Well now, he's created the perfect situation for a suicide bomber.

Does he OSHA know about this?

If you don't like it, then don't go to the games. No one is making you.

Trost said the Yankees have not heard any complaints about either the continued playing of "God Bless America" or the restrictions on movement.
"Before 9/11, we recognized the spirit and importance of the way of life we live in this country,"

Since then, many of our freedoms like "taking a piss after the 7th inning" have been curtailed because of farking "patriots" like you.

If they didn't have the same version pretaped and reused over and over and over and did it live once in a while, less people would want to leave.

Man, I try to head things off at the pass by submitting a Daily Obligatory Yankees Thread, and somehow they farking manage to get two more before midnight. Ah well, fark the Yanks. They'll probably manage to finish 2nd in the AL East no matter what.

With an 80-82 record.

/Go Mets!

Hey, stand motionless and you will receive 72 virgins in heaven! It's a win-win.

Sorry. Make that three.

Nothing like chaining people in to create a more patriotic mood

I've long said that the Yankees are baseball's parallel to everything I hate about America. This just cements it.

NakedReporta

I have to bow before the awsomeness of the Joe Buck story in your profile.

/Cards fan for 40 years
//Joe couldn't carry his fathers jock

Man, I try to head things off at the pass by submitting a Daily Obligatory Yankees Thread, and somehow they farking manage to get two more before midnight. Ah well, fark the Yanks. They'll probably manage to finish 2nd in the AL East no matter what.

This is my 15th submitted link.. and I didn't think I could get another after ditching TF. And yes, I hate the Yankees.

wait, I guess it's 16..

I just came into this thread to say that the whole playing "God Bless America" thing during the 7th inning stretch is ridiculously stupid. Only one song should be played or sung during the 7th inning stretch: "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Adding another moment for forced patriotism does nobody any good.

I don't understand this. First off, I don't go to a whole lot of games. Since 2002, I'd say I've gone to about 30. I've never seen these chains and I hate that song (at least that version) enough to go take a leak or get food or whatever during that song.

Are the chains supposed to be at all the exits? Has any other person who has gone to Yankee stadium seen these things or am I blind or something?

I'm not saying this isn't true, and it's definitely a farked up thing if it is, but how come I've never seen them and how come it's gone on since 2001 and nobody has said anything before? Also, how restrictive can they be if I've never even noticed them?

I hate this new "tradition" of singing God Bless America during the 7th inning stretch with the heat of a thousand suns.

Two things that are especially galling:
- The fact that it's sung like a dirge - it's supposed to be an upbeat song, dammit! Yeah, 9/11 was terrible, and we're mired in a pointless war, but the song was meant to convey an optimistic view of our country, not that we're on the edge of destruction (of course, the worst example of this sort of thing is that fat, non-American f*ck Ronan Tynan, who's employed by Georgie Porgie, who, if he can think at all anymore, seems likely to buy into the Bush administration's nonsense about terrorism being an "existential" threat.)

- The fact that people - especially at the Stadium, it seems - are expected to stand and remove their caps and look towards the flag while the song is being sung/played, and to generally treat it with the reverence that should be exclusively reserved for the National Anthem. If we treat every patriotic song like the Anthem, then the meaning and significance of the Anthem qua anthem is diminished.

Do the Yankees restrain their patrons' movements during the Anthem? If not, they are elevating God Bless America to a status higher than the Anthem, and that would be un-American. It would be like flying the Yankee banner higher than the Flag.

Zulu_as_Kono: I hate this new "tradition" of singing God Bless America during the 7th inning stretch with the heat of a thousand suns.

It's not that new, they've been doing it for five and a half years.

And yes, I think it's overdoing it, it's cheapened the meaning of the song and people are probably sick of hearing it.

Solution? Head out with 2 outs in the top of the 7th if you feel "the need." Hey, the way the bullpen is going, you'll probably have a good fifteen minutes before the bottom half starts up.

Zulu_as_Kono: I hate this new "tradition" of singing God Bless America during the 7th inning stretch with the heat of a thousand suns.

well if you want to start a petition to get it to stop, I'll sign first and super huge just like my homie John Hancock.

/seriously, it was ok during the playoffs that year. continuing it ever since is lame
//maybe the reason they don't win WS's anymore is the curse of Ronan Tynan
///That ought to get more Yankee fan support for getting rid of it

Doing "God Bless America" during the stretch is dumb and I wish they'd stop. But I've never seen Movement Police or anything at the Stadium.

Wintermute:
It's not that new, they've been doing it for five and a half years.

Compared to, say, the tradition of singing "Take me out to the ballgame," it's new.

I was okay with it up until 9/11/02 - when they kept doing it even after the first anniversary, I realized "oh, god, they're never going to stop!"

Solution? Head out with 2 outs in the top of the 7th if you feel "the need."

Are you kidding? That's when all the bathrooms and concession stands get huge lines!

Hey, the way the bullpen is going, you'll probably have a good fifteen minutes before the bottom half starts up.

You seem to have me confused with someone who goes to games at the Stadium on a regular basis. I go to Fenway, and the 'pen there is doing just fine.

IAmRight: well if you want to start a petition to get it to stop

Like that would do anything. At this point, it's just another on the long list of "things that piss me off that I can't do anything about".

"Mein Fuhrer, I can't walk!"

Look at this article, posted on a Seattle paper's site, but attributed to the same writer from the NY Times: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/baseball/315327_yanks11.html (pops)

In this version of the article, which is somehow longer than the one from the Times, there are a couple of inaccuracies.

First, it says "Seconds before "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "God Bless America" are played, police officers, security guards and ushers turn their backs to the American flag in center field, stare at fans moving through the stands and ask them to stop."

Then: "Only the Yankees continue to play "God Bless America" at every home game. They are also the only ones to use chains to prevent fans from moving during both songs, which concerns some civil liberties advocates."

A few paragraphs later it says "The Mets, meanwhile, have not heard complaints from fans about behavior during the songs and have not implemented similar restrictions, a team spokesman said."

And then a bit later: "The Yankees are the only major league team to use chains, according to a survey of teams. But at least eight others -- the Marlins, Phillies, Padres, Rangers, Twins, Astros, Athletics and Red Sox -- instruct ushers to prevent fans from moving through the aisles when the songs are played."

WTF?

Oh and that article also says they only do it down in the lower sections, which would explain why if this is going on I've never seen it.

Ah yes, nothing quite like the 2 minutes hate...

Elzar: Ah yes, nothing quite like the 2 minutes hate...

Huh?

They couldn't simply have Bob (Voice of God) Sheppard ask the crowd to hold still?

"Hey, you! You're not loving America enough. Stand there and don't move until this song is over."

They love their Broadway showtunes in NY, NY.

\That's all it is, and I don't respect it, either.

Greenville: If they didn't have the same version pretaped and reused over and over and over and did it live once in a while, less people would want to leave.

Kathryn Elizabeth Smith (May 1, 1907 - June 17, 1986)

if you know some way to get her old bones up there again live, please let us know (you'll make a fortune, trust me)

/Sox fan
//agrees with tradition
///hates the Yankees and George

This is exactly the kind of thing they did in the Soviet Union. I hope all you "patriots" realize that.

bubbaprog: This is exactly the kind of thing they did in the Soviet Union. I hope all you "patriots" realize that.

They forced people to listen to "God Bless America" while watching baseball?

Weird.

mistersite
Only one song should be played or sung during the 7th inning stretch: "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."

"Take Me Out to the Ballgame" doesn't sound right to me anymore unless it's immediately followed by Lou Monte's "Lazy Mary."

/go Mets

I'm not so sure it's the brown people that hate our freedom.
Except the Mexicans. They love it. But that's bad too...

I'm confused.

Must be the Soviet influence in baseball that's messing up my dog apple pie A-#1.

/needs coffee... NOW!

I am not a Christian so I could give a rats ass if "god" blesses America.



" I meet gestapo tactics...I meet gestapo tactics...That's not right"

At Yankee Stadium, they sing God Bless America with Ronan Tynan and lock you into the lower seats to prevent a lot of movement in the stands.

At Fenway Park, they sing Sweet Caroline with Neil Diamond and the fans lock you into your row with warmth and good feelings and there's a lot of movement in the stands as everyone reaching out...touching me...touching YOUUUUUUuuuu...Sweet Caroline...BAH BAH BAH!...Good times never seemed so good.. SO GOOD SO GOOD SO GOOD!.. I've been inclined...BAH BAH BAH!...to believe they never would...

Fenway Park > The Toilet

Wise_Guy: They forced people to listen to "God Bless America" while watching baseball?

I see what you did there.

/I also LOLed

ju66l3r: At Fenway Park, they sing Sweet Caroline with Neil Diamond and the fans lock you into your row with warmth and good feelings and there's a lot of movement in the stands as everyone reaching out...touching me...touching YOUUUUUUuuuu...Sweet Caroline...BAH BAH BAH!...Good times never seemed so good.. SO GOOD SO GOOD SO GOOD!.. I've been inclined...BAH BAH BAH!...to believe they never would...

Speaking of things that need to stop is the Mets' doing this song at home games. It's a Sawks' thing.

ju66l3r: At Fenway Park, they sing Sweet Caroline with Neil Diamond and the fans lock you into your row with warmth and good feelings and there's a lot of movement in the stands as everyone reaching out...touching me...touching YOUUUUUUuuuu...Sweet Caroline...BAH BAH BAH!...Good times never seemed so good.. SO GOOD SO GOOD SO GOOD!.. I've been inclined...BAH BAH BAH!...to believe they never would...

Do you want to be alone?

I call bullshiat. I go to lots of Yankee games and usually sit in the field boxes (the only sections with chains and ushers restricting entry). The fact is, the chains are in place the entire game, not just during the playing of "God Bless America". EVERY TIME you enter or exit the section the usher has to open them to allow access. But you know, feel free to get all worked up about a complete non-story.

For those of you comparing the situation to Russia, the former Soviet Union had something else, it was called propaganda.

As a Mets fan, the only thing more annoying than Lazy Mary is Sweet Caroline. But at least they don't chain you in during 'em.

I've always been amused that during the Stretch, Westboro Baptist Church East starts singing Neil Diamond.