On Friday, July 1, I woke up to my normal routine that consisted of reading local and national newspapers. One of these newspapers is the New York Daily. While New York Daily isn't your traditional newspaper, it has always tried to follow some format and be a source of some credibility, although their humor seems to be what makes them famous. On Friday, they lost my readership, thanks to Gersh Kuntzman.

You may wonder who is Gersh Kuntzman. Simply: He is, in my opinion, a rude, uninformed, opinionated New York Daily columnist who believes we should ban "God Bless America" from baseball games . Why? He states, "Reality check, friends: 'God Bless America' is not the national anthem."

The only songs Americans should stand for, according to Kuntzman, are “The Star Spangled Banner” and “Here Comes the Bride," in his June 30 article.

When did a wedding become more important than sacrifice? Never, especially when "Here Comes the Bride" was written to focus on the fact that women are the property of men their entire lives. Written by famous composer Richard Wagner, the song was written during a time period of Wagner's life where he publicly disregarded women. According to Song Facts, if a woman associated with Wagner did not live up to his expectations, she would be knocked off the pedestal he once built for them. "Here Comes the Bride," written in 1848, was meant to express Wagner's own anger towards the women who "let him down" but also express how much women needed men to survive. While a widely popular song choice for weddings, this song promotes the disregard of the dignity, emotions, and rights of women.

Mr. Kuntzman also states in his article that it is the pride generated from "God Bless America" that makes it inappropriate; yet, he tells us to rise and remove caps for a bride marching down the aisle to a song that promotes inequality? The saddest part of his article though isn't the contradiction, but his comparison seems less than patriotic as he refers to us as "Mussolini-esque."

"Mussolini-esque," as defined by Webster Dictionary refers to actions and words credited to Italian journalist and former Prime Minister Benito Mussolini. World history teaches us, though, that Benito Mussolini was an Italian dictator best known for his close relationship with Hitler. This close relationship with Hitler led Mussolini to become the father of fascism, a political ideology that Mussolini manipulated to reign terror on innocent people, to excuse poverty and war, and to strike fear in the hearts of all.

According to the New York Daily columnist, "Part of my outrage stems from the ponderous Mussolini-esque introduction of the song when fans are asked to rise, remove their caps and place them over their hearts." By being respectful of sacrifice, America is promoting the same teachings of one of the cruelest rulers in history, Mr. Kuntzman? That the men and women of our Armed Forces teach the same practices and principles of fascism? I am truly speechless.

If I could say anything to Gersh Kuntzman it would be this:

I don't know you and you don't know me, yet I am heartbroken at the outlandish comments you make about the county that you choose to live in. Not because I'm oblivious to our faults as a country, but because you choose to use your job to spread hatred. We already have enough hatred in this world. If Orlando wasn't enough proof for you, then I don't know what is. The part that truly bothers me about your column is that you don't take into consideration what "God Bless America" symbolizes to those active, reserved and veteran individuals whom you just disrespected. See, I don't stand with my fellow fans at a baseball game screaming 'Merica and fist pumping. Rather, I stand in pride for the great men and women who have come before me. I stand for those men that I call my cousins, uncles, and grandfather because I know the bravery and compassion it takes to put on that uniform. So when you stir up hatred geared towards our military, it isn't just towards those men and women but their families; their families who get shuffled around the world at a moment's notice, who sit up at night praying their loved one isn't the victim of the latest attack, or when at their funeral they hand you that folded American flag as the 21-gun salute rings out and they thank you for their service to this great country along with yours.

I will stand anywhere in this great country and salute the military by singing "God Bless America" because I know what it's like to be raised by a great man who gave everything without hesitation to your freedom. My grandfather was my age when he got shipped off to Korea, yet regardless of rank, training, background, or age he was held to the same standards. In his 20s, he carried his men home, he kept them well nourished in POW camps, and he sacrificed his own well-being emotionally, mentally, and physically so his men didn't have to. Tell me, Mr. Kuntzman, could you spend a month in the hole? How about being whipped while having a gun held to your head without ever giving up your aides? No, you couldn't, because you can't take three minutes to stand and respect the men and women who could. My grandfather asked for nothing in return from this country. He snuck back home to a family that thought he was dead because he never believed himself to be a hero. That, Mr. Kuntzman, is why we stand at public events in silence.

So maybe it took the MLB until 2001 to get on board, but your crude comments don't help the situation. In fact, they are the reason that girls on Instagram deem it appropriate to drape the American flag over their shoulders for a quick photo of them "showing their American pride" or why people have created a challenge that promotes burning and stomping on the American flag. You are the reason that parents are allowed to excuse their children from learning patriotic songs and sayings. You are the reason people deem it appropriate to wear the flag as a piece of clothing. So I'll pray for you to the God that you blame for all this too, for along with all those who disrespect the principles of pride, our Founding Fathers would be disappointed to see that their values have become trashed. It's time we remember our roots.

Sincerely,

A proud American