Great timing
Trump decided today would be an awesome day to forbid kneeling.
You can protest some things, but not the flag – Trump forbids it.
Too bad there’s a Supreme Court ruling saying yes you can.
But also…kneeling? Really, dude? Now?
Well, remember, it’s George Floyd’s great day.
My dad has always gone ballistic at the mere suggestion of someone “disrespecting” the flag – and he had a broad definition of disrespect. What is it about this piece of cloth? I don’t think other countries do this constant reverence for a flag, do they?
No, they don’t, and they think we’re ridiculous.
Oh, it happens in Oz, too. The “Patriots” (AKA wanna be NAZIS) wrap themselves in it. Try burning one here and you will be set on by a mob, without the legal protections the 1st provides Americans.
It is just a piece of coloured cloth, but to some it is more important than their wife, dog, and beer combined.
I am constantly reminded to “respect” it because our soldiers fought under it for my freedoms. Fifty years on and I am still wondering which Vietnamese was threatening my freedom, let alone all the other places we have invaded since. It’s no fun being the USA’s “Deputy Sheriff”.
Up here in Canada, we didn’t have any “reverence” until the early 60’s. I remember going to NHL hockey games, and the games would actually start at 8PM. The one day, we got the US anthem, the Canadian anthem, and people complaining that 8:15 was pretty late. 25 Canadians dressed in US uniforms, and 25 Canadians dressed in Vancouver uniforms, standing around trying to not be bored. Not sure what that did for patriotism, but who am I? Just a lonely Canuck!
Mike
with apologies, there being no version of this immortal song on You Tube.
https://www.allmusicals.com/lyrics/hair/dontputitdown.htm
One of the things that drives me nuts about this ‘no disrespecting the flag’ thing is that almost nobody who brings it up seems to have read or understood the U.S. Flag Code. It prohibits, among other things:
-wearing clothing made of the flag
-using the flag for advertising purposes
-embroidering the flag on anything, or printing it on napkins
-displaying a tattered flag
-allowing the flag to touch anything beneath it
So all those yahoos flying flags from their trucks, or wearing hats or bandannas with the flag on them, or handing out tiny disposable flags that end up in the trash, are doing it wrong.
Also, the only correct manner in which to dispose of an American flag is by burning.
As well, I might add in my capacity as a keen student of American history, I think that that whole field will shortly be divided into two distinct epochs: BT and AT.
Omar, you are more optimistic than I am. I’m not hopeful that there will be a USA after trumpageddon.
Omar, the article you referenced contains a link to a YouTube version of the song. Thanks; I hadn’t heard it before, being familiar only with the movie version of Hair.
@Bostonian
It’s a lost cause really, since the US military decided to display the flag patch on uniforms incorrectly with the canton in the upper right corner because it “looks cooler” that way when it’s on the right-hand sleeve. I think it makes them look stupid and I’m not even remotely a flag waver.
Hey Donnie, maybe you should stop groping the American flag!
Sackbut @#9: Thanks.
On my first try of that link I was deluged with ads, alligators from amazon, and potential malware. So I’ll dig through my LP collection, put the LP om my trusty 33.3 rpm turntable, and play it through my hi-fi system.. For auld lang syne.
Many years ago I was told that Americans revere the flag because it’s the only permanent symbol of the country they have to rally around in the absence of a royal family or dictator-for-life. Sounded like bullshit then and still does, although America is one step closer to the dictator now.