Missing: One national anthem

I’m a disappointed veteran. On Jan. 22, I attended a basketball game at Hampden Academy. As the varsity teams were warming up, music was played on a portable cassette player. What was so disappointing was that the national anthem was not played before the start of the game.

There’s no excuse for this. Isn’t it sad, especially now, when we have men and women over in the Middle East?

I understand that not all schools can have their bands present at all the games, but a tape in the cassette player would have been sufficient. They could even have had a moment of silence. Do we want our young people to grow up not caring about our country and what our flag means?

I hope Hampden Academy and all high schools will always make it a practice to play the anthem before every sports event, and be proud to be Americans. Jammey R. Legassey Millinocket