Martyr McFly
You might want to skip this part if you’re an Aaron Rodgers fan. Otherwise, it’s time for him to shut up. His “opinion” on COVID is entirely irrelevant. We’ve reached peak stupidity when a multimillionaire football player can be thin-skinned and whine about being canceled in front of millions while en route to being the NFL’s most valuable player.
First, we learned that he lied about being immunized to reporters before testing positive for COVID in November. He claimed there wasn’t a follow-up question where he could set the record straight - except there was.
Of course, Rodgers was contrite, “I realize I'm in the crosshairs of the woke mob right now, so before my final nail gets put in my cancel culture casket, I think I'd like to set the record straight on so many of the blatant lies that are out there about myself.”
But, he made it clear, if he were asked a follow-up question, he’d say, “Look, I'm not some sort of anti-vax, flat earther. I am somebody who's a critical thinker. You guys know me. I march to the beat of my own drum.”
Or Joe Rogan’s.
For those who recall, that appearance on the Pat McAfee Show went poorly. So Rodgers went on again a week later to walk back a lot of stuff.
He concluded the interview with a promise.
Okay, there, we’ve all learned a little about ourselves, and we can go back to talking about football, right? We wish.
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop
Our brave little soldier was on the Pat McAfee show again on December 21st to celebrate breaking the Packers’ touchdown passing record. He surpassed Brett Favre, who had his issues with modern technology.
On the show, Rodgers wore a sweatshirt with Cancel Culture to remind you once more that he is going to fight all this canceling that he’s not getting. During a rant where he questions how the NFL is dealing with COVID treatment, he states, “instead of isolating people for ten days, not be able to see anybody tend zero treatment options.” More bullshit, but hey, it sets up his strawman argument.
He then adds, without the slightest hint of irony, “If science can't be questioned, it's not science anymore; it's propaganda, and that's the truth.”
The Unpopular Opinion
This controversy isn’t about Aaron Rodger’s opinion on whether he wants to take the vaccine. He lied about being vaccinated so he wouldn’t have to get tested. That’s between him and the NFL, and he was punished.
Compare that to Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb getting fined $15,000 for his second untucked jersey offense or $5,100 for his socks. Those must be really serious issues to the NFL. But back to Rodgers.
The absurdity of his making a statement about science ignores two realities:
He lives in a reality bubble that no one will burst. He has access to qualified world-class doctors to dispense medical advice on the actual science and his medical condition. Millions of others are getting advice from him.
He’s full of shit. This man was considered as a host for Jeopardy! He doesn’t want to debate; he wants Pat McAfee on hand to say, “no, you didn’t!” every time he says something. If he’s really on a quest to debate medicine, then do it for the rest of us to watch. Going on the Pat McAfee Show, where no one will challenge his “opinions,” is just a safe space for a snowflake.
This story has never been about medicine or science; it’s about the fragile ego of an NFL superstar who wants to be special and loved. Aaron Rodgers isn’t getting canceled; he’s probably going to be the NFL MVP this year. Aside from the touchdown record, and the probable MVP, Rodgers will have a likely run at the Super Bowl, and a high-profile offseason to decide how he’ll spend his final, well-compensated days in the NFL. You are going to be sick of seeing him by the end of January., So, let’s not buy the “Aaron Rodgers the cancel culture victim” narrative he’s trying to sell.
At the end of the day, Aaron Rodgers is a bigger threat to your speech than your health. He is a role model for all the self-indulgent whiners who believe the First Amendment is not only the freedom of speech but the freedom from criticism. He not only has a platform, but it’s a large and well-funded one. Screaming “cancel culture” is nothing more than a preemptive tactic to deflect any disagreement. By doing so, he wants to stifle everyone else’s speech.
New Year’s Resolutions
Last week, I mentioned making some resolutions for the New Year and asked if you had any. Here are some of the great responses I got:
More Gracious
[A]s far as 2022 goes, I do intend to at least make an effort to be a bit more gracious to people, particularly those I don't care much for personally but whom I can't really label as being outright "bad" and not worth the effort. - MT
More Patience
I really need to work on my patience. Since the pandemic started, I have lost more and more patience with people over the dumbest shit. I realize later that I think I’m the smartest person in the world and I bet I’m not the only one. - BV
More Conversation
[M]aybe less social media. When I read your Outrage piece, I saw so many things that I was missing before. I need to talk to more people one on one. - WR
We make resolutions and resolution jokes, but we look at the new year as a chance to renew and reset. The scariest thing about where we are right now is that we feel overly connected and isolated at the same time. I’m going to try and do my part. So here are my resolutions:
Be a more patient person.
Be a better listener.
Spend less time working and more time connecting.
Read at least 15 books.
Find a reason to be thankful every day.
I hope everyone takes time to reflect on the year behind us and ahead.
From the Blog
Since there weren’t any new posts this week, here is our 2021 blog countdown:
Thanks to everyone who has supported this project. There’s a lot more to discuss. Have a very safe and Happy New Year!
Oh Scott!! You should live 45 miles from Green Bay and hear about his toe! Come on! Second opinions and on and on. It’s your toe, tape it to next one and shut up already.
"...overly connected and isolated at the same time" pretty much nails it. If we could find some way to put more positivity into the connected part, the isolated part might not seem so bad, and may at some point start to diminish, regardless of what some virus may or may not do.
To that end, I'd say trying to practice #5 on that list might help. If people would take a moment each day to take stock of their personal situation and give it an honest evaluation, perhaps they'd come to the conclusion that their own lives aren't as lacking in certain ways as they may think, and maybe that sense of grievance that seems to permeate just about every aspect of our society today may start to fade a touch. Certainly, that's an awfully big "maybe". Still...
I'm sure anyone fortunate enough to be reading this has some aspect of their life that they are unhappy with. And that goes for me as well. But if one starts with the simple fact that they are reading this and stops for a moment to ponder that fact, well, what does that say about one's life? That one can read, for one thing. Which means one's had access to an education. And although this publication is "free", the fact that it's being read on a digital device of one kind or another, with all the attendant cost, indicates at least some disposable income. Which in turn means that a few basics such as food, shelter and clothing probably aren't much of an immediate or acute concern. I could go on, but...
This is quite simplistic, I know. And that's sort of the point. And I expect you can see where I'm going with it. Not trying to preach, just pointing out something so obvious that we all tend to overlook it and take it for granted far too often. I certainly do.
But for my own good and, by extension, for the good of others, I'm gonna' try to be better about that. Because if doing so means I spend a little less time being pissed off about something that really isn't worth the anger, maybe I'll have a little more capacity to practice a few of the other things mentioned in this piece today...patience, listening, graciousness. And that would be a good thing. Will this solve the world's problems? Of course not. But you can't fill an ocean without pouring the first drop of water.
I doubt Aaron Rodgers and his ilk would ever get that, but so what? In spite of so many of their needs being met beyond the wildest dreams of most of the rest of us, I suspect they have a bigger need that will never be truly met, no matter what. And I wouldn't swap what I have with what they have for anything. As Mick and the Stones once put it...
No, you can't always get what you want
But if you try sometime, you just might find
You get what you need
Happy New Year to all! And may all get what they truly need in the coming year.