Fans asked to respect anthem (appeal may come tonight)

[mmonk]

After fielding complaints about N.C. State fans' creative liberties with "The Star Spangled Banner," school officials have asked student groups to encourage a more faithful singing of the national anthem's lyrics.

(snip)

In recent years, pregame performances of the anthem at State sporting events have prompted Wolfpack fans to scream, "Red!" in sync with the line "And the rockets' red glare," as a tribute to their favorite team's color. And when the guest singer brings it home with the line "and the home of the brave," those same fans substitute "Wolfpack" for "brave."

(snip)

With State scheduled to play Louisiana-Lafayette tonight, Student Wolfpack Club vice-president Brandon Pearson offered the following solution: Give the pregame microphone to coach Herb Sendek.


http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/story/1932348p-8285607c.html

[gratuitous]

1. Uhm, it's just a song?

There is nothing holy about "The Star-Spangled Banner." But this looks like the opening salvo for another divisive nonsensical push for a constitutional amendment (think flag burning) that elevates our national symbols to the realm of the sacred.

Hint for our whacko friends, lurkers and posters alike: If your national symbols don't inspire respect simply by dint of your nation's actions and need to be protected by law, they aren't worth very much.

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

2. copycat of the orioles' fans emphasizing the O

in o say can you see.

[arwalden]

5. Yep...

O Say Does That Star Spangled Banner Yet Wave

[PunkPop]

11. Or Dallas Stars fans yelling "Stars"

Or are Stars fans copying Orioles fans? Who's copying who? Where did this National Anthem heresy begin anyway?

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

3. Isn't it Francis Scott Key's G-G-Grandson moving to Canada, really??

I saw it on ABC World News tonight at the end of last week or this week being interviewed. He's so upset with the election results that he is one of the people moving to Canada.

[genieroze]

7. I don't blame him. eom

[mmonk]

4. As a Wolfpack club member

and having a son currently enrolled at NC State, there has never been a problem with this practice until we played East Carolina in Bank of America Stadium (neutral field). I will complain via email. I'm tired of these radicals controlling my life. I go to the football and basketball games as an enjoyable escape now from them as well as school traditions. I'm going to start standing up to these people. I've had enough.

[arwalden]

6. Hey... Flag WORSHIPPERS, Anthem WORSHIPPERS..

GET OVER YOURSELVES!!

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

8. As a NCSU alumna (undergrad)

we used to sing much worse variations on the anthem! :evilgrin:

But my favorite is the singing of our unofficial fight song... no one knows the full words, but everyone shouts out loud "Go to hell, Carolina!"

Of course, we did much worse down the road in Durham (Duke alumna - post grad) taunting opponents to no end at basketball games....

People need to lighten up... The bastardization of common song lyrics and the taunting of opponents are among my most cherished college memories.

[SW FL Dem]

18. Another former Duke grad student here

I know exactly what you are talking about. I still have a painters cap from a Duke football game with Go to Hell Carolina on the back. Nothing like being in Cameron, the students are very creative in their taunting :).

[Benhurst]

9. Symbols take on greater importance when the substance for

which they once stood no longer exists.

Land of the free? Home of the brave?

Yeah. Sure. Welcome to Bush America. :sick:

[noonwitch]

10. I never understand people who revere symbols more than the country

those symbols represent. Soldiers don't fight and die for the flag or the national anthem, they do it for their country, or because they believe it's for their country.

I always told my freeper grandpa "I've never burned a flag in my life, but if they make a constitutional amendment making it a crime, I will start doing so the next day". He didn't get it, they never do.

I hate singing "The Star Spangled Banner", because it is such a difficult range for my limited vocal ability. I do appreciate someone who can sing it well, however.

[Forkboy]

12. I hope they yell it twice as loud next time

[donsu]

13. I always wondered why they did the flag thing before sporting events

it never made sense to me. the sporting event isn't a gov. event. we all didn't wake up and forget what country we were in and have to be reminded before watching, for fun, a sporting event. it's like going to the movies or clubs, for fun - that doesn't get a flag event.

[RaleighNCDem]

14. As a grad of NCSU, I can tell you that they will just yell louder now.

And they should. What's wrong with having a little fun at a sporting event? Isn't the Star Spangled Banner a glorified fight song for the US anyway?

[kodi]

15. never had that problem when norm sloan's wife sang the anthem

off-key.

[dw]

16. It's origins lie in a British drinking song...

It is very likely that Key only ever intended this as a poem. However, there was a very popular tune of the time which had the same form and metre, and there can be no doubt that Key was heavily influenced by it - ironically, this was the tune of a British drinking song!

When the handbills were printed, they bore the name of this tune to which the poem should be sung - Anacreon in Heaven. Nobody is sure whether this was Key's idea, or whether his brother-in-law had made the connection, but to this day the American National Anthem is sung to the tune of a British drinking song.

At one time, the English composer Dr Thomas Arnold was thought to be its composer - it was used as the constitutional song of the Anacreonic Society, a drinking club based in a pub in the Strand, London, for which Arnold had written numerous songs. However, it is now accepted that the tune was actually written by John Stafford Smith for the same society, probably in 1771.

Key made a number of hand-written copies of his original poem, introducing the occasional change. But it wasn't just Key that made alterations; various editors along the way have also had a hand in altering spelling, punctuation and even the words. The original text of the poem has therefore varied depending on where you read it.

From www.gbjann.com/anthem/history.htm

[omshanti]

17. About damn time!

- A UNC fan :-)

On edit: "Go to hell State"

[mmonk]

19. Have any of you

Tarhole fans ever complained?;)

[Javaman]

20. More Faithful? Okay, let's go back to it's original drinking song version.

[mmonk]

21. Proud to report from the basketball game tonight

that our tradition concerning the anthem held. Actually, it was done more forcefully and loud (red and Wolfpack in the key areas of the song). All is right with the world (or at least at NC State).

[lebkuchen]

22. A lot of countries don't even know the words to their anthem

I saw Australians at a women's basketball game, and they weren't standing up straight, hands over hearts, dutifully singing the words like obedient fascists. They were chewing gum, hanging over the rails, and waiting for the game to start.

[HuffleClaw]

23. we Canadians are not immune to such silliness, sadly

not so long ago, a well-known Canadian recording artist, substituted the last couple words of our national anthem with a phrase honouring another canadian who'd just achieved some accomplishment or another. the OUTCRY following this was just hilarious. some were just about calling for her head, you'd think she'd added SATAN to the anthem, not added something HONOURING a fellow Canadian. its a non-issue. hell, people should be happy people sing it at all. a lot DON'T, mostly because they don't know the words, or are too busy noshing on a hot dog before the game.