American flags are the ultimate Good Housekeeping seal. And thanking veterans for their service disconnects the public from what has been nearly two decades of war. The ballpark ceremony obscures the realities of war and, by focusing on soldiers, inoculates the government from antiwar criticism.
via Veterans Speak Out Against The Militarization Of Sports | Only A Game.
“And, I mean, if you look at kind of the tone of what Memorial Day has become about, it’s pretty gross,” Nick says. “Even on the teams’ official Twitter accounts — a flame emoji for, like, ‘Look how hot these camo hats are.’ And it’s, like, ‘Really, guys? That’s the plan?’ I mean, you can imagine how some of these Gold Star families reacted to that. They were not remotely amused.