“We take the stars from Heaven, the red from our mother country, separating it by white stripes, thus showing that we have separated from her, and the white stripes shall go down to posterity representing Liberty.”
–George Washington
“It’s not a dictatorship in Washington, but I tried to make it one…”
–George Bush
Yesterday was Flag Day here in America. We placed a flag in the window; not exactly a proper display, but certainly a humble tribute. In the modern age, very few countries regard their flags with the same reverence that we Americans have for ours. Schools, stores, churches, synagogues, general stores, and malls–very few places, whether businesses or institutions, do anything without paying some respect to our flag. Caskets, funerals, and graveyards usually incorporate some symbol or replica of the flag into their memorials and procedures. Books could probably be filled up with the proper etiquette for handling, hanging, and displaying a flag.
A flag is never to touch the ground. It is lowered to no man, be it a pauper or a President. If the flag of a state, a city, or an organization is flown, the American flag must be flown above it and never made smaller or less significant. If draped, it should always be hung vertically with the union (the set of stars) facing east or north, depending on the plane it’s hung. The union should always be facing away from the nearest building and towards the open air of the greater country. The flag should never be turned into decoration or clothing. A few years ago, the entire country went into puritan panic when a woman showed her breast during the Super Bowl’s halftime show; another performer had turned our flag into a piece of clothing and no one said anything.
All immigrants receive a flag upon being naturalized. My Grandfather, Samuel Eagelfeld, received one–he had little else. Rupert Murdoch must’ve got one–but I’m sure he had much more. Irving Berlin must’ve got one when he came from Russia (now Belarus) and I’ve always wondered if he still had it when he wrote “God Bless America”,and I’ve also always wondered if the conservatives realize that he was talking about the Jewish God.
The flag represents everyone. Not one man or a group of men, or even men in general; it is not the coat-of-arms for a race or a house, nor is any star in it’s union raised above or made bigger than any other star. When it is first raised or seen or lowered, you’re supposed to put your right hand on your heart and say the following:
“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
Allegiance: Not to a pauper or a President, but to a republic, to the republic and it’s inseparable truths of liberty and justice and, since undivided equally for all, equality.
The color guard ceremoniously brought the flag out at Fort Dix, New Jersey yesterday (not far from where I grew up); not because it was flag day, but because this week for the first time since World War II the New Jersey National Guard is being deployed overseas. My home state’s National Guard, whose job it is to defend against invasion, but more importantly, come to our aid during hurricanes and disasters, is being sent to Iraq. When the Guardians of the northeast, a place not known for it’s hawkishness or warmongering, are being sent to war, I can only assume it’s because there’s not many troops left to send anywhere else.
Even the destruction of the flag must be done with ceremony. When an American flag has gotten too beat up and worn out to respectfully represent our republic, it must be ceremoniously burned. This is usually done outside, around a campfire. A group of old flags, with one raised to represent them all, is assembled over the fire; a master of ceremonies says the following before lighting:
“This Flag has served its nation long and well. It has worn to a condition to which it should no longer be used to represent the nation.”
And then it is burned; it’s a matter of respect not destruction. Although, the flag that flew atop the World Trade Center was in no condition to be raised, but we did it anyway because this is New York and they could all go fuck themselves. It was raised over Yankee Stadium during that year’s World Series; then the rest of the country got jealous, so we let them raise it over the capitol and other places.
A flag can be made more cherished by where it was raised. Any American citizen can request and recieve a flag that was flown over the Capitol or the Whitehouse. Our Republic has the only flag that was ever flown on the moon, no flag has ever been raised higher, far far above the paupers and Presidents, the soldiers and civilians, the armies and those who wish they could just stay home. You can get a flag that was flown over Iraq, but why would you want one, it’s not our country.
The flag should only ever be flown upside down to signal distress.
Have you considered Subscribing to all of this madness?
