For American men, watching sports is a way to bond with pals, vicariously live out athletic dreams, and escape life’s pressures. It’s certainly no place for lectures.

In a perfect world, sports and politics would never mix, but our world’s far from perfect. In the ’60s, athletes like Muhammad Ali began using their platforms to draw attention to societal woes. Back then, it was frowned on, but in 2022 it’s more feature than bug. The slippery slope wins again -- the Disease of Wokeness is consuming sports top to bottom.

The NFL was the first to catch a serious case, and with Kaepernick’s help, it metastasized rapidly. He was a mediocre QB and an astonishingly ungrateful person. But credit where due, he saw his path to fame and fortune and went all in -- he took a stand against racial injustice and police violence against blacks.

Just one problem -- the racial injustice he railed against didn’t exist. Smart people like Heather MacDonald have demonstrated this repeatedly. Didn’t matter one iota -- the truth means nothing under Woke Doctrine. The NFL was off and running, as was Kaepernick. He signed a multi-million-dollar deal with Nike to push false, destructive narratives.

The kneeling abomination took hold. Championship teams began pointedly skipping White House visits, and other leagues followed suit. The Golden State Warriors pre-emptively (and amusingly) declined their White House invitation. The MLB moved its Allstar Game from Atlanta over Voter ID concerns. Imagine requiring ID to vote. Oh, to be so oppressed.

Nowadays the nonsense is nonstop. Why do white men still watch? Do they enjoy being shamed and insulted? They’d push back with ferocity against the accusation and toss the R-word at anyone suggesting it. For once, they’d find their inner alpha and take a stand against something they despise. Themselves.

I stopped watching football long ago. Was never a big fan anyway. Hockey’s my thing, and I knew in my heart the NHL would never fall victim to Wokeness. I smugly thought that as recently as November 11, 2019, the day Sportsnet fired Don Cherry. For those who don’t know, Cherry was -- and is -- a national treasure. A legend. For 40 years, he singlehandedly made Hockey Night in Canada must-see TV.

His firing was the NHL’s first prolonged exposure to the Virus, and they’ve been badly infected ever since. Canadian broadcasts are unwatchable, though admittedly I still tune in occasionally. It’s always with a measure of penance.

First, I’m treated to the Indigenous Land Acknowledgement, where I’m told I’m a horrible person and I live on stolen land. It used to be one sentence. Lately it’s part of an extended ceremony. Finally -- blessedly -- the game starts, but the lecturing is by no means over. White Man Bad incidents are a regular feature.

Like the case of borderline NHLer Akim Aliu, who blamed his lack of success on being black. Veteran sports journalist Steve Simmons (white) had a different theory: “Aliu played for 23 teams in nine different leagues in 12 professional seasons and rarely finished any season with the same team he started with.” In other words, there might be something else going on. Maybe Aliu’s unlikable? Maybe he’s a problem in the room? Maybe he’s not very good? Simmons’ valid points were not well received.

The backlash was fierce, and no one was attacking the arguments. They were attacking Simmons’ right to express an opinion on the matter. Simmons was white, and he needed to STFU. Non-white players from around the league exercised moral high ground to echo the sentiment.

Or how about white minor-leaguer Jacob Panetta, who struck a bodybuilder pose to mock an opposing player (who was black). When it was interpreted as a monkey imitation, all hell broke loose. Commentators went full cuck -- there’s no place in our game for racism. They suspended Panetta and he was released from his ECHL team. Only after a Hostage Video Apology did he make his way back into the league. Another case of demand for white racism exceeding supply. Right, Bubba Wallace?

Things will get worse. The NHL named Kim Davis (black) their new Executive Vice President of Social Impact -- love the Orwellian title -- and she came out of the gate strong: “The NHL's first internal demographic study found its workforce to be overwhelmingly white.” Obviously, this is terrible. “We know we have a lot of work to do,” she added.

For comparison, let’s check NBA numbers. What’s that you say? Nearly 80% black? Whoa! With such astonishing overrepresentation, there must be frequent calls for diversity, right? Uh, no. On the contrary, any team that accidentally gets too white (like the Mavs) is accused of racism. Blacks’ dominance in the NFL is similarly cheered. The only possible conclusion is that diversity in sport means fewer whites.

But, but, but… basketball’s a black game. Blacks are better at basketball than whites. Okay, can that argument be used in hockey? Or any other facet of life? Of course not.

And what of the few white NBA players? Does anyone doubt they’re mocked and bullied? A young Lebron once said: “I don't want nothing to do with white people… it’s me and my boys… we’re here to hoop.” Maybe he’s changed, but I doubt it. Not when I hear him attacking Trump (a proxy for White America) or mocking young Kyle Rittenhouse.

I have a feeling most black players feel the same because they’re programmed to feel that way. When Montrezl Harrell calls Luka Dončić a “bitch ass white boy,” there were no repercussions. There was no national debate. Because it went public, Harrell apologized and Dončić accepted. End of story. Over In the NFL, Antonio Brown calls his Head Coach a "cracker" and threatens violence. The incident is quickly memory-holed.

We could do what-if-the-roles-were-reversed arguments all day long, but they’ve become tiresome. Anti-white smears are so baked into the culture that even defending them invites ridicule and scorn. Ergo, white athletes abstain. They walk on eggshells. They stay 100 miles away from conflict with anyone whose part of a protected species. Cucks take it a step further and courageously state: “As a white man, I have no business commenting.”

Blacks have no such compunction. Look at Astros Manager Dusty Baker. Last week he lamented the lack of African Americans in the 2022 World Series, in which his own team is participating. How's that for supporting the roster?

The Disease will run roughshod over all sports, even obscure ones. It’s a copout to call it Cultural Marxism, or even Wokeness. It’s Anti-Whiteism, plain and simple, the same variant you find in the corporate world. The existence of whites is a problem to be solved. White Man Bad is always the End Game.

Again, I ask, why do white men watch? Perhaps it’s time they stopped.

K.M. Breakey is the author of Shout the Battle Cry of Freedom, and six other novels. He can be reached at ‘km @ kmbreakey.com.’

Image: KeithAllisonPhoto.com