Protesting the national anthem is anti-American and disrespectful to all those who combined with sweat and diligence and discipline and blood and life itself to make this country great and defend it's greatness. From those who risked their lives crossing the vast ocean to pursue their religious beliefs in the new land. To those who harrowed fields out of wild, rocky, tree strewn forests, to those who crossed the country by horseback and foot pioneering through the great unknown - mountains, and rivers, and plains inhabited by animals they had never seen and Indians who would have their scalps.
And those who worked tirelessly to invent all manner of things fueled by the burgeoning capitalist political economic system that would advance the standard of living at a pace never before seen in all previous world history. People died building the infrastructure that would facilitate the industrial revolution, taking risks for the betterment of the collective society. People had a common spirit. They were virtually all religious and morally sound living in the fear of God. There was a common mindset. Right and wrong were clear and understood by all. Societal goals were pretty much constant.
And men fought in wars. From the American Revolution, to the Civil War (the one glaring example of differences of opinion amongst the American people), to WW1 to WW2 to the more recent wars of Vietnam and the Wars on terror. There have been 12 wars where Americans fought and lost lives. Over a million American soldiers lost their lives to preserve the tenets of the Constitution. How many more of their loved ones suffered the consequences of those deaths? That doesn't even count the soldiers who returned home maimed for life.
I could write a book about what the Anthem means to so many people in this country. But it's meaning is real and deeply felt. Maybe those who don't understand and feel at least some emotional attachment to the flag and the anthem can't understand why it is so sacred to many of us. But for those of us who get it and have shared this reverence with countless generations who preceded us, it is blasphemous to disrespect the anthem and the flag.
To compare what the desecration of these hallowed symbols to some dastardly individual deeds is simply inappropriate. Millions of men lost their lives fighting for that flag. Hardly the same as some thug roughing up his girlfriend or plugging another homey.
I refused to turn the Patriots game on on Sunday. And I'm hoping to hold out. I love the NFL. But I love the country that gave me opportunity more.
