I have a bone to pick with
athletes everywhere. I have felt this way for years and I now have an outlet to
vent. Let me take out the soap box and get it set up.
I love this country and all
the crazy messed up B.S. that comes with it. I come from a family who has members that served
in uniform so I, and everyone else, have the right to say what we feel. We have the right to have a
job, shop where we want, live where we want and vote. The men and women
of this great nation fight for our freedoms on a daily basis. They have done
this for eons and will continue to do so until the end of time.
These men and women have
earned and deserve our gratitude and respect. One of the ways we show respect
for them and this great country is by singing the National Anthem before every
sporting event. From local high schools to professional teams, this song is
part of events on a daily basis.
When we sing this song- it
is always prefaced with "Please stand if you are able and remove all head
gear." But did you know there is an actual US Code that outlines how we as
citizens should stand and pay our respects during this 1 minute and 30 second
song?
According to:
36 U.S. Code 301 -
National Anthem -
(b)Conduct During Playing.—During a rendition of the national anthem—
(C)all other persons present
should face the flag and stand at attention with their right hand over the
heart, and men not in uniform, if applicable, should remove their headdress
with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the
heart; and
(2)when the flag is not
displayed, all present should face toward the music and act in the same manner
they would if the flag were displayed.
Time to
climb the soap box. How many times have you seen an athlete or coach NOT
standing at attention? How many times
has a camera panned to someone in uniform and they were messing with their jersey,
looking around or worse yet, TALKING? I’ve seen it more than I care to admit
and it makes my blood boil.
Here’s the
thing. As a professional athlete or coach you are being PAID to be there. You are being paid more money than most
active duty military make. Hell most athletes make more in 1-2 GAMES than most
of our military make in a year, but I digress. Is it too much to ask that you
stop thinking about yourself for 90 seconds and thank the men and women who
lived and died so you can make a living playing the sport you love?
This is an
equal opportunity rant- I see it in all sports at all levels, including NASCAR.
You see drivers talking to their wives and their crews talking to each other. This
behavior is not only infuriating but disrespectful at its core.
There are
hundreds of blog posts and articles from people all over the globe who see this behavior. If we as common citizens see this why aren’t people doing something
about it?
I watched this
video this morning and had tears in my eyes. Someone IS doing something about it. This coach gets it. Holy cow, does Coach Buzz Williams get it. This video
needs to be played for EVERY athlete; local or paid pro. The coach is right;
those players did not earn those chairs. It is time that athletes and fans everywhere start
earning their chairs. We can stand at attention. We can look at the flag. We
can ignore the fold in our shirt or pants. We can tune out the world and just listen
for 90 seconds and thank every one of our men and women in uniform for the chair they provided.
To see more about Coach Williams and what he is teaching his players about the National Anthem; read this article and check out the video he posted with his players.
If you
missed the previous link to the video I mentioned- see it here.
Here are a few pictures of athletes, officials and fans getting it right.
