One, it appears a "race-war" has broken out on message boards at various websites (ESPN.com, NFL.com) and you can tell the race of most of the posters due to their Facebook accounts. It seems over 90% of whites (men and women) are backing Cooper, while the vast majority of blacks want to see him gone. While blacks may think they are an important fan base, I'd assume whites make up North of 95% of the leagues' season ticket holders and are more important to sponsors. Last thing the NFL needs, is have the Limbaugh/Hannity crowd upset at them, as they see Cooper as the NFL equivalent of George Zimmerman. I think this is already happening.
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I've noticed this in New England especially, as pointed out by another poster, on the call in programs. Whites calling in seem to view it correctly as a politically correct witch hunt.
This strongly illustrates one point:
As pathetic as it is, most white men now put more stock in what an athlete thinks than perhaps any other public figure .i.e. they'd be much less inclined to stand up for, say, a politician or a movie star in the same scenario (philosophers, scientists and genuine thinkers are unknown to them, so they are not worth listing as examples).
One notices this in microcosm in his own life among most men in most settings (particularly men of the more conventional, ostensibly "manly" sort).
Most men are disproportionately impressed by male friends who were relatively successful as athletes (i.e. may have been exceptional in High School, may have succeeded at the college level, may even have been a minor league athlete, etc). This man can be otherwise unexceptional and uninteresting but male groupings still attach a higher prestige to him despite the real world meaninglessness of his former athletic success.
So really it'd be brilliant if a great and famous athlete were able to articulate some of the themes expressed on this site and still remain successful in his sport. It could very well be a game changer.
The problem is: 1) nearly all athletes are strongly conformist (they are deeply attracted to the idea of a "team" and, indeed, require a team to do their job well) and 2) few, whatever their innate intelligence, are knowledgable, interested or articulate enough to make these points cogently.
But it is indeed interesting to see these DWFs stand up for an athlete in this scenario (as if he were the very same ex-high school quarterback they still kiss the ass of at the summer Barbecue) yet are completely ignorant of the many very intelligent people making brilliant and serious arguments defending their race. And, of course, when they very occasionally become aware of these obscure "radicals" they are as likely to pour scorn on them as the most ardent anti-white leftist. I mean, after all, these "white supremacist" losers couldn't even make the practice squad of their local pro team. Hence, of course they are wrong.
