It is time for me to repeat a column that I first published over two years ago, and one that is vitally important to me. The topic is Hands-only CPR.
I received a message from one of you over the weekend concerning a “new” method of performing cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and while I already am familiar with the technique, it is apparently still unknown to some people.
Then I was watching some back episodes of the game show, Jeopardy! from my DVR player and one of the clues given by Alex Trebek concerned CPR. The clue as read was, “It calls for two breaths for every ten chest compressions.” It bothered me that Mr. Trebek was broadcasting the incorrect, outdated method for performing CPR to a huge television audience.
The combination of those two incidents in less than a week inspired me to revisit my column from April of 2008 and republish it this week. Since I am one of those people who carry the risk of sudden cardiac arrest, I cannot pass up the opportunity to enlighten as many potential lifesavers as possible. I hope you will spread the word too.
(Actually, I am not a candidate for CPR, because I now have an implanted cardiac device, called an ICD. It will kick in whenever my heart has several irregular beats, or when the natural pacemaker in my heart quits or fails to work properly. My condition is so critical that I cannot wait for lifesaving techniques to be applied.)
For those who are at less known risk, or those who have no medical history of cardiac problems, the chance of a cardiac event requiring CPR is currently about thirty percent. In other words, one out of every three of you will probably require CPR. That also means that another thirty percent will have occasion to administer it to someone else. And that someone else is quite likely to be someone you know and love, a family member. That being the case, it pays to know how and when to do it.
There has always been some aversion to performing CPR. The main reason is that it has always required both chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth breathing. Aside from the possibility of same sex administration, we all seem to have some reluctance to get up close and personal with strangers. That has lead to a lot of missed opportunity and delays in performing CPR.
When I learned CPR and became qualified in the 1970s, the procedure called for a 10/2 ratio of compressions to breaths if performing one-on-one. If two people were present, the ratio changed to 5/2, but either way, there was no way to keep an even rhythm. The one-on-one ratio was changed in the 1990s to 20/2, but it still wasted about 10-15 seconds to change positions and do the mouth-to-mouth. Those seconds were critical.
In actual experience, it was found that the stricken person tended to gasp during chest compressions, so some air was being inhaled even without mouth-to-mouth. Also, the lungs are never completely collapsed, so oxygenation of blood was not really an issue.
The hands-only CPR not only keeps a steady rhythm to the compressions, but it also removes the objectionable part of the procedures that has frequently prevented CPR from being performed. In my opinion, it will likely cause a much higher incidence of recovery from sudden cardiac events.
The new hands-only CPR requires the rescuer to perform continuous chest compressions at a rate of 100 per minute. That compares to a rate of 30-40 compressions per minute with an irregular rhythm in the former CPR technique. The survival rate is likely to go up with the new guidelines.
Hands-only CPR
If someone collapses, stops normal breathing and is unresponsive to shaking, here are the steps you should take:
· First, have someone call 911 and summon help, if a phone is handy.
· Put the person on the floor face up.
· Place one hand atop the other in the center of the person’s chest.
· Lock your elbows so that your arms are straight from shoulders to hands
· Push hard and fast, 100 compressions a minute.
· If there is another person with you, take turns. It is hard work.
· Continue compressions until paramedics arrive to take over.
(Source – American Heart Association)
If the person on whom you are performing CPR regains consciousness or shows signs of a return of heartbeat and breathing, you may quit your efforts, but do not move them and stay ready to begin again. Do not allow the victim to sit up, but make them as comfortable as possible.
There is a Website where you can learn more about hands-only CPR and even get some online training. Just click on the link here for the American Heart Association. Then be sure to read the links within that page. Other links can be found at the following sites, and the last among them actually provides some step-by-step training.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/01/BAJ8VTF35.DTL
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/04/01/health/main3984803.shtml?source=RSSattr=HOME_3984803
http://medicine.arizona.edu/spotlight/learn-sarver-heart-centers-continuous-chest-compression-cpr
Friday, August 6, 2010
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Environmental Nightmares
I have to preface this column with a disclaimer… I am not anti-environment, and I do not like what air and water pollution does to dirty up our environment. I regard the huge oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico a terrible thing, and I am truly glad that BP was finally able to stop the oil flow and maybe will be able now to seal the well entirely.
Having written that, I will now proceed to blast the media and yes, some of my friends and correspondents for hyping things up to a level of panic in the streets. Three incidents, including the oil spill, are the subject of my scorn.
This past week I received three separate e-mail messages telling us that our seafood, especially the seafood that comes from foreign sources, is poisonous to us and, “…an environmental nightmare.”
Now, the fact that seafood happens to be the culprit in both cases might be partly due to the media speculation about how the Gulf oil spill is going to render our homegrown seafood inedible for decades. That is, if there can actually be any recovery from this disaster to where seafood will still exist in the Gulf of Mexico.
However, the seafood that was written about was not from anywhere near the Gulf, it was from Asia, a favorite part of the world for us to pick on these days. Yes, the bad stuff was catfish from Vietnam (who can’t hate the Vietnamese) and shrimp from India.
After reading about all the chemicals, industrial and human waste, piscicides, pesticides and antibiotics that are in the water where the seafood is “farmed,” I got the idea that even a single bite of catfish or shrimp might have the same effect as a bite from a rattlesnake. We could all be dead within the hour!
Now I’m going to get to the good part. I don’t know about you, but I continue to hear that now that the leak is plugged, they’re having trouble finding any oil to clean up. I learned today that the total marshland that has oil in it is 350 acres. And some of that is already showing signs of natural recovery. (The Gulf Coast loses about 1,500 acres of marshland annually to natural causes)
Again, I don’t want to insult your intelligence, but did you know that tilapia, one of my favorite seafoods, lives mainly on the waste material from other fish. Yes, they eat poop. Damn,they sure taste good though, don’t they?
Mother Nature has a solution for most of what we consider disgusting that turns the bad into something good. Bacteria in the seawater actually eat that oil almost as fast as it leaks. Digestion uses other bacteria to break down chemicals, and other nasty things in food—our own included—to filter out bad things and keep in good things. That is how we grow and thrive.
If you just stop and think about it for even a moment, those Vietnamese and Indians also eat the same seafood, plus a lot of other foods we consider worse, and how many millions of them are dying every day?
Oh, one other thing… I used the term “Mother Nature” a politically correct and non-offensive label, but some people prefer “God.” “Allah,” “Buddha” or any of a thousand other appellations referring to a “higher power.” I leave it to you to say who performs the miracles that keep life on this tiny orb going, but something does.
Having written that, I will now proceed to blast the media and yes, some of my friends and correspondents for hyping things up to a level of panic in the streets. Three incidents, including the oil spill, are the subject of my scorn.
This past week I received three separate e-mail messages telling us that our seafood, especially the seafood that comes from foreign sources, is poisonous to us and, “…an environmental nightmare.”
Now, the fact that seafood happens to be the culprit in both cases might be partly due to the media speculation about how the Gulf oil spill is going to render our homegrown seafood inedible for decades. That is, if there can actually be any recovery from this disaster to where seafood will still exist in the Gulf of Mexico.
However, the seafood that was written about was not from anywhere near the Gulf, it was from Asia, a favorite part of the world for us to pick on these days. Yes, the bad stuff was catfish from Vietnam (who can’t hate the Vietnamese) and shrimp from India.
After reading about all the chemicals, industrial and human waste, piscicides, pesticides and antibiotics that are in the water where the seafood is “farmed,” I got the idea that even a single bite of catfish or shrimp might have the same effect as a bite from a rattlesnake. We could all be dead within the hour!
Now I’m going to get to the good part. I don’t know about you, but I continue to hear that now that the leak is plugged, they’re having trouble finding any oil to clean up. I learned today that the total marshland that has oil in it is 350 acres. And some of that is already showing signs of natural recovery. (The Gulf Coast loses about 1,500 acres of marshland annually to natural causes)
Again, I don’t want to insult your intelligence, but did you know that tilapia, one of my favorite seafoods, lives mainly on the waste material from other fish. Yes, they eat poop. Damn,they sure taste good though, don’t they?
Mother Nature has a solution for most of what we consider disgusting that turns the bad into something good. Bacteria in the seawater actually eat that oil almost as fast as it leaks. Digestion uses other bacteria to break down chemicals, and other nasty things in food—our own included—to filter out bad things and keep in good things. That is how we grow and thrive.
If you just stop and think about it for even a moment, those Vietnamese and Indians also eat the same seafood, plus a lot of other foods we consider worse, and how many millions of them are dying every day?
Oh, one other thing… I used the term “Mother Nature” a politically correct and non-offensive label, but some people prefer “God.” “Allah,” “Buddha” or any of a thousand other appellations referring to a “higher power.” I leave it to you to say who performs the miracles that keep life on this tiny orb going, but something does.
Friday, July 23, 2010
The Century Plant
(I originally published this column five years ago yesterday, but I wasn’t on this blog site, and many of you probably weren’t on my mailing list back then. I was living in El Paso, so it was quite easy to get the pictures. That area has thousands of the plants.)
This week I have a desert plant to show you that is quite amazing. If you have never lived in the Sonoran or Chihuahuan Desert, you probably have not seen this plant in its full splendor. It is called the Century Plant, or Agavacaea Americana. The reason for its common name is due to the growth cycle of the cactus. It only blooms once, and while it doesn’t take 100 years for the bloom to form, it does take a long time.
The Century Plant spends 10, 15, sometimes up to 25 years preparing for its grand finale. During that time, the leaves grow to a height of 4-6 feet, 6-8 inches across at the base, with sharp serrated edges and a spike at the end. The plant can reach a diameter of six feet. It is not a plant you would want to run into.
After the long and slow growth of the leaves, the appearance of the stalk is quite rapid. It shoots up out of the center of the plant in a matter of weeks to a stunning height of 20-25 feet. Some have grown to 40 feet. The stalk is more like a tree trunk, since it usually has a diameter of 4-6 inches.
Once it has attained its full height, it gets branches with a huge flower pod at the end of each one. The yellow or orange flowers take another two or three weeks to reach full bloom, during which time they attract bees and hummingbirds.
When the flowers eventually fall, the seedpods are left to propagate new plants. However, the Plant grows so rapidly in those few weeks that it virtually kills itself. Almost from the time the stalk starts to shoot up, the leaves begin to turn brown and shrivel. The stalk, having no support anymore, falls to the ground within a short period of time. In fact, many of the plants never make it to full bloom, because they tend to be top heavy and susceptible to wind. When they do topple, they sometimes take out surrounding bushes or small trees.
The Century Plant is truly a spectacular plant of the Southwestern American desert. They are used as ornamentals in many yards. I hope you enjoyed reading about and seeing pictures of it.
This week I have a desert plant to show you that is quite amazing. If you have never lived in the Sonoran or Chihuahuan Desert, you probably have not seen this plant in its full splendor. It is called the Century Plant, or Agavacaea Americana. The reason for its common name is due to the growth cycle of the cactus. It only blooms once, and while it doesn’t take 100 years for the bloom to form, it does take a long time.
The Century Plant spends 10, 15, sometimes up to 25 years preparing for its grand finale. During that time, the leaves grow to a height of 4-6 feet, 6-8 inches across at the base, with sharp serrated edges and a spike at the end. The plant can reach a diameter of six feet. It is not a plant you would want to run into.
After the long and slow growth of the leaves, the appearance of the stalk is quite rapid. It shoots up out of the center of the plant in a matter of weeks to a stunning height of 20-25 feet. Some have grown to 40 feet. The stalk is more like a tree trunk, since it usually has a diameter of 4-6 inches.
Once it has attained its full height, it gets branches with a huge flower pod at the end of each one. The yellow or orange flowers take another two or three weeks to reach full bloom, during which time they attract bees and hummingbirds.
When the flowers eventually fall, the seedpods are left to propagate new plants. However, the Plant grows so rapidly in those few weeks that it virtually kills itself. Almost from the time the stalk starts to shoot up, the leaves begin to turn brown and shrivel. The stalk, having no support anymore, falls to the ground within a short period of time. In fact, many of the plants never make it to full bloom, because they tend to be top heavy and susceptible to wind. When they do topple, they sometimes take out surrounding bushes or small trees.
The Century Plant is truly a spectacular plant of the Southwestern American desert. They are used as ornamentals in many yards. I hope you enjoyed reading about and seeing pictures of it.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Be Careful What You Wish For
“Be careful what you wish for.” I’m sure we’ve all heard that warning from time to time, and I think it applies in the circumstance I am about to address.
The have been an inordinate amount of e-mail messages lately calling for a constitutional convention to add a 28th amendment to The United States Constitution. It takes three-quarters of the states, 38 in all, to call for the convention, and there are apparently 35 states that have called for it so far.
In case you live in the dark, the proposed 28th amendment—it doesn’t get capital letters until it becomes law—calls for Congress to only pass laws that apply equally to the senators and representatives in that august body as well as the citizens they seek to impose those laws upon. In other words, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
I don’t pretend to be a scholar when it comes to our constitution. Heck, I admit that I couldn’t rattle off the first ten amendments, known as The Bill of Rights, and I’ll wager that none of you could do it either.
I do know that this isn’t the first instance when there has been a hue and cry for a constitutional convention, but I seem to recall that there was a flaw in the procedure. Correct me if I’m wrong, and I hope you can, but when you convene a constitutional convention, you don’t just open the floor for new amendments; the whole document is open for re-interpretation, revision and repeal.
That means that those of us who are fearful of losing our First Amendment rights to free speech, or our Second Amendment rights to bear arms, or any of the rights in the other 25 amendments are in danger of losing some of those rights in the ensuing convention.
I want you to think about that the next time you get one of those mailings that requests you to petition your state representatives and governors to ratify the state’s demand for a constitutional convention.
We may get a lot more than a 28th amendment, and I don’t think we’ll like it one bit.
The have been an inordinate amount of e-mail messages lately calling for a constitutional convention to add a 28th amendment to The United States Constitution. It takes three-quarters of the states, 38 in all, to call for the convention, and there are apparently 35 states that have called for it so far.
In case you live in the dark, the proposed 28th amendment—it doesn’t get capital letters until it becomes law—calls for Congress to only pass laws that apply equally to the senators and representatives in that august body as well as the citizens they seek to impose those laws upon. In other words, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
I don’t pretend to be a scholar when it comes to our constitution. Heck, I admit that I couldn’t rattle off the first ten amendments, known as The Bill of Rights, and I’ll wager that none of you could do it either.
I do know that this isn’t the first instance when there has been a hue and cry for a constitutional convention, but I seem to recall that there was a flaw in the procedure. Correct me if I’m wrong, and I hope you can, but when you convene a constitutional convention, you don’t just open the floor for new amendments; the whole document is open for re-interpretation, revision and repeal.
That means that those of us who are fearful of losing our First Amendment rights to free speech, or our Second Amendment rights to bear arms, or any of the rights in the other 25 amendments are in danger of losing some of those rights in the ensuing convention.
I want you to think about that the next time you get one of those mailings that requests you to petition your state representatives and governors to ratify the state’s demand for a constitutional convention.
We may get a lot more than a 28th amendment, and I don’t think we’ll like it one bit.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Road Trip Rage
I recently completed another of my road trips, this one to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I had company on the trip, one of my fellow barbershop singers, and we had a good time and saw lots of great sights.
I could tell you about the trip in general, but I am doing that in a separate reference, so I’ll just say that the UP is a wonderful place to visit if you like lighthouses and waterfalls and forests.
No, this is my bitch session, and the topic is hotel accommodations.
I am a member of Wyndham Rewards® and Choice Privileges®, so I use hotels in those two chains for all of my stays. On this occasion I used Wyndham more than Choice, and I’m sorry that I did. The hotels proved to be less than expected, and the prices weren’t in line with the service.
I try to select hotels with a hot tub, because I feel that the ones with that amenity are of higher class than the “bunk and breakfast” ones. For that reason, I selected Baymont Inn for several of the nights.
The second night out, we stayed at a Baymont Inn that had been in the AmeriHost family of motels. I had stayed at several of those when AmeriHost was still in business, and they were of good quality. This one, however, had been taken over by Wyndham about two years ago and had been allowed to deteriorate horribly. The bed linens were torn and shabby. I took a shower after my hot tub, and found myself standing ankle deep in water by the time I finished. The tub drain was clogged. Yech!!!
We stayed at a Days Inn in Marquette, Michigan for two nights. The first night we didn’t arrive at the hotel until 11 PM, so I had no opportunity to use the hot tub or any other facilities. However, the second night we arrived back early enough. I looked forward to the hot tub, but when I got into the pool area I found the hot tub crowded with screaming kids.
A trip to the front desk to complain was met with the explanation that the hot tub in the pool area was for kids. There was a separate room with only a hot tub on another level, and it was for adults. I started through the pool area to the ramp up to the adult hot tub, only to be followed by a family of the same kids who had been in the first one.
I turned and left the room for another trip to the front desk, lodged my complaint, and then went to my room. A half-hour later I went back to the hot tub, and finally had my soak in peace and quiet. My buddy, Tom, who had remained in the pool area, said the kids were pretty intimidated by my rant, and left soon after I did.
On another note, I looked at the bill after I checked out and was down the road, only to find that I had been charged $1.50 per night for the in-room safe that I never used. The bill said that I could have had the charge removed, but why should the onus be on me to reverse a charge for a service I never opted for in the first place?
Needless to say, I am preparing a letter to the corporate headquarters of Wyndham Hotels to lodge a formal complaint and possibly withdraw any further reservations. I’ve built up quite a number of reward points, but they aren’t much good if the hotels don’t deliver what they promise.
I admit that I am cheap in that I won’t pay over $100 per night for any hotel, and some would say that “you get what you pay for”, but I still think that $100 should get decent accommodations for the night, not some flea-bag hotel with lousy bed sheets and poor or missing services.
There, I’ve got that off my chest!
I could tell you about the trip in general, but I am doing that in a separate reference, so I’ll just say that the UP is a wonderful place to visit if you like lighthouses and waterfalls and forests.
No, this is my bitch session, and the topic is hotel accommodations.
I am a member of Wyndham Rewards® and Choice Privileges®, so I use hotels in those two chains for all of my stays. On this occasion I used Wyndham more than Choice, and I’m sorry that I did. The hotels proved to be less than expected, and the prices weren’t in line with the service.
I try to select hotels with a hot tub, because I feel that the ones with that amenity are of higher class than the “bunk and breakfast” ones. For that reason, I selected Baymont Inn for several of the nights.
The second night out, we stayed at a Baymont Inn that had been in the AmeriHost family of motels. I had stayed at several of those when AmeriHost was still in business, and they were of good quality. This one, however, had been taken over by Wyndham about two years ago and had been allowed to deteriorate horribly. The bed linens were torn and shabby. I took a shower after my hot tub, and found myself standing ankle deep in water by the time I finished. The tub drain was clogged. Yech!!!
We stayed at a Days Inn in Marquette, Michigan for two nights. The first night we didn’t arrive at the hotel until 11 PM, so I had no opportunity to use the hot tub or any other facilities. However, the second night we arrived back early enough. I looked forward to the hot tub, but when I got into the pool area I found the hot tub crowded with screaming kids.
A trip to the front desk to complain was met with the explanation that the hot tub in the pool area was for kids. There was a separate room with only a hot tub on another level, and it was for adults. I started through the pool area to the ramp up to the adult hot tub, only to be followed by a family of the same kids who had been in the first one.
I turned and left the room for another trip to the front desk, lodged my complaint, and then went to my room. A half-hour later I went back to the hot tub, and finally had my soak in peace and quiet. My buddy, Tom, who had remained in the pool area, said the kids were pretty intimidated by my rant, and left soon after I did.
On another note, I looked at the bill after I checked out and was down the road, only to find that I had been charged $1.50 per night for the in-room safe that I never used. The bill said that I could have had the charge removed, but why should the onus be on me to reverse a charge for a service I never opted for in the first place?
Needless to say, I am preparing a letter to the corporate headquarters of Wyndham Hotels to lodge a formal complaint and possibly withdraw any further reservations. I’ve built up quite a number of reward points, but they aren’t much good if the hotels don’t deliver what they promise.
I admit that I am cheap in that I won’t pay over $100 per night for any hotel, and some would say that “you get what you pay for”, but I still think that $100 should get decent accommodations for the night, not some flea-bag hotel with lousy bed sheets and poor or missing services.
There, I’ve got that off my chest!
Friday, July 2, 2010
More Unintended Consequences
I was in a public restroom in one of those interstate rest areas recently with a busload of teenagers and I overheard one boy say to another, “Shun the paper towels and save a tree.”
My first reaction was, how thoughtful of him. But then I reconsidered, because that cliché is being drilled into our kids’ thinking, and it is not necessarily accurate. I wasn’t quick enough to speak my second thought, but it did get me to thinking about it in light of our present economy and the overall indoctrination of today’s youth.
The paper industry, and the lumbering industry that supports it are both very earth-friendly. Big companies like Weyerhauser and International paper employ methods to recycle and to replenish the forests. Why wouldn’t they? Lumber is a crop, and just like any other crop, it has to be planted, nurtured and harvested with a future crop replacing the one we use.
The myth that our forests are clear-cut is just that, a myth. For every tree that is cut down, another two or three are planted in the same land, and they are cared for to ensure that there will be a future crop, albeit the cycle is not an annual one like there is with the food crops.
The fact that new forests are being planted to renew the product cycle is evident to anyone who takes the time to travel to the places in America where the lumber industry practices. And those replanted forests provide jobs for many more people than those who harvest the trees.
For every lumberjack, the brawny brute we picture as the “culprit” in killing our forests, there are probably three others whose work is to develop new breeds of fast-growing trees, planting and inspecting the new growth, and determining where more trees can be planted and harvested to keep the soil and the ecosystem healthy.
Speaking of Weyerhauser, on my trip to the Northwest last year I visited Mount St Helens, and all of the forests replanted to replace those blown down in the 17-mile-radius blast area were courtesy of Weyerhauser. They have been replanting with noble spruce trees since the volcano erupted in 1980. There are tens of thousands of trees growing.
So, if I were to hear that remark about shunning paper to save a tree, I would challenge it with my own cliché, “Use the paper and save a job”.
My first reaction was, how thoughtful of him. But then I reconsidered, because that cliché is being drilled into our kids’ thinking, and it is not necessarily accurate. I wasn’t quick enough to speak my second thought, but it did get me to thinking about it in light of our present economy and the overall indoctrination of today’s youth.
The paper industry, and the lumbering industry that supports it are both very earth-friendly. Big companies like Weyerhauser and International paper employ methods to recycle and to replenish the forests. Why wouldn’t they? Lumber is a crop, and just like any other crop, it has to be planted, nurtured and harvested with a future crop replacing the one we use.
The myth that our forests are clear-cut is just that, a myth. For every tree that is cut down, another two or three are planted in the same land, and they are cared for to ensure that there will be a future crop, albeit the cycle is not an annual one like there is with the food crops.
The fact that new forests are being planted to renew the product cycle is evident to anyone who takes the time to travel to the places in America where the lumber industry practices. And those replanted forests provide jobs for many more people than those who harvest the trees.
For every lumberjack, the brawny brute we picture as the “culprit” in killing our forests, there are probably three others whose work is to develop new breeds of fast-growing trees, planting and inspecting the new growth, and determining where more trees can be planted and harvested to keep the soil and the ecosystem healthy.
Speaking of Weyerhauser, on my trip to the Northwest last year I visited Mount St Helens, and all of the forests replanted to replace those blown down in the 17-mile-radius blast area were courtesy of Weyerhauser. They have been replanting with noble spruce trees since the volcano erupted in 1980. There are tens of thousands of trees growing.
So, if I were to hear that remark about shunning paper to save a tree, I would challenge it with my own cliché, “Use the paper and save a job”.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Disrespect
When I was up in Maryland visiting my son and his family two weeks ago, I went to a swim meet in which my granddaughter and grandson were enrolled. (We don’t compete anymore, as that suggests winners and losers—but that is material for another column.)
The event was held at a public swimming pool in Columbia, Maryland, and there were about 100 adults there, and also 150 juveniles between the age of 4 and 18 years.
To start the meet the emcee played a recording of The Star Spangled Banner and made the usual announcement about standing to honor the nation. This was on a Saturday, two days before Flag Day, so people should have had an extra awareness of the spirit of the National Anthem.
When the song began, I stood and placed my right hand over my heart as is customary, although I sometimes salute the flag in the military fashion, a practice that has recently been recommended for any veterans.
I looked around and was shocked to see that only abut a half-dozen other adults and not a single child was following tradition. Most stood with hands at their sides, a few did take off their hats, and some continued talking and visiting with their neighbors.
The action was so out of place that I stood even taller and at attention, and I moved my hand to the salute for the last phrase just to emphasize the sad situation. No one else responded to my cue.
It is truly sad that we have lost our moral and patriotic compass to a point that we don’t even honor our traditions, our flag, or our National Anthem anymore.
http://www.usflag.org/uscode36.html#171
Of course, it doesn’t help that we have a chief executive who sets the example by also refusing to place his hand over his heart during the playing of The Star Spangled Banner. In fact, he even holds press conferences with no American Flag displayed.
I hope that, if you are one of those who has forgotten or neglected the protocol for the playing of our National Anthem, or if you know someone who has lapsed into the bad habits of so many, you will educate them and set the example on the upcoming day of celebrating our independence.
With that admonition, I wish you a happy and safe Independence Day, which falls on Sunday this year, even though you will probably have Monday off. Celebrate it on the actual day if you can. It is a significant day in our history and deserves our respect.
PS: Remember to thank our military personnel for their service, too.
The event was held at a public swimming pool in Columbia, Maryland, and there were about 100 adults there, and also 150 juveniles between the age of 4 and 18 years.
To start the meet the emcee played a recording of The Star Spangled Banner and made the usual announcement about standing to honor the nation. This was on a Saturday, two days before Flag Day, so people should have had an extra awareness of the spirit of the National Anthem.
When the song began, I stood and placed my right hand over my heart as is customary, although I sometimes salute the flag in the military fashion, a practice that has recently been recommended for any veterans.
I looked around and was shocked to see that only abut a half-dozen other adults and not a single child was following tradition. Most stood with hands at their sides, a few did take off their hats, and some continued talking and visiting with their neighbors.
The action was so out of place that I stood even taller and at attention, and I moved my hand to the salute for the last phrase just to emphasize the sad situation. No one else responded to my cue.
It is truly sad that we have lost our moral and patriotic compass to a point that we don’t even honor our traditions, our flag, or our National Anthem anymore.
http://www.usflag.org/uscode36.html#171
Of course, it doesn’t help that we have a chief executive who sets the example by also refusing to place his hand over his heart during the playing of The Star Spangled Banner. In fact, he even holds press conferences with no American Flag displayed.
I hope that, if you are one of those who has forgotten or neglected the protocol for the playing of our National Anthem, or if you know someone who has lapsed into the bad habits of so many, you will educate them and set the example on the upcoming day of celebrating our independence.
With that admonition, I wish you a happy and safe Independence Day, which falls on Sunday this year, even though you will probably have Monday off. Celebrate it on the actual day if you can. It is a significant day in our history and deserves our respect.
PS: Remember to thank our military personnel for their service, too.
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