> > > > > > Speed'Oh say does that Star Spangled Banner yet wave,
> > > > > > for the land of the Free and the Home of the Brave'ball
> > > > >
> > > > > I have a horrible feeling you've just undermined your inspiring speech by getting the lyrics wrong...
> > > > >
> > > > > Paul
> > > >
> > > > Did I, I don't think so. The next line is 'play ball'. ;-)
> > > >
> > > > Speed'
> > >
> > > Yeah, unfortunately, it's wrong, and it *does* take away from your point a little, because the song and its meaning and the tenor in which it was written are so important and so misunderstood or ignored these days. You don't really want to get me started on this; I tried to give people a personal little recitation in chat back around the 4th of July; dunno how well it was received, but I do have strong, strong feelings about that song and its meaning... and the fact that so many people just don't get it.
> >
> > I'm sorry Mousie, The song means a lot to me too, but like I said I wasn't aware I made the mistake due to never having seen the lyrics. When my Dad was in the military we would go to movie at the theater on base and the National Anthem was played before each film. I kinda wish non-base theaters would do this. And the baseball joke may have been juvinile, but I belive that being able to laugh at most anything is important. I love my country, and we are down right funny sometimes.
> >
> > Speed'going to look for it on Napster now'ball
>
> It's an understandable mistake if you've only ever heard it sung. Where you had "for the land.." it should be "o'er the land". Over the land. That's all.

Yeah. No big deal, Speedie, really. And the baseball joke was pretty funny. The point is that, at the time the song was written, dawn was coming after a night of intense fighting -- bombs, "rockets," fire, gunshots -- and through the smoke and without daylight, Francis Scott Key couldn't see if the United States flag was still raised; that is, if the United States was still its own country, or if our soldiers had been beaten down and the flag replaced. The song itself is written as a question: "Can you see, now that it's almost light out, if the flag, OUR flag, is still there? We could see it, at various times through the night, like when a bomb's explosion lit it, or when the 'rockets' red glare' exposed it in the darkness... but now that the fighting's diminished, and dawn is about to break, can you see if the American flag is still flying over us? Is this land still free from English rule?" Amazingly touching and vivid if you can get around the weird English-speak. (Yes, I said that for you, Tubba.) ;-)