Anybody else hear the story about the $100 fine for not standing

[zbdent]

during the National Anthem?

I caught a blurb about it, I think on the Mitch Albom show this afternoon.

There's a $100 fine for not standing for the National Anthem, I think for at a baseball game. (Also mentioned was being fined for dancing to it - now who the fex would dance to that music? I can see "orgasmic" swaying by a freepfanatic)

Please tell me I'm not going crazy on this . . .

[zauberflote]

1. Can't be

Besides, how could they police 40,000 at a baseball game.

[Lindsay]

2. I think it's the players who get fined

for not standing or for fooling around during the playing of the anthem.

They're not (yet) fining fans, as far as I know.

[oostevo]

3. Congress passed a law

in 1942 (I think) describing flag etiquette, but there can not, of course, be any penalties associated with it (thank you, First Amendment)

Edit:
I can't find the actual resolution, but here is more information summarizing it.

[Nobody]

4. I'd say you should drink to it

Swing your mug, take a swig, and sing because "To Anacreon In Heav'n" is an old English drinking song that had its melody borrowed by Francis Scott Key.

Not every nation has a national anthem based on a drinking song.

[tcfrogs]

5. Blame the source

Mitch Albom used to be a mildly interesting sports guy who I enjoyed at times on ESPN. Now, he's writing miserably sappy books & doing a radio show.

Echo above - that's crazy that anyone would get fined. Idiotic, in fact.

[zbdent]

7. He does a fairly left-sympathetic show in the afternoon, even though

he says that he Repub, but not lock-step. He is very refreshing considering what Cleveland's ClearChannel stations consider as "Mr. Know-It-All".

I would wonder if anybody would take it to court. I can't see how it would stand up as constitutional.

[AZCat]

6. If they'd hurry it up, it wouldn't be such a problem!

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/writers/dr_z/02/26/insider/

Singing the blues
Years of timing anthem has me asking why some insist on dragging it out
Updated: Thursday February 26, 2004 10:03PM

Sports Illustrated senior writer Paul Zimmerman covers the NFL for the magazine and SI.com. His Power Rankings, "Inside Football" column and Mailbag appear weekly on SI.com.

<snip>
For years, the fastest rendition I regularly clocked was that of the Princeton band. Always around 53 seconds. Then in 1977 I covered a Yankees-Red Sox series at Fenway. The organist was an older man named John Kiley who'd been playing the anthem at Red Sox games for years. The first night he hit the turn ("And the rocket's red glare") in 23 seconds. "Oh my God," I said to myself. "He's on a record pace."

When he reached Heartbreak Hill ("Oh say does that Star Spangled banner yet wave...") he looked like he was going to break five-oh, but the Hill got him, as it does all of them. He staggered in, and held the last note for a couple of counts, but the watch still read 55 seconds. Gosh, if he picked it up at the Hill and got off the last note ... well, I had to talk to him about it.

So I entered the booth, and he was a nice old guy, and when I told him what was possible he said he'd have to think it over. "Some people complain that I do it too fast anyway," he said.

Next night the press box was poised. Everyone who owned a stopwatch had it out. John came through. He took the Hill at a gallop and gunned it at the end, and when he cut off the last note, the readout was 51.0. A big cheer went up among the writers, and I dashed into the organist's booth to congratulate him.

"Mr. Kiley," I said, so choked with emotion I could barely speak. "This is a very big moment for me."

"Well, son," he said, "I must admit I was thinking of you."
</snip>

Great article, I love Dr. Z.