LETTER: Basketball players disrespectful
To the Editor:
I was so ashamed of the Utah State basketball team last Saturday night, not because of a well-fought win versus Nevada, but because half the team chose not to salute the flag during our national anthem.
That’s right. Five of the 10 players that were suited, and two other (perhaps unsuited players, trainers, or assistant coaches) also chose to snub our flag by keeping their hands at their sides or behind their backs.
It seems odd to me, that any athlete, whose entire education, meals, tutoring, and tips are paid for by other students, boosters, and taxpayers of this great nation, would have the audacity not to salute the very flag that represents perhaps the only nation on Earth that would so fully reward a man that can bounce and shoot a basketball.
Perhaps because none of the offending players will ever earn their living playing basketball in America, they feel no need to salute the flag of America. As I look into my crystal ball, I don’t see a very rosy future for any of the offenders, and at best, one or two of them may be lucky enough to play in a third world country for a year or two after graduation. You had better bet that they will be required by the coaches and the governments in their new homes to salute the native flag, or else.
What these players need to realize is that thousands of people are watching them at every game, including many children. What kind of message does this send them? Is it OK to disrespect our flag? It is OK to shamefully disregard the symbol of our freedom?
There is one foreign player, who understandably may not be familiar with the customs of our nation just yet. For the other players, they know better. They would be nothing without the freedoms of America.
This deliberate inaction is not only disgusting, but a slap in the face of every person who has fought and died for our freedom.
I hope Coach Morrill will require his players to show more respect for the flag, starting this Saturday at the home game versus San Jose State. We will be watching.
David Bethers