Our Modern Roman Empire

Yesterday was Sunday, February 6th, 2005. An unremarkable date for most, except for the fact that it was Superbowl Sunday, a date important mainly to Americans. Or to be more precise, American football fans. Like many of my fellow citizens, I settled down in front of my television to watch this sporting spectacle, to join in on alarmingly large “television audience”, and to share the “experience” of collectively consuming whatever the Fox network, the National Football League and the best of Madison avenue deigned to throw at us.

I turned on my tv set just before game time, just in time to catch the playing of the National Anthem. I have recently begun to wonder when and why it has become an American tradition to play and/or sing the “Star Spangled Banner” prior to the start of any major sporting event. I admit that I haven’t begun to do any research on the matter; my curiosity is still at the nascent, “just wondering” stage. But it seems to me that if the song is so important to our national identity, why don’t we perform it prior to undertaking more serious matters than entertainment? For example, Congress should sing it everyday before beginning their work. Judges should lead the courtroom in song before the start of every trial. Certainly the military should begin each day with each soldier standing at attention while someone belts out our proud anthem.

Why sporting events?

And why “honor” the military before the beginning of the Superbowl? What is that all about? To me, the parallels are clear. The professional football athlete is indeed the modern day equivalent of the Roman gladiator, sent to do battle in a large coliseum, solely for the amusement of his owners and those who pay to see him sacrifice his body for “sport”. Why not recognize those professional soldiers who do the same thing, but in a different type of arena, the theater of War? At yesterday’s pre-game show, the Fox network made a big deal about presenting images of past and current soldiers… and the National Anthem was sung not by a current music superstar, but by the combined “choruses” of the armed forces, backed up by an Army band.

“We are a warrior nation, and we are proud of our soldiers and our propensity for battle”, that was the message sent loud and clear to the television audience. This message reminds me of a quote by Albert Einstein: “You cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war.” If it was not clear before, it is crystal clear now: America is in no way trying to prevent war.

We are currently in the Season for Nonviolence, which runs from January 30th to April 4th every year. Of course, there was no mention of this during the Superbowl broadcast. Everything about football is violent; the game itself is a metaphor for empirical warfare. The object is to advance upon your opponent and take his land; to plant your flag in his “end zone.” After the appropriately-named New England Patriots won the game, news reports from Boston seemed genuinely surprised that there were no riots in the streets. The violence, thankfully, remained on the tv screen and did not spill out into the city. For now.

Our values are askew. We need to set another course before we find our Empire burning.

More later…
Paul