Of Thee I Sing

My country 'tis of thee,

Sweet land of liberty,

Of thee I sing.

Land where my fathers died,

Land of the Pilgrims' pride,

From every mountain side,

Let freedom ring.

If you found yourself singing the above lines, congratulations. You have remembered the melody of a song that I haven't heard since, well, grade school--but I recall it like it was yesterday. It's there in our annals, there in our memories, there in the honorific legacy of songs of patriotism that many of you reading this might have been taught at one point.

It's probably not true that nobody sings it anymore, but neither would it be a stretch to say that that song has faded in importance. As opposed to: "God Bless America," at least in Milwaukee. In a certain place in town, not only is that song repetitively sung, thousands are also inclined to stand up to receive it.

That's because instead of the time-honored tradition we also call the 7th Inning Stretch, people who come to Milwaukee Brewers games are also treated, as it were, to a rendition of "God Bless America," sung by the same person over the sound system every single time it is done. If he's not there, the stretch features the two lively, carefree tunes that people are used to singing at that point in the evening, "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," and "Roll Out the Barrel," like they did the other night I was there.

I wonder how many people missed "God Bless America." If so, they didn't boo. Everyone seemed to celebrate. Nobody seemed to mind much.

So--why is "God Bless America" sung/performed/even noted? That's occurred to me. Who is that for, anyhow? Do enough people care, and does that matter in the greater scheme of things?

Maybe something else is working here. When the fellow--of Polish or Slavic descent because his name is Bob Kozlowski, Director of Guest Relations for the Brewers--finishes singing, he adds notes rising instead of the way it's supposed to be sung, with two falling final notes. Maybe it's a reminder that this country is, after all, our "home," and it's essential to his deliverance. And perhaps it's an ode to our troops, because he stands at attention and gives a snappy salute when he's finished. Maybe it's his necessity to remind us of the sacrifices people have made for our freedoms.

Except for this: around the 4th inning, some former military person has been plucked out the crowd and shown on the in-house camera--and people give him or her a big thank-you applause. Never fails. So that commemoration has been already demonstrated by the time our friend gets around to singing, in the 7th inning. Isn't that laying it on a little thick?

Consider, also this: When he's not there, it's not played or sung. So is this guy a patriot, or more of a pest? Did he somehow get under someone's skin and insist that we're not sufficiently patriotic and someone has to go out of his way to remind us of that, so it might as well be him? Does he necessarily have to 'own' this performance? Even Broadway has stand-ins. It would astonish me if someone else wasn't standing in line to do it in his place. I would think there would be a queue all the way downtown. But if he doesn't sing it, it won't be sung. Otherwise, we dance in the aisles.

People stand for the song, too. Just about everyone. The last time I was at AmFam Stadium, though, I didn't stand. Am I an unappreciative schmoe?

I doubt that sincerely. My Dad, now 98, served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. I have honored that many times, but not in a baseball stadium by blindly responding to someone's need to show off his voice; he sings a cappella. When I came into the stadium the other day, too, the national anthem was being played. Everyone, whether going to the bathroom, ordering a beer, or just trying to find their seats, stopped and observed that. I did, too. I didn't have to do that, but I did. The national anthem does, and should, mean more.

Note, too, that "God" is part of the title "God Bless America," unlike the one I quoted above, the name of which isn't included in its main verse (but which is at the start of the 3rd of its four verses. I'll buy you a beer if you know the words without taking out your iPhone). That, I suspect, is attached to his singing of it: that God smiles on our undertakings, and someone should note that, too. I wonder if atheists go along with all this. If not, does this constitute a scold of sorts? Like, get with it already?

That has always made me uneasy. One of things about America that seems incongruous is that many of us are very willing to write off our success and world dominance to almighty intervention, referring to it at the beginning and end of relevant discussions. But that isn't what did it, not even close.

It was the good fortune of being in a part of the world with tremendous natural resources. It was the dedication and subsequent adjustment to the rule of law and respect for a necessarily evolving Constitution to try to keep up with enormous technological and cultural changes that are only natural with the passage of time. And it was the acceptance of millions of immigrants whose presence signified and demonstrated that which has been obvious for decades: That America is, or supposed to be, the beacon of democracy and endlessly a work in progress, which only fools deny.

None of those things can now be guaranteed because of one man's frightening acts of intimidation and evocation of someone's God to be actually blessing such undertakings. I do not believe that they represent any of the great things for which America has always been noted. God will not bring back our prestige, which is being undone on a daily basis now; only responsible, active and determined people will. Their absence will make America pathetic, not great again. And I won't stand for it.