President Trump and Vice President Pence have both now made spectacles of themselves in criticizing NFL players for disrespecting the flag, the national anthem, the military, motherhood and apple pie. Here are some fun facts about the anthem and the flag, some exposing hypocrisy by the two of them:
* The anthem isn’t even American – at least not completely. While the lyrics were written by American Francis Scott Key, the tune is a popular British song of the time written by John Stafford Smith and called “To Anacreon in Heaven,” the theme song of a men’s social club in London, The Anacreontic Society. Anacreon was a 6th century Greek poet most noted for his drinking songs. So the music for the anthem the NFL players are dishonoring is actually British, representing a sexist club that venerates a guy whose claim to fame is songs promoting drinking to excess. Please stand and remove your hats.
* Although the song became the official national anthem in 1916 under President Woodrow Wilson, it was not sung at a sporting event until World War II to juice up the patriotic spirits of the folks who had nothing better to do for the war effort than go to a ballgame. And nobody ever pulled the plug. Playing of the anthem at sporting events, concerts or other non-government events is not in the U.S. Code or in any law. It is not required and there is absolute no reason for it other than forced patriotism. If anybody should take a knee, it should be those poor baseball players who have to listen to the damn thing at least 162 times a year. The funniest forced patriotic use is before pro hockey games, since although most teams are in American cities, most players are non-Americans.
* U.S. Code requires members of the military in uniform to stand at attention, face the flag and salute during the anthem. They can be disciplined for not doing so. Soldiers not in uniform may salute (a recent addition). Members of the public should stand at attention, face the flag and place their right hand over their heart during the playing of the anthem. There is no penalty for not doing so. Choosing not to do so is a protected right under the First Amendment, as affirmed by the courts. The government cannot punish you for not following the code. Government employees who urge employers to take action against or fire employees for not following the code are in violation of federal law. Private employers may require it of at-will employees providing it has been made clear to the employee that it is a condition of employment. Union employees cannot be punished unless their contract allows for it. Thus, NFL football players cannot be fired or disciplined unless they specifically violate the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Thus, Jerry Jones can threaten to discipline his players, but it is very likely that is a violation of the CBA.
* The anthem is so difficult to sing that most amateurs cannot hit all the notes correctly, and many professionals cannot as well. The difficulty of the song prompted humorist Richard Armour to write, “During the bombardment, a young lawyer named Francis Off Key wrote ‘The Star-Spangled Banner,’ and when, by the dawn's early light, the British heard it sung, they fled in terror.”
* Many artists have offered their own radically different versions of the anthem, beginning with blind singer Jose Feliciano’s slow, bluesy version before Game 5 of the 1968 Detroit-St. Louis World Series. It was a stunning performance that produced about an equal love-hate response. The version did, however, show up on the Billboard Hot 100, one of only two versions to do so, the other one being Whitney Houston’s 1991 version sung before Super Bowl XXV, which hit No. 20 that year and No. 6 on the chart 10 years later. The most jarring and controversial rendition to that time was the electric guitar version Jimi Hendrix debuted in 1968 and is most remembered from his performance at Woodstock in 1969. Without doubt the worst and most hated version of the anthem ever was the one performed by comedienne Roseanne Barr in 1990 before a San Diego Padres baseball game, so badly off key it was blamed for a later earthquake, and complete with a couple of typical ballplayer movements, spitting and “adjusting her cup.”
* Jehovah’s Witnesses do not sing the national anthem, nor do they recite the Pledge of Allegiance, both of which are at odds with their religious teachings. Standing for the anthem is a matter of personal choice. Trump and Pence have not said a word about the Witnesses disrespecting the flag, nation, troops or Chevrolets. Why not? Because they are exercising their religious rights under the First Amendment. Wait … what?
* For my money, Ray Charles’ version of “America The Beautiful” should be the national anthem.
Our White House battery usually conflates taking a knee during the anthem with disrespecting the flag rather than its true purpose, the protest of racial inequality in America. Well, let’s just take a look at some flag protocols under the U.S. code.
* The Flag Code defines "the flag" as anything "by which the average person seeing the same without deliberation may believe the same to represent the flag of the United States of America". In other words, if it looks like a duck and it quacks like a duck, it’s a flag. With that in mind:
* The code prohibits using the flag “for any advertising purpose.” Trump and Pence both violated this one repeatedly during the campaign (see photo at top), and continue doing so today. Such disrespect for the flag. Sad.
* The flag also “"should not be embroidered, printed, or otherwise impressed on such articles as cushions, handkerchiefs, napkins, boxes, or anything intended to be discarded after temporary use", and "The flag should never be used as wearing apparel.” You mean like the Trump shirts and the MAGA and USA hats Trump is SELLING? Again, the code provides no penalties. Too bad. Then we could be yelling, “Lock them up!!!”
* You know how they carry those football-field size flags out on the field before the game and wave it during the anthem? How come Trump and Pence aren’t complaining about THAT disrespect of the flag? Section 8, Part (c) of the flag code on Respect for the Flag reads, "The flag should never be carried flat or horizontally, but always aloft and free." They should fire whoever ordered those people to carry it like that and fans should quit going to any events where they do that, including Trump rallies where you often see the flag hung horizontally.
Nowhere in the United States Constitution is there any mention of a flag or a national anthem, although Der Furor would like an amendment making flag burning illegal, and apparently requiring people to stand for the national anthem. Fortunately, we have the First Amendment, which allows us to burn either if we so desire because they are simply symbols.
For some they are symbols of what America is. For others they are symbols of what America is not. But in the end they are just symbols, with no force of law or legal protection. Which is as it should be, because as much as Trump and Pence want to claim our military fought and died for these symbols, the vast majority of them will tell you they didn’t fight for a piece of cloth or a song with British-written music. Most will tell you they fought for the freedom for you and me to view those symbols however we want, without reprisal, punishment or government interference.