supporting him in his attack on a black man engaging in peaceful, respectful protest, so your **ANY** is violated by this very post. > > If you oppose respectful, peaceful protest of an action then you are in favor of that action. Supporting the violent murder of innocent black people is racist. I **NEVER** , not **ONCE** supported Trump’s attack on Kaepernick. I never called for a boycott, never said he should be drummed out of the NFL, never once said he shouldn’t protest what he’s protesting, never said anything other than that I personally find his chosen method of protest to be offensive, and that not liking the method is not the same as not liking the purpose and not the same as against it because he’s black. I don’t oppose his right to protest at all. And I sure as hell don’t support the “violent murder of innocent black people” just because I don’t like the kneeling. That’s like me accusing you of being a traitor to the US because you don’t condemn it. You seriously think that the only two possibilities are “Supports Kaepernick’s kneeling” and “Advocates race murders”? ---
**Author:** ![CAH66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@CAH66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAH66)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/76 "2019-07-17T04:59:40Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > I guess my response is, why would they take offense? Why do they necessarily have to take offense? My dad was a veteran. I still have the flag folded in triangular form that was displayed next to his coffin at his funeral. I like and respect the American flag generally, but it’s also a complex symbol, and I don’t understand why it follows that some in the military can’t seem to understand that. Look, Kaepernick is kneeling for the anthem. He’s not torching or desecrating a flag. There’s clearly some actual effort involved in taking a position that Kaepernick is being disrespectful to the US or to the military. It seems like veterans who criticize Kaepernick are either incapable of basic analytical reasoning or they want to thrust themselves into the controversy because they want to fight someone. > > You can think he’s a jerk if you want, but why do you think he’s a jerk when it’s obvious he wasn’t in any way aiming his protests at the military? If you pass by a guy and his girl having on argument on the street and you hear the guy call her a bytch, that doesn’t mean that he’s talking about your wife, sister, mother, or aunt. It’s clearly aimed at someone else. As long as he doesn’t start pimp slapping her, stay out of other people’s fights. Look, my dislike of Kaepernick’s kneeling is fairly mild, comparable to hearing people dropping f-bombs all over Target. The anthem and the flag are symbols that mean something to me, and I will never like seeing them willfully disrespected no matter who is doing so or why. What _does_ chap me is all the people who assume and assert that I, or anyone else who feels the same, must therefore be racist assholes who just love us some killer cops. The reason I think he’s a jerk has nothing to do with whether he’s aiming his protest at me or the military. You might disagree whether the behavior is jerkish or not, but it doesn’t stop being jerkish if it’s pointing away from you. It’s like me talking through a church service when I know people around me are going to take offense. The very first post in this thread paints anyone who doesn’t like the kneeling as being nothing more than “Rage over black people standing up for themselves.” I came in and posted that it was completely unfair to draw that conclusion, and that it was offensive. Since then I’ve done nothing but try to explain why I (and others I know but by no means every veteran) might take offense for reasons other than “excuses for police brutality as long as it is directed against scary non-whites.” You are one of the very few posters here that actually seems to consider what I have posted and respond in a way that isn’t an attack, so I don’t mean that you have done any of this. But so far in this thread I’ve been told that I have no reason or justification for feeling the way I do, (and am lying about it anyway for that matter), am really a Trump supporter, a flagrant racist, and that I support the violent murder of black people. It’s been quite an education, but frankly I am tired of the insults, accusations, and the attempts at point-scoring that has taken the place of discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/77 "2019-07-17T05:48:28Z")
> [@CAH66](#): > > The very first post in this thread paints anyone who doesn’t like the kneeling as being nothing more than “Rage over black people standing up for themselves.” To me the whole thread comes across as a leading question; kneeling is a respectful stance, and Colin and others have stated repeatedly and clearly what the protests are about. _Why would I_ try to infer any other meaning? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/78 "2019-07-17T14:53:56Z")
> [@CAH66](#): > > The very first post in this thread paints anyone who doesn’t like the kneeling as being nothing more than “Rage over black people standing up for themselves.” I came in and posted that it was completely unfair to draw that conclusion, and that it was offensive. Since then I’ve done nothing but try to explain why I (and others I know but by no means every veteran) might take offense for reasons other than “excuses for police brutality as long as it is directed against scary non-whites.” I don’t see a single post where you explain why you find kneeling offensive, though. In fact you seem to go out of your way to say you don’t find it offensive. In fact, you’ve now changed to saying you “dislike” his actions, rather than find them offensive. You in fact say your dislike is quite mild, and that most other things are more important. Before that, you would take every reason that most people say they find offensive and say that you do not believe those things. You do not oppose the call against police brutality. You do not think it was disrespectful to the military. You don’t think it is disrespectful to the country. You don’t believe he was doing it just to “trigger” conservatives. So, by my reading, you are not offended. You do not think his Kaepernick’s action was morally wrong. You are not upset that he performed this action. You do not wish the man ill will. However, every person I’ve ever encountered who is offended has either cited it as being “disrespectful to the military” or said they disagree with Black Lives Matter. And every last one of them supported some sort of punishment for Kaepernick and any other NFL player who participated in the protest. I have not found a single person who claims they find it offensive but believes the same things you do. Even you, by my definition, only find it distasteful, not offensive. ---
**Author:** ![Airbeck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/airbeck/32/6574_2.png) [@Airbeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airbeck)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/79 "2019-07-17T15:00:36Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > The wonderlic test isn’t a mensa entrance exam. Think about the population of those being examined. You didn’t read that link at all did you? This chart from that link should dispell you of your confusion: (reminder he got a 38) [https://wonderlictestsample.com/wonderlic-test-scoring/](https://wonderlictestsample.com/wonderlic-test-scoring/) Wonderlic Score by Job Title Systems Analyst 32 Chemist 31 Electrical Engineer 30 Engineer 29 Programmer 29 Accountant 28 Executive 28 Reporter 28 Teacher 28 Copywriter 27 Investment Analyst 27 Librarian 27 Electronics Technician 26 Salesperson 25 Secretary 24 Dispatcher 23 Drafter 23 Electrician 23 Nurse 23 Bank teller 22 Cashier 21 Firefighter 21 Clerical Worker 21 Machinist 21 Receptionist 21 Train conductor 21 Craftsman 18 Security guard 17 Welder 17 Warehouseman 15 Janitor 14 ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2019, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148/80 "2019-07-17T15:27:34Z")
Thought I’d pull this out as an example of what I meant in my other post, as I’m not sure I made myself clear. > [@CAH66](#): > > Because we are typing at each other instead of talking, it might seem like I am “up in arms” about him, but I’m not. I do value the flag and the anthem as symbols, and I very much dislike it when people denigrate it. But it’s not a “set my hair on fire, boycott the NFL and Nike!” reaction. It’s an “I don’t like that” reaction. What makes you appear to be up in arms about him is that you keep saying you are offended by his form of protest. Those mean essentially the same thing. Dislike, even strong dislike, is not what most people mean by “offended.” It implies at least a very strong anger. Again, I think the better term for what you seem to be describing is “distasteful.” You find the form of the protest distasteful, but support the cause it represents. Though, I will say, I still find that weird. It’s kneeling, the same action people do when they pray. People kneel to show loyalty. How can it be disrespectful or distasteful? How is it connected to burning something, which often means “I hate this thing and this thing should not exist?” And, yes, frankly, I do think that, had Peyton Manning kneeled at during the anthem, people would not be offended, as they’d take it as prayer, just like when other people have taken the knee on the field. However, I do not think the race of the person kneeling was the issue. It’s the cause that people don’t support. The hatred for BlackLivesMatter predates Kaepernick. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-colin-kaepernick-actually-trying-to-protest-police-brutality-or-just-trigger-conservatives/837148.md?page=5)