Topic: Media Research Center
The anti-vaxxers at the Media Research Center spent the past couple of years hyping tennis star adn fellow anti-vaxxer Novak Djokovic as a victim for refusing to get a COVID vaccine and, thus, getting blocked from playing in tournaments in countries that had a vaccine requirement. As those vaccine requirements have been relaxed as the pandemic waned, the MRC is now treating Djokovic as a hero for his selfishness. Tierin-Rose Mandelburg served up some of that misguided hero worship in an Aug. 14 post:
And this ladies and gents - is why you don’t back down on what you know is the truth.
Serbian tennis champion Novak Djokovic was on track to win numerous matches in the US Open last year but was denied entry to the states because he refused the COVID vax.
This year, due to the more relaxed restrictions on COVID-19, Djokovic was permitted to attend and his fans were thrilled.
Djokovic was denied entry to America after he refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine. At the time, it was a requirement, aka another ridiculous and unconstitutional mandate by the U.S. government, for all non-citizens to show full vaccination before entering the country.
Standing firm in his choice, and his free will to make that choice, Djokovic dropped out of the final Grand Slam of the year to stick to his morals and principles, Daily Mail reported. He'd rather drop out of the competition than get the COVID-19 vaccine. After all, COVID-19 was not nearly as serious as the leftist media wanted you to believe and Djokovic is literally one of the best examples of a healthy man.
Luckliy, his firmness paid off in the end. Djokovic was able to return to the U.S. this year for the tournament and began warmups in Cincinnati this week.
Actually, Tierin-Rose, it's not uncosntitutional for a government to take reasonable health measures to stem a pandemic, and vaccine requirements for foreigners are quite reasonable, whether or not you're a famous person. She concluded by declaring. "In a world full of sheep, be a Djokivic" -- even though she's acting rather sheep-like in perpetuating anti-vaxx conspiracy theories and pretending that Djokovic was acting out based on "morals and principles" and not out of selfishness.
John Simmons used a Sept. 5 post to cheer a fellow anti-vaxxer for defending Djokovic:
Men’s tennis star Novak Djokovic is once again in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open after a victory last Saturday, reaching this stage of the tournament for a mind boggling 13th time (tied for second-most ever).
While the Serbian was in his Round of 16 match against Croatian Borna Gojo, New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers was watching from the luxury seats. In addition to being some of the best athletes in their respective sports, both Djokovic and Rodgers faced incredible scrutiny for choosing not to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
Evidently, not only did Rodgers respect Djokovic’s greatness at his craft, but his courage to stand against vaccine tyranny. As such, when Rodgers posted on his Instagram story about his time at Arthur Ashe stadium, he made sure he reminded his followers about their commonality from standing against the vaccine mandates (a screenshot of this is below).
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Similarly, Rodgers decided to not take the COVID vaccine despite the NFL practically forcing all of its personnel to do so. He also decided to take Ivermectin to fight COVID instead of getting the jab and used his platform to call out the absurdity of America’s COVID mandates and solutions to the “pandemic.”
It’s unfortunate that their examples didn’t inspire more people to take a similar stand. But, we know that at least two famous athletes with a capacity to think critically still exist.
Simmons didn't mention that there's no legitimate evidence that ivermectin works as a treatment for COVID. And, yes, the MRC has similarly praised Rodgers' anti-vaxxer selfishness as a virtue.
In a Sept. 20 post, Simmons whined that Djokovic's anti-vaxxer attitudes gave Rafael Nadal to win more tournaments and pointed out that Djokovic faced the consequences of his anti-vaxx refusal:
The debate over who is the greatest male tennis player is officially over.
This is thanks in large part to Rafael Nadal, the man who won several tournaments in 2022 that Novak Djokovic couldn't compete in, due to Djokovic's refusal to take the COVID vaccine.
Now of course, Djokovic winning his 24th Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open should have categorically ended all debate, but Nadal has also squashed any further discussion by saying Djokovic’s trophy case makes him better than any male to have ever played the sport.
[...]
“I believe that numbers are numbers and statistics are statistics. In that sense, I think he [Djokovic] has better numbers than mine and that is indisputable,” the Spanish legend said.
The Spaniard’s confession is significant because of how he reacted to Djokovic getting deported from Australia in 2022.
However, Djokovic was deported from Australia because he was unvaccinated, giving Nadal the inside track to get the record. Before the tournament began, he seemed to rub salt on Djokovic’s wound by gloating over the Serbian’s situation.
“I think if he wanted, he would be playing here in Australia without a problem,” the Spaniard said on Thursday. “He made his own decisions, and everybody is free to make their own decisions. But then there are some consequences.”
Nadal would end up winning that tournament and the 2022 French Open, putting significant distance between himself and Djokovic. But just over a year later, the GOAT is getting the last laugh, and the admission that Djokovic is the greatest shows Nadal knows he’s been beat. He will have one more year to catch Djokovic before he plans on retiring, but due to Nadal’s injuries and the Serbian’s form, that seems unlikely.
Lesson learned: don’t taunt the greats, even if they seem like they’re down for the count. Once they get back up, they come back with a chip on their shoulder and vengeance on their mind.
Simmons didn't explain how Nadal noting the indisputable fact that Djokovic's actions had consequences was "gloating" or "taunting."
