Don’t Be Surprised If NFL Moves Sunday's Game Out of Charlotte
RUSH: Okay. We have some conflicting news here on a subject. As you know, the Carolina Panthers had a home game in Charlotte. In fact, hang on. Hey, Siri, who do the Carolina Panthers play on Sunday? Oh, way to go, way to have a public demo and not come through. Yes, my phone calls me Big Guy. I had it set up to do that. (laughing)
Anyway, let me try this again. Hey, Siri, Carolina Panthers NFL schedule Sunday. Okay. So it's the Vikings. TheHill.com, 24 minutes ago, says the NFL is considering moving the game out of Charlotte because of all of this. The Washington Post says the NFL wants to play the game in Charlotte. So we have two conflicting stories on this. The Washington Post story is a little earlier in the day. The Hill story is 24 minutes ago, 25, maybe 30 minutes ago now.
But they've already had the bathroom law totally -- this LGBT thing, the NBA pulling out of there, their All-Star game, and now this? If they don't, I mean, this is a target rich environment for whoever wants to make mayhem, if the Panthers play their home game on Sunday. I can't see them moving the game. I can see them bringing in Spetsnaz and whoever they have to for security, but I can't see them moving the game.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: Okay, here it is from TheHill.com: "NFL May Move Game Out of Charlotte Due to Protests -- The National Football League and the Carolina Panthers are considering moving a game out of Charlotte this weekend due to mass protests that have overtaken the city. The Panthers are in contact with the Charlotte Police Department, local and state officials, and the league office in New York over how to proceed, according to a statement released Thursday by the team's front office."
Now, USA Today and the Washington Post are reporting they're not moving the game. They are going to play the game. If they have to get the Spetsnaz in there, whatever security services to protect people, they're gonna do this. They don't want to move this game. The last thing in the world they want to do is move this game. You know, I say that, but I'm not actually... The way things are going and the trends that are happening, you know, I'm just gonna tell you: I wouldn't be surprised if they cave and move this game.
That would not surprise me. I don't think it's gonna happen but I just want to get on the record right now: If it does, I will not be the least bit of surprised. And I think you'd have a lot of sports Drive-Bys applauding the move and crediting the rabble-rousers for making it happen. I don't have any doubt about that. A Charlotte Panthers spokesperson said, "We are in contact with government officials, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and the NFL. We are continuing to monitor events as we prepare for Sunday's home game."
Don't you love that? Everybody's monitoring it.
Yeah, we're monitoring events here, and we're taking temperature of everything, and we're looking very close. What do you mean "monitoring events"? What more do you need to know? The Panthers, as we learned mere moments ago, are scheduled to face the Minnesota Vikings at one o'clock at Bank of America Stadium. That's a reason to protest right there: The name of the stadium is bank, an evil bank! Bank of America to boot. Ooh. Double reason for getting mad. Double reason for hatred. Do you realize that they did...?
(interruption) You think I'm joking? Major League Baseball, you remember they canceled two Baltimore Orioles games in the Freddie Gray aftermath, and they played one game and didn't allow the fans in there? They played a game at Camden Yards, no fans in the stands, as a security measure! The NFL is basically a television sport anyway. So I can see it. Can you see that, doing this game with no fans allowed in? What a message that is. "Hey, Baltimore, we're gonna let the teams play but you can't come in.
"You people in Baltimore, you're too prone to violence and we can't let you come in for the safety of whatever." So they cancel two games and they played one without the fans. Don't laugh at the idea that they might move this game or take some other step. Because nothing makes sense. Here's... (interruption) Snerdley just whispered something to me in the IFB, and it is true. It is true. This could be shut down in one night. You could end this whenever you wanted to end it. But we have, I think, collectively as a society, shrunken back from those kinds of measures because of this.
Well, yeah, we could shut it down. If we do that, we're gonna make 'em even madder! So they might... The next riot, they might even be worse than they are now. The prevailing opinion is, "Let's let them get it out of their system." That was in play in Ferguson. One of the nights in Ferguson, the decision was made to let the looting happen and let the rioting happen. Just let 'em get it out of their system. So remember, everybody said that in those stores. I mean, that's the job of the cops to protect people's property and they're just letting these places be burned down and looted?
Yes. Under the pretext that this is how you let them "get it out of their system." So how would you shut it down in one day? Just start arresting people left and right for every violation that you see? Everybody acting outside the law, you arrest them and you put them in jail? (interruption) You put 'em in jail? So you add to the African-American incarceration rate? (interruption) Well, Jesse Jackson cares. That's one of the big beefs here, that there are innocent black men all over the world in jail that shouldn't be; most of them here in the United States.
(interruption) Yeah, I know, if you're breaking the law. What...? (interruption) Everybody has a right. You heard Loretta Lynch say that she feels their pain. When the attorney general comes out and says, "We respect your right and we feel your pain"? What's the message? Keep torching. Keep marching. Hey, you want to see where this stuff can end up?
RUSH: Okay. We have some conflicting news here on a subject. As you know, the Carolina Panthers had a home game in Charlotte. In fact, hang on. Hey, Siri, who do the Carolina Panthers play on Sunday? Oh, way to go, way to have a public demo and not come through. Yes, my phone calls me Big Guy. I had it set up to do that. (laughing)
Anyway, let me try this again. Hey, Siri, Carolina Panthers NFL schedule Sunday. Okay. So it's the Vikings. TheHill.com, 24 minutes ago, says the NFL is considering moving the game out of Charlotte because of all of this. The Washington Post says the NFL wants to play the game in Charlotte. So we have two conflicting stories on this. The Washington Post story is a little earlier in the day. The Hill story is 24 minutes ago, 25, maybe 30 minutes ago now.
But they've already had the bathroom law totally -- this LGBT thing, the NBA pulling out of there, their All-Star game, and now this? If they don't, I mean, this is a target rich environment for whoever wants to make mayhem, if the Panthers play their home game on Sunday. I can't see them moving the game. I can see them bringing in Spetsnaz and whoever they have to for security, but I can't see them moving the game.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: Okay, here it is from TheHill.com: "NFL May Move Game Out of Charlotte Due to Protests -- The National Football League and the Carolina Panthers are considering moving a game out of Charlotte this weekend due to mass protests that have overtaken the city. The Panthers are in contact with the Charlotte Police Department, local and state officials, and the league office in New York over how to proceed, according to a statement released Thursday by the team's front office."
Now, USA Today and the Washington Post are reporting they're not moving the game. They are going to play the game. If they have to get the Spetsnaz in there, whatever security services to protect people, they're gonna do this. They don't want to move this game. The last thing in the world they want to do is move this game. You know, I say that, but I'm not actually... The way things are going and the trends that are happening, you know, I'm just gonna tell you: I wouldn't be surprised if they cave and move this game.
That would not surprise me. I don't think it's gonna happen but I just want to get on the record right now: If it does, I will not be the least bit of surprised. And I think you'd have a lot of sports Drive-Bys applauding the move and crediting the rabble-rousers for making it happen. I don't have any doubt about that. A Charlotte Panthers spokesperson said, "We are in contact with government officials, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and the NFL. We are continuing to monitor events as we prepare for Sunday's home game."
Don't you love that? Everybody's monitoring it.
Yeah, we're monitoring events here, and we're taking temperature of everything, and we're looking very close. What do you mean "monitoring events"? What more do you need to know? The Panthers, as we learned mere moments ago, are scheduled to face the Minnesota Vikings at one o'clock at Bank of America Stadium. That's a reason to protest right there: The name of the stadium is bank, an evil bank! Bank of America to boot. Ooh. Double reason for getting mad. Double reason for hatred. Do you realize that they did...?
(interruption) You think I'm joking? Major League Baseball, you remember they canceled two Baltimore Orioles games in the Freddie Gray aftermath, and they played one game and didn't allow the fans in there? They played a game at Camden Yards, no fans in the stands, as a security measure! The NFL is basically a television sport anyway. So I can see it. Can you see that, doing this game with no fans allowed in? What a message that is. "Hey, Baltimore, we're gonna let the teams play but you can't come in.
"You people in Baltimore, you're too prone to violence and we can't let you come in for the safety of whatever." So they cancel two games and they played one without the fans. Don't laugh at the idea that they might move this game or take some other step. Because nothing makes sense. Here's... (interruption) Snerdley just whispered something to me in the IFB, and it is true. It is true. This could be shut down in one night. You could end this whenever you wanted to end it. But we have, I think, collectively as a society, shrunken back from those kinds of measures because of this.
Well, yeah, we could shut it down. If we do that, we're gonna make 'em even madder! So they might... The next riot, they might even be worse than they are now. The prevailing opinion is, "Let's let them get it out of their system." That was in play in Ferguson. One of the nights in Ferguson, the decision was made to let the looting happen and let the rioting happen. Just let 'em get it out of their system. So remember, everybody said that in those stores. I mean, that's the job of the cops to protect people's property and they're just letting these places be burned down and looted?
Yes. Under the pretext that this is how you let them "get it out of their system." So how would you shut it down in one day? Just start arresting people left and right for every violation that you see? Everybody acting outside the law, you arrest them and you put them in jail? (interruption) You put 'em in jail? So you add to the African-American incarceration rate? (interruption) Well, Jesse Jackson cares. That's one of the big beefs here, that there are innocent black men all over the world in jail that shouldn't be; most of them here in the United States.
(interruption) Yeah, I know, if you're breaking the law. What...? (interruption) Everybody has a right. You heard Loretta Lynch say that she feels their pain. When the attorney general comes out and says, "We respect your right and we feel your pain"? What's the message? Keep torching. Keep marching. Hey, you want to see where this stuff can end up?