But things do change. As was mentioned on an earlier thread on the Pledge of Allegiance, when I was learned it in Kindergarten in 1943, we were taught to stand straight, with our left arm down rigid by our our side, and our right arm held up stiffly in what today would be called a Nazi salute. Mid-way through the term our teacher, Miss Bryant, told us one day that there had been a change and that from then on we should put our hand over our heart.
I was looking for a picture of those classrooms of little American Nazis, but wow did that lead me into some nasty parts of the internet! I couldn’t come up with any set of search terms that didn’t lead me right into Whackjobistan. Even when I used “roman” or “Cicero”. The nuts have it all covered.
I think it’s roughly the same in all the services. You don’t normally salute indoors, but you do when officially reporting to a superior officer, for instance.
In general, saluting is required in some situations, and not considered inappropriate in most others. It’s not like saluting when you don’t really have to is verboten. The exception to that being when you’re in the field, and you don’t want enemy snipers picking off everyone who gets saluted.
Also, military police, when armed, aren’t required to remove their hats indoors.
The base movie theaters always play the national anthem before each show. I think all we were required to do in that case was just stand up and not fidget too much.
I’m pretty sure I was taught (during the 70’s), though I don’t distinctly remember where or how, that proper protocol was to put your right hand over your heart, unless you were in uniform (e.g. a Boy Scout uniform), in which case you saluted. I definitely know you’re supposed to stand—otherwise the campfire skit about Musical Toilet Seats wouldn’t make any sense. And I do remember being told at least once, I think by a music teacher, that it was improper to applaud the National Anthem.
Nowadays, when I am somewhere that the National Anthem is played, I stand with my hand over my heart, kinda glance around self-consciously, see that several others but certainly not a majority of the other people also have their hands over their hearts, and wonder whether I would be committing the greater faux pas by leaving my hand on my heart or by letting it drop.
Hand over heart, hats off, look respectfully at flag.
Not your country’s national anthem? Hands at side look respectfully at flag or singer.
I’ll tell you one thing: I was taught you were supposed to SING the National Anthem right out loud, not stand there and be “entertained” by some coloratura soprano singing in tones which only dogs can hear…and then clap for the performance! Sheesh! It’s not somebody else’s song: it’s ours. Yours and mine. But I get weird looks lately when I sing it in crowds.
Every Fourth of July, when they start the fireworks in the park across the way (I don’t even have to leave the block to get a great view), I happily sing it out loud. My neighbor, a Marine, comes out of his house and sings along with me.
When I got to see a client from Togo go through his naturalization ceremony at Federal Court in downtown New York City, I sang it with tears in my eyes. Welcome to America, brother!
I love the words–they’re a great story about faith in ideals and endurance through a terrifying night. I mean “America the Beautiful” is okay, but “The Star-Spangled Banner” is tops with me.
And I’m a liberal Democrat, too.
I’m pretty sure we were told to put our hands over our hearts. This was in a suburb near Atlanta, in the late 80s.
Well, you and I can sit together at sporting events, then. I sing. I like to sing, and I like the national anthem. And I can actually sing it well, even the high note. People can look at me funny all they want. I sing O Canada and God Save the Queen whenever I hear them, too, though, so it’s probably not just patriotism.
Anyway, I was taught that men – and women wearing man-type hats, as already mentioned – should remove their hats during the national anthem. Everybody looks at the flag. Right hand goes over the heart. (But seriously, this is what people’s panties are in a twist about? He didn’t put his hand over his heart during the national anthem?)
Of course, I was also taught that men should remove their hats when they come indoors, which no one pays no nevermind to anymore, so maybe I’m a bit old-fashioned.
re: Cub Scout Salute: I assume it was a long time ago when you were in the Cub Scouts, their salute is ring and pinky against the thumb, with only two fingers making the salute. Boy Scouts, which you don’t get into until you’re around 12 years old, did the three-fingered salute (similarly, they had two-fingered and three-fingered “Scout Signs” which variously were used to show group membership, that you could be trusted, or that everyone in the room needed to shut up).
re: National anthem indoors for the military: Indoors, you stand at attention facing the flag (if you can see it) or the music (if you can’t see the flag). Saluting indoors is generally frowned upon, unless you are reporting to a superior officer, as has been mentioned already.
National anthem outdoors for us military folks? Stand at attention, face the flag (if you can see it) or the music, salute. If you have a hat on, the salute comes to the brim of the hat (unless there is no brim on your hap, in which case you salute normally). We also salute for Reveilee and Retreat if we are outdoors. In civvies, I can’t recall a requirement for headgear, but we stand at attention and put our hands over our hearts. If you are in a formation, then you do not salute (or, for that matter, come to attention) until your formation commander gives the order. I’ve only ever been in one formation where the guy in charge wasn’t on the ball in regards to this sort of thing, and it turned into what we fondly like to call a “Charlie Foxtrot”.
Fun trivia: If any armed service’s song is played, we stand respectfully at attention. If OUR service’s song (the best of them all, of course, except for that catchy one by the Villiage People that the Navy uses :D), then we’re encouraged to sing along (in BMT, we sang “LOUD AND PROUD”, in tech school, we’re expected to be on-key more than anything else).
Now, if you want confusion, ask an Air Force Basic Trainee what you are required to do for Taps. (stand at parade rest, though many will tell you you are required to stand at Attention, which is definitely nice, but by no means required)
re: The Texas Pledge: Yeah, I’m from Texas, and proud of it. During the Texas Pledge in high school, I just stood there (I had already gotten up for the Pledge of Allegience). If anyone wanted to call me on not saying the state pledge, I was more than happy to bring the debate onto the table, but otherwise I just silently stood there.
Oh, and as for the Star Spangled Banner? Heck yeah I sing it whenever I’m allowed to. I love that song, a tale of how the British attempted to invade the US and we sent them packing. 
For the national anthems of other countries, we’re generally expected to stand respectfully at attention, I think.
When I was in the Boy Scouts, we had mostly the same customs regarding the National Anthem as we do now in the military. Salute in uniform, hand-over-heart out of uniform.
I learned that for the US Anthem, us civilians stand at attention, remove (men’s) hats, and place the right hand over the heart (and the hat naturally covers the left shoulder). A woman wearing a baseball cap, do-rag, or other nonreligious head covering that doesn’t require long pins to keep it in place should remove her hat.
And at Orioles games, I learned to yell loudly on the “O” towards the end of the first stanza.