Crosstalk: September 7, 2018

Jim Kouri is the founder and CEO of Kouri Associates, a homeland security, public safety and political consulting firm.  He’s formerly 5th Vice-President, now a Board Member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police.  He’s former chief of police at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights that was nicknamed 'Crack City' by reporters.  He's served as a director of public safety and director of security for several major organizations.  He’s also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.  He’s also a columnist.

The 2018 NFL regular season gets underway tonight. There's been much controversy due to certain players showing disrespect to the American flag and our national anthem. That, in turn, has been viewed by some as disrespect and defiance of police and military personnel who've died for the freedoms we hold dear.

One player in particular who some would say fits this description is former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick. The shoe company Nike has elevated Kaepernick in a new ad campaign that has the following tag line: 'Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything.' The problem is that Kaepernick has also worn socks with pigs on them that have police officer hats.
Kouri criticized Kaepernick as having become more famous as an activist than as a football player. He believes Kaepernick does not show leadership quality but is a follower, and this shows by the 'jargon' we've heard from him which Kouri said comes from organizations such as ANTIFA and the Nation of Islam. Overall, Kouri believes Kaepernick has no respect for law enforcement and the military, yet he has an open mike wherever he goes and is being treated like a celebrity.

Jim Schneider wondered about the sincerity of the Kaepernick/Nike slogan, 'Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything.' Has Kaepernick done that? Kouri believes that hasn't been the case. He noted that if anything, Kaepernick has assured himself that some 'big bucks' are coming in while he's not playing football. After all, according to Kouri, the Nike/Kaepernick ad campaign will bring Kaepernick at least 20-25 million dollars.

​This edition of Crosstalk looks deeper at this issue as it also discusses who's calling for a boycott of Nike, as well as individuals standing behind Kaepernick which include ex-CIA Director John Brennan and former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.