Despite the political divisions roiling America right now, good old-fashioned patriotism seems like it's at fever pitch. That's a good thing! In the wake of our recent celebration of the nation's 250th birthday, people are taking stock of what we have to be grateful for. We are cherishing with renewed fervor time-honored symbols of our country like the flag. And the National Anthem. Therefore, when a youthful fan initially declined to rise for the National Anthem at Chicago's Wrigley Field over the weekend, it reportedly struck in the craw of an older gent. He sure did something about it!
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Of course, everyone is free to dissent as they wish. They can vocalize and criticize our leaders and policies. But being disrespectful to our national song falls outside of those boundaries for many, albeit not everybody. This encounter in our heartland illustrates that.
The incident was videotaped and posted on X. It's going viral.
The Older Man Gives the Younger One a Stern Choice
As shown in the video, the younger, seated man is in the stands in front of the older fan. The older fan seems to lean forward to tell the seated one something. "Stand up or get smacked!," he apparently commands. When he still does not get to his feet, the older man slaps him on the head. Some spectators in the seats just in front of this encounter turn and stare. The young man then slowly rises for the Anthem.
Commenters Had Varied Responses
Some took issue with the way that the older man handled this. Others thought he was justified.
Wrote one, "I would've killed the old dude if he tried that b------t with me."
From another, there was this reaction. "For those of us who served, it is a smack in the face to see people disrespect our country....That said, whether we agree or not, we fought for everyone's freedom to choose...."
Someone else contributed this thought. "I'm a proud American and I always stand for the flag. And as a proud American, I think that old piece of s--t should mind his own business."
Another take on it. "...Sometimes you have to smack respect into people!"
