A country?s national anthem is supposed to inspire feelings of pride and thankfulness in its citizens. Many would argue that it is an audible equivalent to the flag, carrying all the same meanings and undertones. Why is it, then, that so many of our countrymen no longer carry even the slightest respect for F. Scott Key?s ?Star Spangled Banner?? I can think of three specific manifestations of this problem, and have noticed them several times in the past week.

The first was when I was over at Gateway International Raceway, and they had a girl sing the national anthem before the actual competition got underway. I thought it was very appropriate; it?s something that is done before most sporting events, and it serves as a small reminder that if we were in other countries, we may not have the freedom to spend the day enjoying such past-times.

Out of reverence, one is supposed to remove any hat they are wearing and put aside whatever they were doing for the two minutes it takes to for the song to finish. Instead, people continued milling about and gave it absolutely no notice. I wish I could say that was the first time I had seen it happen, but unfortunately that?s becoming a common sight.

The other things I see commonly are less the fault of the observers and more often the fault of the performers or event organizers. During Unity Day celebrations, one of the performers offered a very good rendition of the anthem. The problem was that they did it in the middle of lunch hour at Havener and offered no announcement before beginning. It left those in the lunch room and food court absolutely no time to sit down their trays and assume the reverence required. As an event organizer, this is something that you must take into account.

To the musicians: I see the Banner being made into a piece of artistic virtuosity all too often. One of the most spine-tingling moments I have ever had was in high school when our marching band played the Star Spangled Banner at the first football game after September 11^th five years ago. Was it because we played it amazingly well? Not hardly. It was because all of us in the band realized that it wasn?t about our standing as musicians; it was about honoring the United States. We recognized that, and not only could it be heard in our playing, but it was transmitted into the audience?s emotions as well.

Similarly, I see performers (particularly trumpet players) adding all sorts of little extras in an attempt to make themselves seem amazing. Now, I?m not saying that adding all the little frills and triple octave jumps is wrong; if done properly it makes the song absolutely beautiful and can cause it to be an especially moving experience for everyone listening. What is wrong is trying to do it when you simply don?t have the chops to pull it off. If you?re going to frack it up, don?t try. Not only does it make you look like a moron, it destroys the attitude of reverence you are trying to achieve.

When tragedy struck on September 11th, for a few brief months, everyone remembered the importance of respecting our country, regardless of our thoughts on the current leaders. While I hoped that was something people would remember, I was really afraid that given time, it would fade again. This is one of those times that I really wish I hadn?t been right.

Ok, before we get started here, I want to specify that while this is my first post, it may not be an indicator of things to come. You see, I truly enjoy bitching; that?s just how it is. I like to think I?ve gotten it down to an art form. So for the past week, I?ve been trying to decide just what my first rant should be about. And don?t get me wrong, I had all sorts of great topics. But as it became time to write this, I just couldn?t justify complaining. After much self-debate, I?m gonna have to write some praise. The way the Holtman transformer problem was handled impressed me greatly. You see, this article was of interest to me for more than its news value; I live there. When I returned from classes on Friday and found out the power had gone out, I was bummed to say the least. For someone as addicted to electronic devices as me, power is an integral part of daily life. 

My first instinct was to try and incite some kind of civil unrest just to make things even more interesting, but fortunately for all involved, a light bulb snapped on (in my head, not the building, obviously). I realized the potential for a news story and my reporter?s instincts kicked in. (In other words, while I was still trying to turn up problems and find someone making mistakes, I hit the mute button on the complaining portion of my brain and just listened to people?s responses.)

And I have to admit, as hard as I looked for someone who had dropped the ball or was making critical mistakes, I couldn?t find anything to complain about. The transformer?s failure seems to have been an act of God, and the university?s response to the situation was very well executed. I went down and talked to the maintenance crews who were working on the situation, and they seemed to be in control and didn?t feed me any BS lines when I asked questions they didn?t know the answers to. Those same crews also worked 16 hour days all through this weekend to get power restored. The Holtman residents are putting together a lunch for them tomorrow in the Holtman lounge, and there?s no doubt in my mind that these guys deserve it.