National Anthem

At 2:53:42 Friday afternoon, thousands of Orioles fans committed an act of patriotic blasphemy. Or engaged in a show of loyalty to the hometown team on Opening Day. To "O" or not to "O," that has been the question since, well, when? Sometime in the 1970s, fans and Mike Gesker, author of The Orioles Encyclopedia, seem to agree. But there the agreement ends. Like the debate about the worthiness of playing "Thank God, I'm a Country Boy" during the seventh-inning stretch, the "O" argument goes round and round, getting stuck every couple of years like a phonograph needle on an old record.

At 2:53:42 Friday afternoon, thousands of Orioles fans committed an act of patriotic blasphemy. Or engaged in a show of loyalty to the hometown team on Opening Day. To "O" or not to "O," that has been the question since, well, when? Sometime in the 1970s, fans and Mike Gesker, author of The Orioles Encyclopedia, seem to agree. But there the agreement ends. Like the debate about the worthiness of playing "Thank God, I'm a Country Boy" during the seventh-inning stretch, the "O" argumentgoes round and round, getting stuck every couple of years like a phonograph needle on an old record.

In response to Charles Hilton's talk of the yelling "O" during the national anthem ("Stop yelling ‘O' during the national anthem" Readers respond, April 6)I can not say how disgraced I am to have someone in Baltimore feeling this way. The "O" is a sign of city-wide pride. The words to the anthem are not changed or altered to disrespect the nation. I will offer to pay Mr. Hilton's gas so he can pack up and leave our fine city if he does not like what we are about. Finally I would like to remind everyone that we wrote the song here in Baltimore, so why should we not be allowed to show our city pride?

While we're talking about Orioles fans yelling "O" during the national anthem ("Stop yelling ‘O' during the national anthem," Readers respond, April 6), in Atlanta, I have heard it sung, "and the home of the Braves," and no one gets bent out of shape over that. But what about the singers of the national anthem? We have seen scratching, tugging and rubbing of various parts of the anatomy. We endure the warbling of those that try to sound like a diva and the shrieking of those who think that they should be able to break all the windows in the surrounding buildings by screeching out the word "FREE-E-E-E-E-E."

March Madness is over just in time for baseball to fill the sports void, and like most Oriole fans, I fluctuate between cynicism and cautious optimism. In fact, the only reason I even bother to go to Oriole Park is because I get two free tickets every year from my employer. And it doesn't surprise me how many people go for the same reason, which speaks volumes about the cost of attending sporting events. For me, it's not just about the price. Winning would be nice and would incline me to attend more, but I have a bad taste in my mouth over sports in general.

M arylanders are rightfully proud of this state's connection to the national anthem. When Francis Scott Key wrote what would become the anthem's lyrics, he was drawing from his experience at the Battle of Fort McHenry during the War of 1812. It's a bit like knowing the "amber waves of grain" of "America the Beautiful" came from your backyard or the actual "oceans, white with foam" mentioned in "God Bless America" happened to be located along the Ocean City boardwalk. The War of 1812 may not get the press of other U.S. wars, but you can't attend a baseball game without hearing about that one inspiring battle.

Marylanders are rightfully proud of this state's connection to the national anthem. When Francis Scott Key wrote what would become the anthem's lyrics, he was drawing from his experience at the Battle of Fort McHenry during the War of 1812. It's a bit like knowing the "amber waves of grain" of "America the Beautiful" came from your backyard or the actual "oceans, white with foam" mentioned in "God Bless America" happened to be located along the Ocean City boardwalk. The War of 1812 may not get the press of other U.S. wars, but you can't attend a baseball game without hearing about that one inspiring battle.

Maryland license plates would lay claim to the state as "Home of Our National Anthem," if one state lawmaker has his way. State Sen. Larry Haines, a Republican who represents Carroll and Baltimore counties, introduced a bill that would put the slogan on all plates starting Oct. 1. Maryland last displayed a slogan on its standard-issue license plate in the mid-1980s, celebrating the 350th anniversary of the state's founding as a colony. Maryland native Francis Scott Key penned "The Star-Spangled Banner" almost 200 years ago after the British attacked Baltimore's Fort McHenry.

At the end of a long winter, the words "road trip" have a particular appeal, especially if you're headed somewhere that's warm and has listless alligators in fetid pens as a tourist attraction, which we'll get to in a moment. So with gas cheap and hotels practically giving away rooms, my buddy Ed and I loaded the suitcases and golf clubs in the car and hurtled down Interstate 95 for a week of R&R in the great state of Florida. One of the dangers of driving south on 95 is that you'll go insane from the mind-numbing parade of Shoney's and Stuckey's billboards that line the highway, not to mention the 4,000 signs for the ever-tacky Pedro's empire at South of the Border.

When it comes to towering cultural icons, the difference between Baltimore's lineup and Nashville's is like the difference between the varsity and JV. NASHVILLE Dolly Parton Overly chesty country artist whose warbling "mountain soprano" irritates again on her latest CD, Backwoods Barbie. Elvis Presley Bloated, pelvis-thrusting King of Rock 'n' Roll toppled by addiction to barbiturates and Sara Lee products. Jack Daniel Possibly unstable founder of Jack Daniel's whiskey distillery who died of massive toe infection after kicking a safe in anger when it wouldn't open.