University of Mo. football players

[womenssports]

http://thinkprogress.org/sports/2015/11/08/3720338/missouri-black-football-players-strike/

Following a series of racist incidents on campus, at least 32 members of the University of Missouri’s football team will not play until the school’s president, Tim Wolfe, resigns. On Saturday night, a group of black players declared that they are going on strike, citing Wolfe’s “negligence” in handling discrimination on campus.

Good article. Seems bigotry in all areas of bigotry has gotten worse in the last 15 years or so. Just exhibitions of hate in general.

 

[Max Power]

I don't think they have gotten much worse, but with social media they are becoming more well known.

 

[sybarite]

From the stories, it is difficult to determine exactly what has occurred or if there is any evidence to ascribe this to any individuals. But, what does appear to be different from the incident at OU is that the university president did not take action to find a resolution at Missouri. Inactivity is difficult to explain. But, I am not familiar with the situation.

I just happened to receive a phone call from the best man at my wedding who is a black Ph.D. working at a national oceanography institute. Last night, he indicated that he will be coming here for a conference and wanted to have dinner. We have been best friends (I have four of them--all for a long period of time) since 1969 when we worked together in a civil rights organization. The conference that he is coming to is for minority students and faculty in the sciences to come together to help overcome the discriminatory practices in hiring and grants related to all non-white male scientists. I am rather surprised that the resides in the sciences. But, he indicated that there appears to be a resurgence of deliberate racism spreading across the nation's campuses. In some small element of the population, it appears to be popular to be pro-racist, and it is becoming a problem. This may not be unique to Missouri.

 

[WTSooner]

I hope they all lose their scholarships if they miss the game on Saturday. Gotta be frustrating for the coaching staff.

And props to the President for saying he isn't stepping down. Can't let the kids decide who the President of the university is. They are all free to leave school anytime they want.

 

[opsooner]

I think it is just another example of the future for college athletics - unionization, walkouts, etc. If one wants to be political let him or her be political - but on own time. If one wants to threaten to not play individually let him do so with the peril of losing his scholarship. If a group decides to not play then let them do so with the same peril. Then, they'll have even more time to protest.

As a fan I also have the right to lose interest and I am quickly doing just that. The universities themselves have a lot of blame in this. They have made amateur athletics a booming business and this is the result.

 

[WTSooner]

Reading that he resigned. What a wuss.

 

[stormspencer]

I can understand people standing up for what they believe is right, but it seems no one on that campus was concerned with how women have been treated the last few years...they are #2 in the nation for sexual assaults on women. Seems you would want to add that to your cause....I would think.

As for systemic or university-sponsored racism, I can't speak for Mizzou. However, I'm more inclined to believe that these are isolated incidents (that probably occur on just about every campus) that shouldn't reflect on the university as a whole. And frankly, I don't see how firing the president will solve these type of instances when a couple of toothless, drunk idiots in a '78 Ford half-ton with a confederate flag flying are yelling ignorant epithets at some Mizzou students.

Or are we getting to the point where the entire declaration of Independence needs to be scrapped? I guess all the monuments, memorials, streets, towns, colleges and libraries dedicated to the founding fathers need to be torn down (sarcasm).

 

[SoonerBounce13]

But, he indicated that there appears to be a resurgence of deliberate racism spreading across the nation's campuses. In some small element of the population, it appears to be popular to be pro-racist, and it is becoming a problem. This may not be unique to Missouri.

Sorry but this is a bunch of BS.

Well maybe not, but not for the reason you think.

A president was just forced to resign b/c he was white. Blacks are demanding that there has to be a certain number of black employees,etc.

All b/c TWO kids yelled a racial word on a campus of how many thousands of people?

This is ridiculous beyond words and the only reason people think racism is becoming a problem is because blacks are making it one. I don't blame just blacks though, its this generation

 

[opsooner]

I can understand people standing up for what they believe is right, but it seems no one on that campus was concerned with how women have been treated the last few years...they are #2 in the nation for sexual assaults on women. Seems you would want to add that to your cause....I would think.

As for systemic or university-sponsored racism, I can't speak for Mizzou. However, I'm more inclined to believe that these are isolated incidents (that probably occur on just about every campus) that shouldn't reflect on the university as a whole. And frankly, I don't see how firing the president will solve these type of instances when a couple of toothless, drunk idiots in a '78 Ford half-ton with a confederate flag flying are yelling ignorant epithets at some Mizzou students.

Or are we getting to the point where the entire declaration of Independence needs to be scrapped? I guess all the monuments, memorials, streets, towns, colleges and libraries dedicated to the founding fathers need to be torn down (sarcasm).

It is about money and power - more than what is right. Would the prez resign if the softball team stop practicing and threatened to boycott their games? Interesting, also, that the faculty got involved with this deal but not on the others. It depends on who wants to be the victim and which power they can get behind them. A lot of the "demands" include more "funding" in this case.

Will be interesting to see if this starts snowballing and how fans and parents will react. I'm not overly interested in seeing my kid's tuition go up based on scholarship kids protesting and I am quickly losing interest in season tickets.

That said, I like the idea of people protesting a cause they believe in - just do it on your own time.

 

[sybarite]

I'm not sure that the driving force behind this had been revealed in early releases. Apparently, there were several things operating in conjunction: several incidents involving racism, an austerity program that hit at the benefits available to the students and faculty, and possibly a political removal of Planned Parenthood from the infirmary.

It turns out that there have been protests for some time. culminating in a rather recent hunger strike that became the focus of it all. Students and faculty had been protesting the president's austerity program prior to this. Now, the football team became involved. In this regard, there is some similarity to the OU S&E thing since the football team became involved in it.

But, this wasn't only the football team or a few players. Apparently, all black athletes were on board, and the white colleagues and coaches were on board. Ultimately, you had a university president surrounded by a lot of people who had not appreciated his austerity programs or his lack of response to the racial incidents.

The idea of dismissing the black football players is folly. If Missouri became known as the school that didn't support its black athletes, their entire sports department might as well close its doors. No recruiting. There had to be some sort of response.

The irony is that it is probable that the people most likely behind the austerity program were probably the same ones who did not want the football program destroyed. The toy soldiers suddenly had control.

Yes. It does set a precedent. It is irony that they ignored the academicians at a university, but responded to a sports program. Next?

 

[opsooner]

No one is quite sure of all the allegations yet. We do know that the ring leader has been working the campus ever since Ferguson. Turns out he is the son of a wealthy business man worth millions but his first requirement of the prez was to admit he was "of white privilege". That tells me all I need to know. If you really want something why is your first request to do that? It's called the politics of the race card.

Then you move on to the fact that this kid wants free benefits for being a grad student and the planned parenthood piece is clearly more politics. I do have to applaud the kid for shaking things up there though. He brought a lot of spineless leadership down.

You also have a prof from the faculty threatening a student reporter. That makes a lot of sense - demand something through the first amendment but then try to strong-arm a student who is practicing the same first amendment. She now apologizes after being caught by another camera. It will be interesting to see whether she is fired from the next prez. Any decent leader would fire her immediately.

This is all a folly and an embarrassment to that university. The coach and AD are also starting to look like idiots now. They first stab the prez (albeit weakling) in the back based on a issue they didn't even understand for the sake of keeping power and their revenue ticket intact. The football players were themselves roped in with only allegations and then they roped the coach in. As more info comes out the coach is now distancing himself from the activist group and said someone else used his twitter account and included their hashtag. What a numbskull.

 

[stormspencer]

The most recent development is that poor oppressed hunger strike guy's dad made $7 million in compensation in 2014 from being a Union Pacific executive.
http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/c...e16fe05f3.html

What these rebellious, entitled kids don't realize is that they are crying wolf and diminishing the impact of future legitimate inequality claims. If this particular group of insufferable millennials want the respect of not only the older generation but from everybody........then stop whining, stop being a perpetual victim, and start studying/getting good grades. It's called growing up and becoming an adult.

 

[SoonerBounce13]

Apparently, all black athletes were on board, and the white colleagues and coaches were on board.

entirely not true

There had to be some sort of response.

No, there really didn't. It sets a terrible example and will only get more ridiculous as time goes on. We, as a country, need to stop caving into every demand when someone cries racism. Being a victim is cool in society now. Students actually believe that racism is at the same level it was before the 60s,etc. Racism is not an institutional problem anymore. It is an individual problem. Stop giving the individuals all this attention and maybe they will die out

 

[MsProudSooner]

entirely not true

No, there really didn't. It sets a terrible example and will only get more ridiculous as time goes on. We, as a country, need to stop caving into every demand when someone cries racism. Being a victim is cool in society now. Students actually believe that racism is at the same level it was before the 60s,etc. Racism is not an institutional problem anymore. It is an individual problem. Stop giving the individuals all this attention and maybe they will die out

We, as a country, need to stop making excuses for all types of bigots. Some of us need to walk a mile in someone else's shoes before we condemn them and their feelings.

 

[stormspencer]

I pray to God that this isn't the typical mindset of millennials, but I'm afraid that it is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pu1y5g1O3-Y

Until that young lady learns how to perform basic arithmetic, then she and her ilk do not deserve a platform.:facepalm

 

[SoonerBounce13]

I pray to God that this isn't the typical mindset of millennials, but I'm afraid that it is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pu1y5g1O3-Y

Until that young lady learns how to perform basic arithmetic, then she and her ilk do not deserve a platform.:facepalm

wow

not surprising though

 

[sybarite]

I pray to God that this isn't the typical mindset of millennials, but I'm afraid that it is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pu1y5g1O3-Y

Until that young lady learns how to perform basic arithmetic, then she and her ilk do not deserve a platform.:facepalm

You picked the one type of interview that a FOX host might win, i.e., against someone young and inexperienced. We built a wealthy nation while having a 91% tax on the upper rates. Of course, that also built a middle class.

It is also rather foolish to deny the simple facts that a lot of the social program ideas are working in other nations around the world, but they aren't losing trillions of dollars to an oversized military budget. Free education, like health care, is the norm. Even California had free education until Reagan. In most nations, the tuition is free. The books, room, and board are not. Yet, they survive without destroying their economies. Cut the military budget by half, and we will still spend more on the military than any country in the world and free up funds for more useful programs.

The father of capitalism, Adam Smith, said that no country could survive funding a permanent military.

 

[WTSooner]

It is also rather foolish to deny the simple facts that a lot of the social program ideas are working in other nations around the world.....

That is an opinion, not a fact.

It's like when people say the Swedes are the happiest country on the planet, until you actually interview them and ask them, and find out they are not.

Or that the Canadians LOVE their healthcare system, until you actually ask them about it, and there is a lot they don't like about it.

 

[DenverSooner]

Sybarite is an extremist. Sadly he thinks he is centered and others are radical

 

[sybarite]

Sybarite is an extremist. Sadly he thinks he is centered and others are radical

Curiously, the polls on the issues tend to side with Sybarite. The trends seem to be liberal, which makes the extreme right so irritated. It needs to be.