"Proud To Be An American" (rant!)

[Coventina]

I returned late last night from my SO's company function that was held at Las Vegas over the weekend.

To close the main ceremony, the crowd was asked to sing along with what is apparently our new national anthem "Proud to Be an American" or whatever the hell it's called. When the line came, "And I'll proudly stand up" everybody practically LEAPT out of their chairs and remained standing for the rest of the song. WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON????? I was the only one out of HUNDREDS (that I could see) with my butt firmly in my chair.

Folks, I just want to say that there are TWO pieces of music for which United States citizens are expected to rise: The National Anthem, and the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's "Messiah".

I am NOT going to rise for that bombastic, pseudo-country, jingoistic, corporate-driven, poorly written, assinine, PIECE OF SHIT "song".

There's a line that goes, "They can't take that away from me", but it is never established who "THEY" are. What the hell is he talking about? WTF????

I feel like I've slipped into the twilight zone.
Everyone has drunk the Kool-Aid but me.

:(

[MissMillie]

1. I would have stood up....

... and found my way to the restroom.

[Plaid Adder]

2. Don't feel bad...I hate that song too

And you know what I hate most about it? The line,

"...and I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free."

I bet you could walk up to any of those people standing up and ask them to define what they mean by "freedom" and they couldn't do it. I think the word has been abused and manipulated so much by the assholes in power that its meaning has actually been destroyed. Free to do what? Free to be an American? Who's tryin' to stop you?

Sigh,

The Plaid Adder

[stopbush]

5. "...and I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free."

The line rings so true to American citizens like Jose Padilla.

BTW - I've never heard this POS song...I've programmed out the country music channels on my cable and rarely watch sports.

[NightTrain]

27. "And I won't forget the men who died to give that right to me."

I'm guessing Lee Greenwood wasn't referring to men like JFK and Martin Luther King.

[TXlib]

10. Free to be

A gas-guzzlin', litterin', no-turn-signal-using asshole, most likely.

[dofus]

3. It's all part of the campaign

to make us good little nazis. So long as we obey mindlessly, quote the slogans without thinking what they actually mean, don't question our leaders, then all will be okay.

We should never be sucked into that kind of mass behavior. But what else does it remind you of? How apart behavior of fans at a sporting event? Singing songs, showing solidarity, mindless cheering and chanting of slogans.

Patriotism as football, that's what it all is.

[GOPisEvil]

4. It all started with line dancing.

;-)

My joke about line dancing always was, "Last time a nation all got together and did stuff in unison, it was the Germans of the '30s." Looks like we are heading that direction ourselves sometimes. They all stood up? :wtf:

What freaking jingoistic company is this, so I can avoid them?

[bleedingheart]

7. hee hee...I like it

"Last time a nation all got together and did stuff in unison, it was the Germans of the '30s."

[Character Assassin]

14. You may want to rethink that one....

My joke about line dancing always was, "Last time a nation all got together and did stuff in unison, it was the Germans of the '30s."

No, that would be when we got together and prevented them from acting in unison.

[GOPisEvil]

18. Point well taken.

I'll have to adjust my scathing criticism of line-dancing.

[Coventina]

16. Very large defense contractor

So, part of me says I should not have been shocked.

But really, I still am. I am still deeply disappointed in my fellow citizens.

[underpants]

19. Line dancing is fascist

You are right

[Spider Jerusalem]

6. I would've stood up.

Stood up and walked my ass the fuck out of there. And explained in no uncertain terms exactly why I was walking out if challenged by anyone.

[mr blur]

8. Well...

"There's a line that goes, "They can't take that away from me", but it is never established who "THEY" are. What the hell is he talking about? WTF????"

Haven't heard the thing but I presume it means everyone who isn't a white, right-wing war mongering paranoid arsehole - ie the rest of the world and, I'm sure, many many Americans.

[geniph]

9. My doG, this gives me the serious creeps!

Is anyone else flashing on the Hitler Youth singing "Tomorrow Belongs to Me" scene in Cabaret? Seriously, seriously creepy!

Extreme nationalism is one of the hallmarks of a fascist regime. Not tolerating dissent is another. This is not a good thing. Patriotism and nationalism are NOT the same thing - to paraphrase Al Franken, a patriot loves their country like an adult and works to correct the things that are wrong with it. A nationalist loves their country like a 4-year-old loves Mommy, and anyone who criticizes Mommy is a bad person.

<shudder>

That scene in Cabaret scares the hell out of me. I do NOT want to see it enacted in real life!

[Zomby Woof]

11. rise for the flag salute

Get in line, shut up, don't ask questions, trust our president, and OBEY. Got it?

If I get any more ironic, I will turn into a magnet, :o

[Robb]

12. You don't know the half of it

My annual pilgrimage to the county rodeo was an eye-opener last year, when that song was played and people not only stood, they put their hands on their hearts and sang along.

I mean, sure, it was a rodeo, but seriously. One old farmer two rows behind me said to his daughter, "So is this the national anthem now?... Shiiiit." :)

[Redleg]

13. U.S. citizens are expected to rise for Hallelujah Chorus?

Are you kidding me? I like Handel but I'm not going to get my ass out of a seat for it.

[Coventina]

17. Yes, that is the tradition

If you go to a performance of the "Messiah" at a concert hall, everybody stands for the Hallelujah chorus, and then sits back down afterward.
It's actually a holdover tradition from Britain.

[FloridaJudy]

30. The Hallelujah chorus

I heard that the King got up for a seventh-inning stretch at that point, and since he *was* the king, everyone else had to. It's been traditional since then.

Personally, I'd rather stand up for the last movement of Beethoven's Ninth, but then I AM a heathen...

[PROGRESSIVE1]

15. Why is this.....

"KKKountry Music" crap beibg used in the name of our country???\

I would not have stood for this shit either Coventina!


:puke: Country Music

[underpants]

20. Ugh every morning and every evening in the Army

From jsut before Gulf 1 to 1992. We didn';t to officially stand there and listen to it (I hated it the first time I heard it) but at first there was a lot of pressure put on us not to move.

Later on we got so sick of it we purposefully walked and talked until everyone started doing it and they stopped playing it.

[NightTrain]

28. It was Navy boot camp for me

Our drill instructors used to play that goddamned song every time they got pissed off and made us do endless push-ups. That was reason enough for me to detest the record, but now it gets resurrected every time the White House gets a hard-on for bombing another country. Despicable....

[Name removed]

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[Coventina]

22. Please explain

What am I not getting?

And how do you know what kind of people I hang out with?

[GOPisEvil]

23. Just a troll...move along...nothing to see here.

I suspect it'll have a tombstone before long. :-)

[Screaming Lord Byron]

24. What's there to get? It's a pretty lousy song.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

25. but hey, it's a 'free republic' I suppose.

[MisterP]

26. wasn't it written for a "beer-commercial-inspired" Reagan ad?

[Coventina]

29. kick for the evening crowd

'cuz I'm still angry and disturbed!

:kick:

[Name removed]

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