Beltway Battle

I considered boycotting the NFL this year over their aggravating behavior regarding Kaepernick and the other players behavior, as well as the league's overly PC position regarding North Carolina's bathroom law. But then my own local team, the hapless Redskins continued to defy the pressure of PC regarding their name, so all is not lost: Redskins need to ignore PC culture and keep their name

“It’s kind of a funny thing, though. A redskin playing for the Redskins.”

That was Carolina Panthers cornerback Josh Norman talking to ESPN about the $75 million deal he just signed to join the Washington Redskins this fall. Norman, whose parents are both part Native American, doesn’t seem too concerned about the mascot of his new team.

“Redskins is not offensive to me,” he told ESPN’s Kevin Van Valkenburg.

I know I've missed the first four Redskins games, but I'll try to be better. Currently the 'Skins are 2-2 on the season, and areplaying their near neighbors, the Baltimore Ravens as I write this. Having missed much of the fist half to a dog walk, I picked it up at the start of the second half, with the Ravens ahead 10-6.

A year ago, Mike Wise, senior writer at ESPN, declared that a name change for the Redskins was inevitable. First it was journalists like those at Slate who refused to even publish the name. Then there were petitions to Twitter, Google and Facebook to remove the accounts belonging to the Redskins. There were protests in front of the stadium. California enacted legislation barring schools from using the Redskins name for their mascots. Madison, Wis., banned children from wearing any kind of clothing with a Native-themed mascot. And, of course, the Obama administration decided to strip the team of its trademark protections.

Garcon scores a touchdown on a Cousins pass, and the score is now 13-10 Redskins.

As Wise wrote: “This is no longer merely a civil rights/social justice issue affecting our most marginalized ethnicity. Many people now have made the obvious leap that this issue impacts people of color.”

Well, maybe. The Washington Post conducted a poll that found more than 9 in 10 Native Americans weren’t offended by the name at all.

Some mess happens down near the goal line, involving a fumble, a touchback, and the Redskins come out smelling like a rose. They march down the field, and end up settling for a field goal, 16-10 at the end of the third quarter.

Snyder has tried to fund skate parks and give coats and computers to poor kids on reservations.

In this sense, Snyder’s efforts will be about as effective as those by the federal government, which gives American Indians money but not the freedom they need to improve their situations.

In the last minute, the Ravens are driving on the goal line, and they make it on a tremendous catch by Perryman; reviewed and denied, only one foot in bounds. 33 seconds, and 24 yards to go.

American Indians live in poverty because they have no property rights. Their land is held in trust by the federal government. They can’t buy or sell it or develop it without the permission of bureaucrats in Washington. They can’t get a mortgage or a loan to start a business. They are being overregulated to death. And their dependence on the federal government for billions of dollars each year is only making things worse. Saying this to Redskins fans may not win Snyder points with Washington elites, but he lost them a long time ago.

4th and 21 for the Ravens with 20 seconds left and one time out.

Critics of the Redskins name are mostly folks who know nothing about American Indians but think their problems can be solved by more money and greater cultural sensitivity. Neither is true and Dan Snyder can prove it.

 Pass denied, and the Redskins win, 16-10.

Wombat-socho has "Rule 5 Sunday: J Is For Joan Jett" ready at The Other McCain.