"God Bless America"

[billd91]

One thing that annoys me about "God Save the Queen" is that it's played for the England rugby team. All the other countries have great, stirring anthems, and we get that dirge, and it's not even the English anthem! Why can't we have "Land of Hope and Glory" to get us going? I'd even settle for "Rule Brittannia", even though it's even less appropriate that GStQ.

"The Star Spangled Banner" isn't exactly immune from sounding like a dirge if you watch enough of the Olympics on US television. Egad, I wish they'd use a more punched up version than the draggy one they play.

 

[Thunderfoot]

<Snip> And those Dutch, some actually have pony tails - in uniform!

I wasn't gonna say anything.... however watching the Swedish women change clothes in the field was rather nice.
And the Finns....and the Danes....I love Nordic women and their lack of modesty.

 

[Voadam]

For me, even as a former eagle scout who learned all the flag respect ettiquette as a kid, it seems a little wierd conceptually to have the national anthem at a sporting event at all. It makes sense in the olympics where it is explicitly national representation. Similarly flags make sense for codified government buildings and contexts (and therefore for the military) and events like the fourth of July which explicitly celebrates American independence. Seeing these things in random civilian contexts though like the anthem at a baseball game or a flag on a pickup truck or a lapel pin on a senator always seems jarring and contextually off. It has the effect of seeming merely an ostentatious display instead of a country symbol.

I'm not into baseball, what happens when the Toronto Blue Jays play in an American city? Do both U.S. and Canadian anthems get played? And vice versa when playing in Toronto?

 

[jaerdaph]

I'm not into baseball, what happens when the Toronto Blue Jays play in an American city? Do both U.S. and Canadian anthems get played? And vice versa when playing in Toronto?

Yes. Hockey too.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

One note of interest: based on a change in the 2009 Defense Authorization Act, US veterans and military personnel are now authorized to render the hand salute in civilian clothes when the National Anthem is played. That's in addition to the raising/lowering/passing of the flag, which was added in 2008.

 

[El Mahdi]

One note of interest: based on a change in the 2009 Defense Authorization Act, US veterans and military personnel are now authorized to render the hand salute in civilian clothes when the National Anthem is played. That's in addition to the raising/lowering/passing of the flag, which was added in 2008.

Thanks for that info, Olgar. That's a pretty cool change. I'll have to let my dad and brother know about it also.

 

[Thunderfoot]

Thanks Olgar,
As a vet I say HOOAH!!
besides I have five vets besides myself I can contact in a matter of hours of posting this. Veterans day may have a new (additional) meaning around my home town.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

An update of sorts:

I recently took my Aunt and her son to one weekend's worth of the Texas HS Football State Championships, held at Cowboy Stadium.

Yes, that Cowboy Stadium. Football is quite serious down here.

Anywho, when we arrived to see his school play (he's not on the team, he was going to show support...and hang out with a girl), they played the National Anthem. No surprise...

Except, in direct contradiction of what prompted me to start this thread, EVERYONE I could see took off their hats and placed hand or hat over their hearts when the Anthem was played.

Color me stunned.

OTOH, the evening wasn't without its less-than-patriotic moment.

That was the night when it was revealed to all in attendance that Cowboy Stadium has no permanent American flag on display. The revelation came because one school didn't bring a color guard, expecting there to be a flag in situ.

That's right, we have the worlds biggest HD TVs, but no Old Glory. Hard to salute what ain't there.

Jones got an earful. He responded that there wasn't anywhere to put one.

Again...WR HD TVs, capacity @100k people...and no place for the nation's flag.

Jones got more earfulls.

Current opinion has him finding a place before the stadium hosts a Superbowl, possibly by this year's playoffs if the Cowboys make it.

 

[Bedrockgames]

Who knows, I will say as a former Soldier, it does cheese me off when people blatantly disrespect the the Flag or National Anthem, but more often than not, I think its merely a case of "ceremonial ignorance" I still remember learning the Pledge of Allegiance in school for the first couple of years before they stopped it; they taught us how to stand, what to say, how to act, and then, they stopped. It was after that I noticed people stopped paying attention, like I said, just ignorance not blatant disrespect. So I usually give some grace in these cases and then try to teach them the error of their ways later.
.

Do you know what year they stopped the pledge? I recall saying it every day up through highschool, but I remember hearing talk about this toward my senrior year. I also seem to recall they brought the pledge back, but can't really remember.

 

[Thunderfoot]

Do you know what year they stopped the pledge? I recall saying it every day up through highschool, but I remember hearing talk about this toward my senrior year. I also seem to recall they brought the pledge back, but can't really remember.

In my area it was around 1978/79 time frame. However, I'm sure that varied by State, local ordinances, etc.