In life, especially in the current political climate, finding a sense of nuance and reason can be difficult. For years we have been told and shown that you can either be one thing or you can be the other. You can be a libtard or a cuckservative. That’s it. Those are the only options. We’ve come to a place in a society where you must fall on one side of the fence or the other. The fence is razor thin.

Last year I wrote about my initial thoughts on kneeling during the anthem. I still feel that way.

I often use lines from Good Will Hunting as a joke. In fact, I’ve used this very line as the punchline of a joke. Without context, there is no truer statement about being an American. The line is, “Liberty is the soul’s right to breathe, and when it cannot take a long breath, laws are girdled too tight. Without liberty, man is a syncope.”

One of those liberties is the right to peacefully protest in the face of the government. Nationalism and patriotism are not the same ideals. Being able to protest a perceived injustice is one of the hallmarks of liberty. The country that begins to dictate and demand its citizens perform tasks of nationalism or they will be shamed, shunned, or excommunicated are typically countries we wage war in, not the one we live in.

Joe Cardona, a naval officer, stood at attention in front of his teammates who were fighting for what they believe to be justice and inequality. Cardona’s head is held high and it can be for a few reasons. One of those reasons is that his teammates are not disrespecting him directly. In fact, they are cashing the check that the Constitution provides in the form of liberty because the bank of the armed forces is the guarantor.

Seeing people protest during the anthem and for causes close to their hearts is not a slap in the face to my service. It validates it. It’s freedom in action.