This video shows up to be posted in May of 2018….a time when the National Anthem of The United States of America is in the national and local news on a regular basis on dang near every network and channel that airs the news….as the current US President, Donald J. Trump, has “brought a great deal of heat” down on the NFL and their players who have chosen to kneel on the field and sidelines during the Star Spangled Banner…..which is played before EVERY sporting event from Pee Wee League sports to professional league sports….as a tradition in sports….so, when we see athletes of the USA use the National Anthem as a “soapbox” for political views and statements….we at ImaSportsphile just have to remind all Sportsphiles and fans that “THE WORST TICS ARE POLI-TICS”…..and that crap doesn’t have any place or value in our site….but the Star Spangled Banner most certainly does….and that is why we have a category in our music section that is specifically for this hallowed anthem….and the many folks have tried to sing it in public.
The Star-Spangled Banner lyrics come from “Defense of Fort M’Henry”….which was a poem written on September 14, 1814, by the then 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key….who after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by British ships of the Royal Navy in Baltimore Harbor during the Battle of Baltimore in the War of 1812…..Key was inspired by the large U.S. flag, with 15 stars and 15 stripes, known as the Star-Spangled Banner, flying triumphantly above the fort during the U.S. victory.
This rendition of the famous anthem is one of our very favorites…..as it was played at the end of broadcasting of every night during the mid-to-late 1970’s on KLRU Channel 11 Austin Texas….which was the local affiliate of the Public Broadcasting System (PBS)….as this nightly sign-off featured the final verse of the Star Spangled Bannder….which have the following lyrics:
O thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation.
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust.’
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
It is our recommendation to any and all athletes that feel a need to take a knee when the Star Spangled Banner is played….that they remember the first two lines of the final verse….“O thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand…..between their loved homes and the war’s desolation”….and understand why then need to find another place to show their political viewpoints….and view this video as a reminder of why “Americans stand and salute the flag”…..cuz remember, THE WORST TICS ARE POLI-TICS”
