The crux of Rick Reilly's latest column for ESPN.com is this: San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick should take steps to foster a relationship with his birth mother because Reilly's own adopted daughter has a healthy relationship with her birth mother. No, seriously, that's Reilly's argument, because Rick Reilly wouldn't be Rick Reilly if he weren't a presumptuous, morally officious boob:
The Kaepernicks have told Colin they'd have no problem with him speaking to Russo. They even met with her recently without Colin. But Colin hasn't budged on the issue. One of his friends told Yahoo! Sports that Colin would think it's "treasonous" to meet with Russo.
But it's not. It's healthy. It's healing. It's natural.
More than that, it's important. When that 11-year-old version of Rae finally got to meet her birth mother, even though it was only for 20 minutes, she glowed. Her roots were no longer a mystery. She finally knew where she came from.
Your parents are your parents forever. Nothing can ever change that.
Good for Rick and his daughter and her birth mom that things worked out, that the process was healthy and healing and natural for them. What makes Reilly a dick is the blithe assumption that it'd be the same for everyone else. I mean, I don't pretend to know what's best for Reilly and his kids and either of his wives. Who's he to say what's best for Colin Kaepernick?