The most blatant disrespect in my humble opinion is when it is shown against a country that is of your birth or where you reside and has provided you with protection, welfare, and the means to live without fear.

When the National Anthem and flag of the country is raised it is a right of that country to expect its citizens to stand. And to be proud.

It is NOT the fault of that country when social issues, police brutality, white supremacy, colour and racial issues, etc, happen. It is the fault of the people themselves who wield certain powers. And the power is always with the people. There are many, many other avenues, especially with social media, to make your protest. NOT TO DO IT WHEN THE NATIONAL ANTHEM OF THE COUNTRY IS PLAYED!

And the main reason it is done is to do it in front of the media to give you the satisfaction of having your name blazed out in the press. And the press is to blame for seemingly giving praise to this blatant disrespect.

I do not normally applaud President Trump but he is 100% right in what he said.

I am appalled at the owners of the NFL clubs, and now other sports who have said they are going to join in in this disrespect, with their disgusting show of support to this.

Trump became a catalyst for the protest Friday when he told a crowd at a campaign rally in Alabama that NFL players who kneel should be fired.

“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a b—- off the field right now, out, he’s fired. He’s fired,'” Trump said. “You know, some owner is going to do that. He’s going to say, ‘That guy that disrespects our flag, he’s fired.’ And that owner, they don’t know it, [but] they’ll be the most popular person in this country.”

Many people present at these matches are now starting to boo and walk out at this blatant disrespect and now cancelling their DirecTV Sunday Ticket package subscriptions.

“Ratings for NFL football are way down except before game starts, when people tune in to see whether or not our country will be disrespected!” Trump tweeted Tuesday morning. “The booing at the NFL football game last night, when the entire Dallas team dropped to its knees, was loudest I have ever heard. Great anger,” he also said.

I well remember the uproar against the American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos during their medal ceremony at the 1968 Summer Olympics in the Olympic Stadium in Mexico City. After having won gold and bronze medals, respectively, in the 200-meter running event, they turned on the podium to face their flags, and to hear the American national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner”. Each athlete raised a black-gloved fist, and kept them raised until the anthem had finished.

I had a little more sympathy for them then because their was no social media but there is absolutely no excuse for this behaviour now.

I stand and respect when the National Anthem “God Save The Queen” is played and do the same at our National Song “Blessed Isle Cayman”. A few Sunday’s ago I did the same when it was the celebration of Jamaica’s Independence when their National Anthem rang out.

If you’re living a loyal and respectful life most likely the youth you’re around will follow that path as well. What path will our youth follow when they see their peers showing disrespect to their own country.

Val Hicks, writing on the Solano College website “The tempest” said it perfectly.

Under the heading “Loyalty and respect are fading values” he writes:

“As far as it is being taught, values to hold on to through life are diminishing. To keep loyalty and respect honored in society as key values, we as individuals must start being accountable for our own actions. We must not allow anyone to get the best of us to the point where we act out of character. This could lead some to being disloyal or disrespectful.

“Loyalty is more than just a word: it’s a way of living that runs hand in hand with respect. The old saying “Treat others the way you want to be treated,” is losing its meaning. It is a major factor in having respect for yourself and for others. Without respect for yourself you cannot began to show respect for others.

“Loyalty is something instilled within you riding on common sense with no lies or betrayal.

“Be faithful to your family, your friends, and employer by not acting knavish or selfish. Family members and friends get together for holidays, vacations, barbeques/cookouts, and these days are filled with activities or just meant for spending time together. In good times and bad times these people are always there for each other.

“These days most people’s main focus is to go to school, go to work, and bounce around until they’re satisfied with life. They’re not too much worried about being loyal.

“Lying, stealing, cheating, and killing are going on everyday mostly due to misguidance, assumptions, and a lack of knowledge. I don’t steal because my self-respect demands that I earn a living. My loyalty to myself and loved ones around me demands that I fully commit to a better way of living. Some lie to cover up their “dirt” or to “look good”, some steal out of greed, some cheat out of lust, and some kill over jealousy. At the end of the day when you’re looking at your bed are you happy to lay in it or are you filled with guilt and sorrow? Having self-respect means you’re going to do things that make you happy without a doubt, so when you go to lay down and reflect on your day, you’re happy. Do wrong in the day and you’re going to feel wrong at night.

“For every positive thought there is a positive result and every negative thought will project a negative result. It’s all in the power of choice which thought you’re going to act on.

“Open doors for others. Say “thank you” and understand that the world doesn’t revolve around you. The way you treat the world will come back on you. As long as we’re living we are always learning. As a society we all experienced bad times– let’s not dwell on that, let’s learn from it, move on, and make sure we don’t put ourselves in that position again.

“Let’s share good times and pass along great memories for the better. There’s only one thing to it and that’s to do it.”

Every single player and owner who disrespected their country during this week should be utterly ashamed. What a dreadful example. They are privileged they are being over paid for gifts God gave them.

God might forgive them for their disrespect. I don’t. And that applies to anyone (I won’t say what Trump called them) who disrespects their country.