Get the latest BPR news delivered free to your inbox daily. SIGN UP HERE.

Country music mega-star Hank Williams Jr.’s original single, written to stand up to the NFL and athletes who disrespect the US flag, is feeling a resurgence this week.

Williams Jr. and tens of thousands or more NFL fans may no longer “be ready” for some football if, as expected, players in large numbers take a knee during the National Anthem.

The 2018 single called “Take a Knee, Take a Hike,” is trending up again and the patriotic-themed lyrics make his viewpoint abundantly transparent about those who want to use sporting events and venues to make political statements.

Oh, how we all love Monday night
When my song is done everyone’s so pumped and hyped
Some won’t stand for the anthem and that’s their right
Well, freedom isn’t free
Our military means our liberty
So if you’re gonna take a knee, take a hike

So get behind the stars and stripes
Or just get the hell out and quit your gripe
So you got a long list of things that you don’t like
Well please do us a favor
All you America haters
If you’re gonna take a knee, take a hike

I’m afraid the NFL means ‘Not For Long’
If they don’t find a fix for what’s goin’ on
How about a new boss like Condoleezza Rice
Just say please do us a favor
All of you America haters…

Williams’ song “All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight” — which contained the famous line “Are you ready for some football?” — was the Monday Night Football opening number from 1989 through October 2011 until ESPN canceled his musical contribution for comparing Barack Obama to Germany’s WW2 dictator.

Williams was re-hired in 2017.

The NFL lost a sizable amount of market share several years ago when ex-QB Colin Kaepernick and several other players knelt during the Star-Spangled Banner, an action which President Trump condemned. TV ratings, which are responsible for most of the league’s revenue, took a nosedive, but they subsequently trended upward when the kneeling subsided. Essentially, the fans spoke.

In the aftermath of the George Floyd death in Minneapolis police custody, however, the expectation is that many players, if not entire teams, will be kneeling in pre-game ceremonies.

Players have insisted that they are protesting racial injustice and police brutality rather than disrespecting the flag.

Although players appear to have sincerely held beliefs on these issues, the peer pressure must be enormous. An example is the series of groveling apologies issued by New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees after he said out of respect for veterans such as his grandfathers, he would never kneel.

Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien has announced he will take a knee with his players as has Cleveland Browns signal-caller Baker Mayfield.

Call it pandering or not, locker room chemistry carries over to on-field performance. A player, particularly one who is high profile, who stands during the anthem likely risks being ostracized by his teammates and slammed by the very liberal sports media industry in the current climate when police officers and National Guard troops have taken a knee during George Floyd-related protests.

Former Fox Sports FS1 host Jason Whitlock has claimed that there is a big difference between what some players say publicly about kneeling during the anthem and their private feelings, however.

Last week, politically correct NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell condemned systematic oppression and admittedly fault for not listening to players sooner and to encourage them to speak out. This suggests he is prioritizing players’ concerns over the potential fan backlash

American’s have a First Amendment right to free speech, but that ordinarily does not extend to the private-sector workplace. It’s obvious that the NFL won’t be fining players for kneeling, however, so abandoning playing the National Anthem might be the NFL’s only option.

The very woke National Basketball Association has a rule prohibiting kneeling during the anthem, but it’s inconceivable that it would be enforced when (or if) the players get back on the court for the playoffs next month and they kneel for social justice symbolism.

For a variety of reasons, NBA regular season TV viewership has tanked. It remains to be seen if kneeling in front of the bench will prompt fans to change the channel during the playoff run.

NBA luminaries such as LeBron James, Steve Kerr, and Greg Popovich have consistently slammed America generally and President Trump in personal terms, but have clammed up about China’s human rights violations and the CCP’s crackdown on Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement.

Yesterday, President Trump said on Twitter that he is done watching soccer after the U.S. Soccer Federation repealed a rule requiring players to stand during the National Anthem.

Channeling Hank Williams Jr. perhaps, he also implied that he won’t watch the NFL either anymore if the league accepts kneeling as the acceptable default position.

Sadly, the song isn’t the only reason the icon’s name is in the news.

The daughter of Williams Jr. tragically died in a car crash Saturday night. Katherine Williams-Dunning, 27, a mom of two, passed away after the accident that occurred in Henry County, Tennessee. Williams-Dunning and her husband Taylor Dunning were towing a boat with their SUV when their vehicle allegedly “crossed the median highway and rolled over,” EOnline reported. Taylor is receiving treatment at a local hospital.

• Author
• Recent Posts

Robert Jonathan

Staff Writer
[email protected]

Robert Jonathan is a staff writer for BizPac Review. He is a longtime writer/editor for news aggregation websites and has also developed content in the legal and financial publishing sectors as well as for online education. He earned a Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut School of Law, “a law school the basketball teams can be proud of.”

Latest posts by Robert Jonathan (see all)

• ‘Petty heffa’: The View’s Ana Navarro skewered for cracking on Marjorie Taylor Greene’s appearance - December 4, 2022
• Women’s college volleyball game features incredible rally complete with diving, table-crashing safe - December 4, 2022
• Wild brawl breaks out at Fitness Connection gym, takes deciding turn when woman enters picture - December 4, 2022

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.