NFL Punter Goes on Tirade for Gay Marriage

Image credit: Jim Mone/AP Photo

Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe is a professional at drop kicking?footballs, and today he proved he?could ?rhetorically do the same to a legislator who he said tried to trample? the First Amendment rights of another player.

In a scathing, insult-laced letter, Kluwe berated Maryland Rep. Emmett Burns for trying to silence Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo, a vocal supporter of gay marriage.

?I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won?t come into your house and steal your children. They won?t magically turn you into a lustful c**kmonster,? Kluwe wrote, using a slang term for the male anatomy. ?They won?t even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of our population.?

The letter from Kluwe, who punts footballs 50 yards every week, was a swift kick of sarcasm: ??You may want to hire an intern to help you with the longer words,? peppered with a colorful collection of insults ? ?you also come across as a narcissistic fromunda stain,? condemning Burns for trying to prevent Ayanbadejo from standing up for ?freedom.?

Last week Burns sent a letter asking Ravens owner Steve Biscoitti to force Ayanbadejo to keep his political opinions to himself.??Burns said the linebacker should ?concentrate on football and steer clear of dividing the fan base,? which Burns claimed was ?aghast and appalled? to learn that Ayanbadejo supported gay marriage.

?I am requesting that you take the necessary action, as a National Football Franchise owner, to inhibit such expressions from your employee and that he be ordered to cease and desist from such injurious actions,? Burns wrote to Biscoitti. ? I know of no other NFL player who has done what Mr. Ayanbadejo is doing.?

That plea for silence was just enough to set Ayanbadejo?s fellow NFL player aflame. Kluwe took to the blogosphere, responding to Burns? letter with his own, posted to Deadspin? Friday.

?I find it inconceivable that you are an elected official of Maryland?s state government,? Kluwe wrote. ?Your vitriolic hatred and bigotry make me ashamed and disgusted to think that you are in any way responsible for shaping policy at any level.?

The Vikings player goes on to call Burns ?mind-boggingly stupid? for trying to strip his fellow NLF player of his First Amendment right to free speech. Kluwe points out that Burns, a Baptist minister, also enjoys the First Amendment right to religious freedom.

?To call that hypocritical would be to do a disservice to the word,? Kluwe wrote. ?Mindf**king obscenely hypocritical starts to approach it a little bit.?

Kluwe said in the letter that he hopes his response makes Burns ?reflect upon the magnitude of the colossal foot in mouth clusterf**k you so brazenly unleashed.?

?P.S.,? Kluwe concludes, ?I?ve also been vocal as hell about the issue of gay marriage so you can take your ?I know of no other NFL player who has done what Mr. Ayanbadejo is doing? and shove it in your close-minded, totally lacking in empathy piehole and choke on it. A**hole.?

Burns could not be reached for comment. His office voicemail box was full.

Read the full text of Kluwe?s letter below:

Dear Emmett C. Burns Jr.,

I find it inconceivable that you are an elected official of Maryland?s state government. Your vitriolic hatred and bigotry make me ashamed and disgusted to think that you are in any way responsible for shaping policy at any level. The views you espouse neglect to consider several fundamental key points, which I will outline in great detail (you may want to hire an intern to help you with the longer words):

1. As I suspect you have not read the Constitution, I would like to remind you that the very first, the VERY FIRST Amendment in this founding document deals with the freedom of speech, particularly the abridgment of said freedom. By using your position as an elected official (when referring to your constituents so as to implicitly threaten the Ravens organization) to state that the Ravens should ?inhibit such expressions from your employees,? more specifically Brendon Ayanbadejo, not only are you clearly violating the First Amendment, you also come across as a narcissistic fromunda stain. What on earth would possess you to be so mind-boggingly stupid? It baffles me that a man such as yourself, a man who relies on that same First Amendment to pursue your own religious studies without fear of persecution from the state, could somehow justify stifling another person?s right to speech. To call that hypocritical would be to do a disservice to the word. Mindf***ing obscenely hypocritical starts to approach it a little bit.

2. ?Many of your fans are opposed to such a view and feel it has no place in a sport that is strictly for pride, entertainment, and excitement.? Holy f**king sh**balls. Did you seriously just say that, as someone who?s ?deeply involved in government task forces on the legacy of slavery in Maryland?? Have you not heard of Kenny Washington? Jackie Robinson? As recently as 1962 the NFL still had segregation, which was only done away with by brave athletes and coaches daring to speak their mind and do the right thing, and you?re going to say that political views have ?no place in a sport?? I can?t even begin to fathom the cognitive dissonance that must be coursing through your rapidly addled mind right now; the mental gymnastics your brain has to tortuously contort itself through to make such a preposterous statement are surely worthy of an Olympic gold medal (the Russian judge gives you a 10 for ?beautiful oppressionism?).

3. This is more a personal quibble of mine, but why do you hate freedom? Why do you hate the fact that other people want a chance to live their lives and be happy, even though they may believe in something different than you, or act different than you? How does gay marriage, in any way shape or form, affect your life? If gay marriage becomes legal, are you worried that all of a sudden you?ll start thinking about penis? ?Oh sh**. Gay marriage just passed. Gotta get me some of that hot dong action!? Will all of your friends suddenly turn gay and refuse to come to your Sunday Ticket grill-outs? (Unlikely, since gay people enjoy watching football too.)

I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won?t come into your house and steal your children. They won?t magically turn you into a lustful c***monster. They won?t even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of our population?rights like Social Security benefits, child care tax credits, Family and Medical Leave to take care of loved ones, and COBRA healthcare for spouses and children. You know what having these rights will make gays? Full-fledged American citizens just like everyone else, with the freedom to pursue happiness and all that entails. Do the civil-rights struggles of the past 200 years mean absolutely nothing to you?

In closing, I would like to say that I hope this letter, in some small way, causes you to reflect upon the magnitude of the colossal foot in mouth clusterf**k you so brazenly unleashed on a man whose only crime was speaking out for something he believed in. Best of luck in the next election; I?m fairly certain you might need it.

Sincerely,
Chris Kluwe

P.S. I?ve also been vocal as hell about the issue of gay marriage so you can take your ?I know of no other NFL player who has done what Mr. Ayanbadejo is doing? and shove it in your close-minded, totally lacking in empathy piehole and choke on it. A**hole.

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Source: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/09/nfl-punter-goes-on-tirade-for-gay-marriage/

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