I realize how cliche it is to note that during the holidays, I managed to have a little faith in humanity restored, but in this case its true. Tonight at #MSG before the #NYR/#Caps game, the national anthem flag carriers were members of the #NYPD. The moment that was announced, the packed Garden stood on their feet and gave a loud and prolonged standing ovation. This ovation lasted over 2 minutes and spilled into the actual singing of the Star Spangled Banner. As the anthem was ending the ovation got even louder and eventually the arena broke into a "Go Team Blue" chant that lasted and additional 40-50 seconds.
I found the entire moment surreal and enchanting and I do not think I have felt more moved from any mass gathering of people especially at a sporting event where people typically are known to get drunk and rowdy. I even managed to shout a "Fuck De Blasio" toward the end. It's something else when all we've seen on the news lately was this anti-police rhetoric all because of a few unfortunate cases where some undesirables had unfortunate run-ins with the cops. It still holds true that for every law abiding citizen out there, a cop if the first thing you want to see when the human equivalent of a rabid animal is threatening you. Something that De Blasio seems to forget under the protection of his armed escort.
So thank you for all our police officers out there, for being our first and often last line of defense. I'll always sleep easier knowing you're out there and when it all comes down to it, NYC has your back. Say what you want about us New Yorkers, but we'll always be raw.
Happy Holidays.