thependulumswings

Sources tell BBR that the Washington Redskins will officially announce today that they are dropping their 87-year-old nickname.  While no new nickname will be announced, gone is the name “Redskins.”  We have a few questions about this decision.

Did you know that Washington’s logo of an American Indian chief had been designed by a Native American in 1971?  He was probably called an Indian in 1971, but we digress.  Do you think the Native American designer found the name “Redskins” offensive back then?  Probably not since he designed the logo to promote the team.

Did you know that owner Daniel Snyder was strong headed in his desire to keep the name until very recently?  Snyder had, for years, resisted any consideration to change the name.  He told USA Today in 2013 to “put it in all caps” that he would never make such a move. Some who have worked for Snyder said they believed he would rather sell the team than have a new name.

Does that make him a racist?  Probably.  Or, probably not.  We guess his crime didn’t rise to the level of Donald Silver’s offense as the owner of the LA Clippers a few years back.   Oops!  The NBA doesn’t call its owners “owners” anymore.   Plus Snyder is obviously getting to a more kind and sensitive way of thinking just 21 years after purchasing the team, that as of today, will be formerly known as the Redskins.  Or, is he bowing to the pressure created by others?

Amazon said it would stop selling Redskins merchandise. Then, Walmart and Target followed the online leader. And, according to The Washington Post, FedEx said it would remove its signage from the stadium unless the name was changed for the 2021 season.  Did the almighty greenbacks help decide the Redskins fate, forcing the pale-faced (is that offensive?) owner to change?  Someone once said, “follow the money.”

Wouldn’t it be a turnabout if the team would not allow the sale of the new logoed merchandise to one of these retail juggernauts?  You show me, and I’ll show you. That won’t happen.  “Follow the money,” someone said more than once.

Does the NFL change the name of the team on all of its historical records to the new name?  Will they “retire” all of the old footage of the football team?  Will Joe Theisman and John Riggins vaporize?

Doug Williams was the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl.  Who did he play for?  The Redskins.  It would be a shame if that Super Bowl film was never seen again don’t you say? If there was a statue of him outside of FedEx Field in his Redskins uniform should it be torn down?  Tough call.

Did Colonel Nathan R. Jessup order the code red?  “You’re got damn right I did!” he shouted when prodded in the movie A Few Good Men.

“You can’t handle the truth,” he exclaimed.  He might be right.