SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:44 P.M. ET:   

VIEWERS AND PROTESTS – FROM THE WASHINGTON TIMES:   “Are football fans voting with their TVs?” asks a new Rasmussen Reports survey. “As the NFL struggles to explain this season’s downturn in viewer ratings, 34 percent of American adults say they are less likely to watch an NFL game because of the growing number of protests by players on the field,” the poll reports, noting that 12 percent say they are more likely to watch, while half say the protests have no effect on their viewing decisions.  “Interestingly, there’s little difference of opinion on the protests and NFL viewing habits among whites, blacks and other minority adults,” the poll said.  We'll have to see the ratings for the next couple of weeks.  The "knee" effect seems to occur largely in football.    If NFL ratings take a further dive, and ticket sales go into decline, it would be reasonable to attribute at least some of the trouble to the knee.

NO KNEES WANTED – FROM DAILYWIRE:   Multiple NASCAR team owners indicated Sunday they will not tolerate drivers or crew members who kneel during the national anthem as unpatriotic protests plague the beleaguered National Football League.  Former NASCAR champion and legend Richard Petty, who owns Richard Petty Motorsports, told the Associated Press that he would fire any member of his team who chooses to kneel during the national anthem.  “Anybody that don’t stand up for the anthem oughta be out of the country. Period. What got ’em where they’re at? The United States,” Petty said.  So, we have the NFL supporting the protests by its players, and NASCAR hoisting the stars and stripes.  I'll bet NASCAR's attendance increases.

NEW TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS – FROM DAILY MAIL:  The United States will prohibit entry of citizens from North Korea to the nation as part of a sweeping new travel ban that also slaps restrictions on Iran, Chad, Libya, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen and Somalia, the Trump administration said on Sunday.
The bans and restrictions do not have any time limits; in effect, they are indefinite.   The new restrictions, slated to go into effect on October 18, resulted from a review after President Donald Trump's original travel bans were challenged in court.  Trump tweeted Sunday: 'Making America safe is my number one priority. We will not admit those into our country we cannot safely vet.'  The addition of North Korea and Venezuela broadens the restrictions from the original, mostly Muslim-majority list.  We have the right to protect ourselves.  These restrictions, pending better vetting, seem reasonable.

September 24, 2017