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Americans seem to have a seriously hard time not messing with freedom when it comes to the national anthem—as well as some super inconsistent definitions of patriotism.

Case in point: A Montana man has been arrested for felony assault after slamming a 13-year-old to the ground during the national anthem prior to a rodeo. The boy was wearing a baseball cap and refused to take it off when Curt James Brockway, 39, asked him to.

The boy swore at Brockway in response, and then the military veteran grabbed the boy the neck and slammed him into the ground. His injuries were so serious he had to be airlifted to a hospital two states away.

After the assault, Brockway insisted to the people at the scene that he had done the right thing because the boy was disrespecting the anthem.

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