David Steele

David "Wish I was like the Superhero that Shaq played" Steele is a cynical dimwit who has earned his room in the hotel.

Words cannot describe his ignorance...well, yes they can...his words...here they are:

From the September 17, 2001 issue of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Anthem at games serves a purpose for a while

STARTING TODAY with the return of Major League Baseball, and continuing with the resumption of football and other sports, the national anthem will be sung by more people with more passion and feeling than at possibly any other time in our history. It will be that way at every game for as long as this national crisis lasts, and it should be.

Still, with that in mind, I have these two requests for President Bush as he prepares the response to the terrorist attacks:

1. Win.

2. Immediately upon the declaration of peace, pass an executive order forever banning the playing of the national anthem at sporting events.

Because never has the tradition of playing "The Star-Spangled Banner" before games seemed as ridiculous as it does in light of the past week.

Today, when the public-address announcer asks us to "honor America," no one will be juggling nachos and beer. No one will be flipping through a program, or gazing with hands shoved in pockets, or gabbing into a cell phone, or looking through binoculars at scantily clad women, or plopping back into a seat upon hearing "O'er the land of the free . . ."

No one in the press box will be surfing the Web for boxscores, or finishing phone calls, or shuffling through pregame notes, or timing the song.

No player will be popping gum, or rolling his neck to get loose, or toying with his drawstring, or adjusting his cup.

And one can only hope no one performing the anthem will be contorting or twisting, moaning or wailing, shaking his or her spangles or tassels, or exposing his or her midriffs or boxer shorts, or altering the lyrics to fit the event.

That's our national anthem today, folks, thanks to the daily watering-down of its meaning for the past six decades, since the practice began during, understandably, World War II.

It always takes on more significance at times like this, such as the Persian Gulf War or the Iran hostage crisis in years past. The rest of the time -- or at least as long as I can remember, and I'm in my mid-30s -- one of America's most sacred songs has served as little more than a prestige-filled gig for the performers and a time-trigger for the fans. (If you hear the anthem, you'd better get to your seat because the game's about to start.) More people stand for -- and more people sing -- "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" than they do for the anthem.

Everyone can remember one or two games at which the anthem was truly moving.

Everyone can also remember one or two times it was mangled beyond recognition (Carl Lewis and Roseanne, take a bow). The other thousands of times we've heard it, we remember nothing at all.

If you watch the games only at home instead of attending in person, chances are it's been years since you've heard the anthem. The telecast sacrifices it for a few extra minutes with Mike Ditka and Jerry Glanville in the studio. The exceptions: the big events, like the Super Bowl and World Series, when a nation pauses to see if the celebrity artist butchers the lyrics or cracks on the high notes.

The exception to the exception: Whitney Houston at the 1991 Super Bowl, during the Gulf War. Again, understandable.

In some cases, the anthem has served as a good-luck charm, certain singers trotted out for big games. The most notable case didn't actually involve the anthem, but it was close: Kate Smith singing "God Bless America" during the Flyers' Stanley Cup run in the '70s. Very noble.

It's been a long time since the whole exercise has made sense. After all, they don't play the anthem before concerts or movies or plays. Before they tape an episode of "Friends," the producers don't ask the studio audience to please rise and honor America. The Marine color guard doesn't march onto stage before the opera or symphony. Like sports, they're all forms of entertainment.

Only sports inflates its own importance enough to co-opt "The Star-Spangled Banner" as a time-honored ritual. It's even inspired an old joke: What's the last line of the national anthem? "Play ball!" Kind of funny, but during this national emergency, it's more a sad indication of how much the anthem has been trivialized. How can you cherish a song you hear a hundred times a year at notably unpatriotic times?

One afternoon a few years ago, I was nodding off on my couch when I heard the opening bars of the anthem coming from the TV. The first thought that popped into my groggy head was, "What game is on this early?"

It wasn't a game. It was President Clinton laying a wreath at a memorial for World War II casualties in Europe.

Last week's tragedies have returned the anthem to its rightful place. It was sung at the close of a vigil in Oakland on Friday, the national day of remembrance -- less than a day after I found out that a friend and former colleague had lost his brother at the Pentagon.

The anthem sounded a lot different to me then than it has on press row the past 16 years. Let's make sure it stays that way. Take it out of the ballgame.

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Here is my response to him (of course, no reply from him)

Mr. Steele,

Your article makes many valid points about how little regard people have for the national anthem. It is a sad statement about our country, actually. America has become such a selfish/me-first society that considering the feelings of others or respecting something greater than self is considered an inconvenience and outdated concept. Have you seen the questionnaires where too many people say that they consider Memorial Day as only a 3 day weekend, rather than a time to reflect on the price of freedom?

It's really a shame that it takes a national tragedy to knock people into a temporary sense of decency and national pride. In true cynical fashion, you acknowledged this and want to remove the national anthem from sporting events because it is an inconvenience for a world who cares more about "me" and "my team", but not "my national heritage."

I am not a veteran, but my father is. He taught me the importance of the national anthem and how to show respect, not for a piece of cloth and some musical notes, but for what they represent. Perhaps it is too much to ask that schools and parents do likewise. It is easier to remove the national anthem from our sporting events, isn't it? After all, having to teach requires work, and work is an inconvenience that doesn't directly benefit number one, does it?

Some sporting events also understand the importance of the showing respect to our country. At Kansas State University football games, they honor America before each game. They play a "fanfare for America" and recite the Pledge of Allegiance, the Preamble to the Constitution, and excerpts from the Declaration of Independence. Afterwards, the band, who plays stirring patriotic background music during this time, follows up with the national anthem. K-State fans do not sit down as the last line is being sung. They do not act bored. It is a cherished tradition. Yes, it is played every game. Does it lose its meaning, like you suggested? Let me ask you this: K-State also plays the fight song and alma matter at every home game, as does many college bands. They play the fights song many times. Does that lose meaning? Hardly. People still sing it and get enthusiastic. Repetition does not water down meaning and enthusiasm - only the attitude of the one listening has been watered down because his or her priorities have become messed up.

The great thing about this land of freedom is that if you are opposed to the national anthem, you don't have to stand, you don't have to remove your hat, you don't have to put your hand over your heart, and you don't have to sing. If 2 minutes of reflection time is an inconvenience to you, I am truly sorry, because we know that you wouldn't waste that much time doing something like standing in line for a beer or standing in line for the john. Of course, you could try a more noble and honorable route and consider changing your heart and perhaps trying to influence those around you to take a brief time out of your life from time to time and consider what your freedom cost a bunch of men whose names you'll never know, or what it costs their mothers and fathers, who sacrificed their sons so that you can write your articles free from government retribution.