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When In Doubt...

Dr. Drill

You can submit your questions to Dr. Drill via e-mail to : DrDrill@CadetStuff.org.

Dear Dr. Drill,

I am a ticket puller at a baseball park. We are outside in the open and when the national anthem is played are suppose to stop pulling tickets and salute the flag? Also, is the saluting of the flag restricted to those inside the facilities or are the people outside buying tickets suppose to stop and salute?

Dr. Drill responds


Well, now, this is a tough one.

Flag etiquette clearly dictates that those within sight/sound of the flag or music during the rendering of honors to the colors should face the flag (or music) and render the appropriate courtesy (if in military/paramilitary uniform, a salute, and if not in uniform, remove one's cap and place the hand over the heart).

That being said, if the situation is clear that you should continue doing what you are doing (ie. it may not be safe for a police officer to stop directing traffic, face the colors as they pass and salute), then continue working. If you're just standing there "spectating," however, its time to render some courtesy.

In your case, stopping, facing about and rendering a courtesy to the national colors has customer service implications (not to mention the smarmy little cusses who will sneak past while you're busy paying tribute.. I'm sure the Flag Code was not meant to be economically disadvantageous to small businesses!), so it may not be a good idea.

Look at it this way: Your customers are looking to get thru your turnstile and into the ballpark, and if they're doing so during the National Anthem, chances are they're late to the game. They want to get to their seats, get a hot dog slathered in onions and mustard and watch the first pitch. You standing there with your hat over your heart is not helping that, so your supervisor may have something to say. Should that person also take the minute or so to render courtesies to the flag? Yeah, they should! But you're not going to change everybody's mind on that subject, and one non-patriotic loud-mouth is going to be a real pain about this, as you can bet.

As for inside and outside the venue, my general rule is "If I can hear or see that there are honors being rendered to the flag, I, too, should render personal honors to the colors." I could be driving down the road at an Air Force base, 3/4 mile from the flagpole, not in uniform, and as long as I know its happening, I'd better be doing the right thing.

Obviously, each and every situation is different than the next. Dr. Drill has always felt that the old military adage for saluting "When in doubt, whip it out!" applies here, as well. Just use a little common sense.

Dr. Drill.

Caution: Dr. Drill isn't always one hundred percent serious. Please activate your Joke Detectors. And don't call us when you find yourself explaining to a membership termination board why you used a staple gun to keep a cadet's hands at his sides during "To The Rear, March". All we're going to say on your behalf is "Duh!"

And if you find yourself on the bad end of a serious counseling because you decided to go toe-to-toe with your squadron commander over the position of the guide during a squadron-in-mass formation or something similarly trivial, well, we're just going to point, laugh and call you names!

Dr. Drill welcomes comments and corrections. Nothing herein is to be construed as official policy unless quoted from an up-to-date regulation or manual and Dr. Drill is not to be used as a blunt instrument to reshape the pointy heads of your superiors. Dr. Drill has made an extensive study of the drill and knows some people who know some things, but he's not the Final Authority on what happens at your unit. That Final Authority is? That's right, kids! Your UNIT COMMANDER.

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