Flags can be controversial. They are, typically, pieces of cloth with designs on them. And these designs are representative of a group of somebodies or somethings. Most often, these flags are used as national symbols or emblems of institutions.
But their meanings can go in all sorts of directions, and those flying flags are frequently embroiled in bitter battles, sometimes with people of the same “side.”
The flag of the United States even has a code. It is called The United States Flag Code, of all things.
It goes like this, loosely.
The flag should not be displayed on days when the weather is inclement.
I am not sure about this one right off the bat. Is rain inclement, for instance? What about a light mist? And is this due to shrinking and fading issues? Also, what about when that flag is waged in battle in the middle of some monsoon? The code doesn’t really define these questions. Next.
The custom is to display the flag only from sunrise to sunset on flagstaffs in the open, but it may be displayed at night—if illuminated—to produce a patriotic effect.
All sorts of questions here. But the biggest is about those little flags people put on their desks. Is this considered “the open”? What is considered the “closed”? And. When they leave the office at night and turn off all the lights in the building, is it necessary to keep a little flashlight shining on those little flags? Again, the details are sketchy.
The rest of the code is pretty long. These are just the first two items. In the rest of the rules, they call the “blue section” the Union. I can’t find that the stripey section has a name, so I guess it is just the stripey section.
There is a whole big list of don’ts.
The flag should never touch anything beneath it, such as the ground, the floor, water, or merchandise.
I am not sure about this touching of merchandise. Are cars merchandise? Because I have seen a lot of flags in the backs of pickup trucks, and they touch those trucks. Does that touching make someone unpatriotic?
The flag should never be carried flat or horizontally, but always aloft and free.
I’ve seen people carry flags in all sorts of ways. Especially after they buy one at a store. It would be complicated to get it home in an aloft and free manner. The logistics on this one are tricky.
Then, there’s this one.
The flag should never be used for any advertising purpose, nor embroidered on cushions or handkerchiefs, printed on paper napkins or boxes, nor used as any portion of a costume.
Whoops. Whoops on every person who lives in the United States and has ever been to a summer cookout anywhere. And the costume thing? A whole lot of people must not have gotten the memo on this.
Finally, the last part.
When the flag is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem, it should be destroyed in a dignified and ceremonious fashion, preferably by burning.
Can it touch the ground while it is burning, or must we hold it aloft to destroy it?
All of this is Betsy Ross’s fault. Today is her birthday, January 1, 1752. She’s a big controversy, too, as it is mostly a legend that she created the first American Flag. She may have sewn it together, but there was a design in place before she opened her sewing kit.
Many historians now believe that the design of the first flag was made by Francis Hopkinson. He was a New Jersey delegate to the Continental Congress and signer of the Declaration of Independence. Francis had already designed a lot of seals for various departments within the U.S. government.
The proof lies in his bill. In 1780, he asked for payment from the Board of Admiralty for his design of the “flag of the United States of America.” They didn’t give him the payment, citing that “he was not the only one consulted” on the design. So, I guess, theoretically, Betsy could have sat in on that meeting.
But once again, the flag leaves us with another flapping debate.
==========
“Any fool can make a rule
And any fool will mind it.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Journal #14
=========
“I love rules and I love following them, unless that rule is stupid.”
― Anna Kendrick, Scrappy Little Nobody
=======
“It is not always the same thing to be a good man and a good citizen.”
― Aristotle
========
