Politician tells Bisciotti to put a lid on BA's public support for same sex marriage (Merged)

[wickedsolo]

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...-sex-marriage/

Who the fuck does that guy think he is?

I hope Bisciotti tells Democrat Burns to shove it.

[RavenScallywag]

I think Bisciotti will handle this in the appropriate manner...

Which is to say whatever letter Burns sent him immediately went into the garbage. Love BA, frankly love ANY athlete who is willing to stand by a belief, especially one I share with them.

Let's leave the specific politics out of this. Point is, your political position shouldn't matter with your employment standing in ANY company. Not sure what Del. Burns is thinking, especially since the Democratic party in MD is certainly getting behind the Marriage Equality Act.

[wickedsolo]

No idea, but talk about some cajones to tell someone like Bisciotti that BA should essentially be muzzled ...wow.

[goldenelite28]

No idea, but talk about some cajones to tell someone like Bisciotti that BA should essentially be muzzled ...wow.

Does it really take balls to be stupid?

[darb72]

BA has every right to say what he wants. He's not out there on Sundays telling people in the stands he won't make a tackle if gays aren't allowed to marry, so it really doesn't matter.

[Ravenous1]

BA has every right to say what he wants. He's not out there on Sundays telling people in the stands he won't make a tackle if gays aren't allowed to marry, so it really doesn't matter.

Last time I checked this was still America and as such BA has the right to his personal beliefs and to share them with whomever he pleases. Agree or Disagree with BA, at least the man has opinions and beliefs which is more than many these days.

[Captain Silver]

Story

Seems that Baltimore County politician, Maryland House of Delegates member Emmett C. Burns Jr. does not like the fact that Brendon is pro gay marriage and has sent a letter to the Ravens to quell his opinions.

I sincerely hope anyone who votes in his district to not vote for this man. Regardless of your stance on gay rights I believe that using your office to oppress free speech is appalling. Perhaps he would have been better served writing Brendon rather than rattling his sword at the team.

[Flipping Birdie]

I think this subject matter can only lead to a politicized thread, which will ultimately cause message board members to yell at each other and get hot and bothered about a subject that has very little to do with the Ravens or football. Not that I disagree or agree with you, but I think this thread belongs in the Politics, Current Events and Off Topic forum.

[Captain Silver]

Well NFL.com thought it was worthy enough to post on their front page and because it regards the Ravens and a player, I think it is fine right here.

I encourage people not to discuss the politics of the matter but the ideal that a football team, specifically the Ravens should cow to a politician regardless of the topic at hand.

[ActualSpamBot]

There's already a perfectly civil version of this thread in the Politics sub forum. I vote merge.

[GOTA]

Big difference between a player stating an opinion and a team endorsing it

[Raveninwoodlawn]

There's already a perfectly civil version of this thread in the Politics sub forum. I vote merge.

I agree...although I do think the vast majority would think the delegate is a complete and utter moron...regardless of political affiliation.

[Dade]

I guess Emmett C. Burns Jr. doesn't want to get re elected.

[HoustonRaven]

This is better suited for the politics forum, thus it's been merged there.

[ActualSpamBot]

I agree...although I do think the vast majority would think the delegate is a complete and utter moron...regardless of political affiliation.

Which is why I find it curious that the same conservative people who (rightly) call out this douchehammer of a politician for trying to stop someone from expressing himself in a way that millions of other Americans get to have no problem turning around and arguing that gay and lesbian people don't deserve to be married to one another.

Not that this has happened on this board as I've found that most members are more libertarian in nature and most either support gay marriage or universal civil unions. I'm in the latter camp in that I don't think the government has anymore business in my heterosexual business as it does in someone else's homosexual business. I think we should all have civil unions and if the church or temple or mosque or cult or whatever we belong to wants to bless said civil union and call it a marriage than go for that too if it's your thing.

[HoustonRaven]

I guess Emmett C. Burns Jr. doesn't want to get re elected.

He will win reelection easily. It's the referendum that's in the works that he won't survive.

[GOTA]

I agree...although I do think the vast majority would think the delegate is a complete and utter moron...regardless of political affiliation.

True.

[Haloti92]

The controversy is a bit more complicated than the article makes it sound, though Burns is clearly foolish for sending that letter.

It isn't that BA simply made comments supporting gay marriage, which he has done in the past. It was that he gifted two tickets to Monday's game supporting a fund raiser for an activist political group (Marylanders for Marriage Equality).

Obviously he has every right to do that, as long as the Ravens do not have a problem with it, but he was definitely campaigning on one side of a political issue, and he was doing it as much as a Baltimore Raven as simply Brendon Ayanbadejo (he could have donated money directly to the cause without having his status as a Raven even enter the equation).

The Ravens do not have a problem with it, which is all that matters. But one can imagine how teams might want to limit the extent that their players openly engage in controversial political activism while acting as a member of the team, as opposed to just a citizen. In fact, I suspect the Ravens do have rules/limitations regarding participation in politics while acting as a "Raven," but this instance didn't come close to the line.

[GOTA]

Didn't Adalius Thomas used to have a radio show where he talked more about politics than sports?

Peter Boulware ran for office after he retired. I remember him sometimes being quoted for a political comment but not very often.

It seems that the Ravens have a tradition of players speaking out though I'm not sure it's to the extent of BA

[Mista T]

He will win reelection easily. It's the referendum that's in the works that he won't survive.

Huh? Homosexual marriage rights have been rejected by referenda in 34 consecutive states since 2006, including relatively liberal states such as Hawaii. It seems to me that Mr. Burns is making a political stunt here tied to the upcoming Maryland referendum, for which he can claim to have been on the right side of the issue if it also is rejected by voters. Right or wrong, it looks to me to be a political maneuver which could benefit Mr. Burns. I had never heard of him before, and betcha that's true of most Marylanders outside of his district.