Indiana College Bans "Too Violent" National Anthem

The Star Spangled Banner Lyrics
By Francis Scott Key 1814

Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion,
A home and a country should leave us no more!
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory 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!

And for those that have forgotten about "The Pledge of Allegiance"

The Pledge of Allegiance was written in August 1892 by the socialist minister Francis Bellamy. It was originally published in The Youth's Companion on September 8, 1892. Bellamy had hoped that the pledge would be used by citizens in any country.

In its original form it read:

"I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

In 1923, the words, "the Flag of the United States of America" were added. At this time it read:

"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

In 1954, in response to the Communist threat of the times, President Eisenhower encouraged Congress to add the words "under God," creating the 31-word pledge we say today.

Today it reads: or Should I say (Yesterday it read: due to the separation of church and state and most schools do not teach our youth The Pledge of Allegiance anymore.)

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Ok, history leason is over. Please go about your business.

Ahahahahahaaha. How ridiculous! I bet during these same sporting events they play "warm-up" music as the players take the court which are usually upbeat fast temp Hip-Hop songs. Also I bet their bands play covers of main stream music.

I was shocked to see Goshen College in the news, my two children were born in Goshen hospital which is across the street from the college.

reply to post by getreadyalready


Most Mennonites are conscientious objectors and are completely opposed to war. The freedom of religion in the US gives them the right to make this decision. Is it a stupid decision? I guess that depends on where you esteem religious conviction as compared to national allegiance. Mennonites as well as Jehovah's Witnesses cannot swear their allegiances to anyone.

I don't mind that they banned the National Anthem. What I do mind is the B.S. reason they gave. "It's too violent."

W T F ?

Talking about artillery lighting up the sky is not violent in so much as talking about child birth is violent. It was the BIRTH OF A NATION - there will be blood.

The truth of why they banned it is to distinguish themselves amongst other uber-pacifist schools. The song is violent, but because they labeled it "violent" and then banned it, makes them look like they are on the cutting edge of the pacifist movement.

This, they hope, will increase enrollment numbers.

reply to post by Bobaganoosh


thank you

I only wish more leaders religious, political or those within the educational system would take a stand against violence whatever the source. It is not always pleasant to take a good hard look at ones self yet it is an effective way to grow. We can not kill fear we can only give compassion and hope that understanding is what sprouts in the soil that we must all share.

We have the ability to lay aside all of our might and show the world that there is another way. No bomb will ever buy us peace or security only a friend can grant us that.

reply to post by micmerci


The religious part I get, and the ideal that they have this right, I totally agree with.

However.....

I find it hard to believe that they can exist as a college (i.e. corporation), and that they can execute contracts in the form of agreements with other universities to conspire to have sporting events, and they can demand some type of allegiance and commitment from their students in the form of attendance, honor code, and tuition, and yet they are offended by the words in the anthem?

I am offended, on their behalf, that they have caved into corporate America, and they are participating in our society. If they are as dedicated as they would have us believe, then they would not have a corporation in their name in the first place.

I am starting to think the Mennonites could learn a lot from the Amish where I am from! In fact, we have both Mennonites and Amish where I am from, and the Amish still ride horse and buggies and are polite and humble, while the Mennonite have vans and telephones and eat at Mcdonalds, and the men are Arrogant and rude, and the Mennonite women are submissive, and forbidden from making eye contact. Of course, maybe the men were rude, because I was a teenager, and I insisted on flirting with ther women? It could have been me, but believe me, they are not pacifists!! They get angry pretty easily!

reply to post by LargeFries


If you know anything about the history of the Menonites than you know that they have run for cover from oppression and sought and were granted safe haven from cultures that defended themselves and fought to perserve their culture and land throughout history. Were that country to be over run, they would simply move on and hide somewhere else. Their very existence is due to others protecting their cowardice.

Every school receives government funding by virtue of the government backing student loans. Loans for those who choose to attend this school should not be backed by the government.

George Carlin mentions the National Anthem at the end of this clip....


Very apt.

I'm surprised that so many people take offense to their decision. They are a religious school, and are protected under 1st amendment rights. The national anthem, however, is not protected...and just like the pledge of allegiance, no one can be forced to participate in it. They are free citizens...just like everyone else, free to choose what songs they sing and what God they worship (and yes, singing the nation's praise can be construed as a form of worship.)

This reminds me of my days in high school, when I would refuse to stand for the pledge of allegiance. My teachers would always ask me why, and I would tell them I don't worship a flag...it's religious in nature, and I will not be forced to do it against my will. The teachers understood...my fellow class-mates generally did not.

"The Star Spangled Banner" isn't the only patriotic song out there, so I really don't see how it's an issue of Patriotism....we hardly ever hear "America the Beautiful"....and when done right, I still get chills from the first stanza!

If we're going to start pointing fingers and calling out a school because they don't play that particular song....sheesh, we're already Dividing before We Fall!

reply to post by getreadyalready


By chance are you from Lancaster county?

Good.

Patriotism is a disease that foments irrational distrust for your fellow man... the 3rd Reich saw the whole master race thing fail.. welcome to the new and improved 4th Reich fuhrer mantra: You are part of a "master nation"..

Because we are superior nation of people, by virtue of zip codes, fake lines drawn on maps and the supercilious fantasy we are blessed by an invisible man.. we can tell other nations how to behave, dictate how they defend themselves, and lecture them ad nauseum about how when they do it it's the worst thing ever.. when we do it, it's righteous & just.

My kids dont pledge allegiance to anyone but family & loved ones.., they don't regurgitate stale state propaganda and they know the flag is colored cloth on a stick.

Originally posted by BadNinja68

Originally posted by LargeFries
reply to post by dolphinfan

 

so it's a disgrace because someone's opinion is opposite to yours? you made the point yourself: they are free to do this. so be it. it is a violent song, we are a violent country. if you could separate yourself from a patriotic mindset and look at the topic without bias you could see someone else's opinion.

Okay,
Let's ban a song, based on it's "Violent Content" because we need to have a less vilent song played before a sporting event?
So....is this event a Full Contact sport?
If so, this reeks of childish ignorance.
They are free to be ignorant, and people are free to decide whether they get to have their money. Tax dollars included.

I agree that this is no different than a child acting foolish to get attention.
Sometimes they get the wrong kind of attention.

IMHO, people this ignorant cannot properly educate my child nor manage my money properly.
Just my Opinion.

while i appreciate one can see violence in both topics, we are looking at two incredibly different ends of a given.

football, a full contact sport, is played by participants outfitted in every type of protective adornment possible shy of impairing a players ability to perform on the field. helmets w/ face masks & chin straps, mouthpieces are available, protective eyewear also, massive shoulder pads, jockstraps to minimize the package also protected by a hard shell molded cup, pants outfitted with protective padding.

football, be it played by local children in an empty lot, on a elementary school field during Phys Ed class, by children at the high school or college level, or by semi-pro or professional men in stadiums is, in essence, an often repeated child's game. football is play-time fun. it can be elevated to a paid sport level, but for the most part it is an athletic pass-time for enjoyment and/or entertainment purposes.

"..by the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air.."

wartime, where the absolute worst in human nature is not only encouraged, the participants may have been drafted against their will with their only option deserting the country of their birth or a lengthy sentenced time in a brutal prison atmosphere.
wartime that brings injuries psychological and physical. soldiers and civilians alike are subject to wounds from minor abrasions to death, and everything in between: loss of limb/limbs, partial or full crippling, disfigurement ranging from mild scarring to the horrible grotesque, leaving that young person fated to not know the love of a wife and the joy of fatherhood as he ticks off his days with around-the-clock care in a hospital or institution.
wartime that brings the destruction of land, home, business, house of worship, farm and livestock, roads and bridges, from minimal damage to utter decimation.

yes, you will be correct to state football players receive injuries ranging from light to under a handful of the unlucky who may be crippled in part or in whole every year. injuries are also sustained by the cheering squad.

i think we can both see the whole of all football related injuries in total will pale terribly in comparison to the subject of wartime activity.

i'm not sure if i would call this "childish ignorance" in the way it was presented.

if this is an attempt for attention by the school administration, we should examine whether the school enrollment has dropped off significantly from past years, or if this is a noble call for attention to the horrible error that wartime is.

i appreciate and respect your right to send your child to the higher institute of learning of your choice. i do wish our children really had a free, open, complete choice of American colleges and universities that was based on academic merit only. it appears at present our children's choices are severely limited by non-academic topics like personal wealth and the lack or presence of old family networked connections.

as for "managing my money properly" i don't have a problem with my personal money being managed by colleges or universities. I'm in the American majority that loses a good portion of family income due to a plethora of taxes levied by State and Federal government. Our Government that many people feel taxes us 'to death', that has led America into debt beyond what we may ever be able to repay while almost constantly waging war on foreign soil.

these are just my personal viewpoints and opinions. i'm not an educated man or a researcher.

i thank you for your reply & taking the time to do so. be well my friend.

Originally posted by GovtFlu
Good.

Patriotism is a disease that foments irrational distrust for your fellow man... the 3rd Reich saw the whole master race thing fail.. welcome to the new and improved 4th Reich fuhrer mantra: You are part of a "master nation"..

Because we are superior nation of people, by virtue of zip codes, fake lines drawn on maps and the supercilious fantasy we are blessed by an invisible man.. we can tell other nations how to behave, dictate how they defend themselves, and lecture them ad nauseum about how when they do it it's the worst thing ever.. when we do it, it's righteous & just.

My kids dont pledge allegiance to anyone but family & loved ones.., they don't regurgitate stale state propaganda and they know the flag is colored cloth on a stick.

Absolutely spot on

The college has the right to do what it wants as long as it is not receiving public funding.
If it is a straight up private college then more power to them, this is America and we are supposed to be free to do what we want to. You don't agree with the college find another college to attend.

reply to post by dolphinfan

The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons (1496-1561), who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders. The teachings of the Mennonites were founded on their belief in both the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ, which they held to with great conviction despite persecution by the various Roman Catholic and Protestant states
en.wikipedia.org...

Isn't Christianity's holy book filled with the most unspeakable acts of violence ever penned? I don't see how the National Anthem conflicts with their views at all. What's next, banning "The Battle Hymn of the Republic". How assinine.

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere
With a position like that I'm surprised they just didnt ban sports outright. Surely a competitive hands-on struggle for a ball is more violent than a song about a flag.

I hear that! Banning the National Anthem? Doesn't that just smack of being UN-Constituional? Wonder if they still display the American Flag at their sporting events? Lots of blood on that flag, may upset someone......this is sad.

that is their right i suppose. there isn't anything in the constitution or law that says it must be played, and if there even was, it would be silly.

having said that, i'm confused as to how they condone sports, yet deem this song too violent. it isn't graphic or gory, and only loosely violent. people with misguided notions exist everywhere i suppose.

I always thought "America the Beautiful" would make a better National Anthem.

reply to post by dolphinfan


Isnt this group that just had eight members sentenced for raping 100 women?


Bolivia sect members jailed for raping 100

SEVEN members of a Protestant sect in Bolivia have been sentenced to 25 years each in prison for raping some 100 women in an agrarian commune.

An eighth man was sentenced to 12.5 years in prison for providing a narcotic that the men sprayed to render the women unconscious before raping them in their dormitories, said Judge Luis Enrique Perez.

"The victims were raped in a repeated manner. Among them, there were adults, children and elderly women," prosecutor Freddy Perez was quoted as saying by El Dia newspaper.

The eight Mennonite men, aged between 18 and 45, were sentenced during a closed hearing this week at Palmasola prison in the Santa Cruz region.

more on link here



shakes head..yeah real nice 'values' and 'ways of living' obviously works for them:/

R