Wanna Make A Flag
 

Well, a US flag anyway. :)

That is cool!

Another very interesting post, xoB. I wonder, how official is it? Is this "The" recipie for the Flag of The United States of America (tm) or what? And if it is, then what is a flag that doesn't correspond to these parameters. Is it not a flag? If it's not, what is it?

All this lawyerly hoo-raw in my head is in connection with a story this week in the news that the US House of Representatives has passed a bill to ammend the Constitution.

What would be legal? What constitutes desecration? What if you burned a flag made in China? What if you burned a flag with 53 stars, or with the red and white stripes reversed. That would probably not be picked up on the television coverage, and would still have the inflamatory effect. What if you accidentally drop the flag on the floor or ground?

Traditional flag etiquette as taught in late 70s Boy Scouts was that a flag that touched the ground was supposed to be ritualy destroyed (by burning of course). We actually burned one that the principal of a local school passed on to us for proper disposal after it had been spray painted.

The difference between burning a flag in order to respectfully destroy it and burning a flag while yelling angrily is temperament. You can't legislate opinion, emotion, or intent.

I really don't see the point in that amendment.

Someone needs to write a quick program where you input either the height of the width of the proposed flag, and it outputs all those other variables.

To score points and allow Congress to cover up their dismal record in supporting actual rights and freedoms.

Yup, theofficial recipe.
It's a banner. And this is why it's a stupid idea to have an unworkable amendment. :eyebrow:

Someone needs to write a quick program

Here is a spread sheet , just plug the height in to a

ExACTLY my point.

Thankfully, ammending the Constitution is stupefyingly difficult. Out of 11,000 attempts since 1789, how many were successful? 26. Think I'm exagerating? Nope.

This one would go through with flying colors. Most, if not all, states have already approved something like it, and only the Senate is currently holding it up. In the Senate, the number of Senators who have already voted for previous versions is only two short of the required number to pass it, and many of the freshman Senators are Republican.

At the moment, the MSNBC live poll at BigV's link is running 61% no to the amendment. :)

Is there a whew smily?

Oh, come on. Online polls are not worth the electrons they're printed on.

Yeah, I know a whew would be premature, but sometimes you gotta take whew's where you can get 'em.

Thank goodness this amendment didn't exist when I used my uncle's coffin flag as a bedcover during my wild teenage years. Gods know *what* substances got all over that one.

If I were the "flag police" I could cite EVERYONE that flys our colors in this whole damn town. How disrespectful. I suppose the willingness to die to protect it that was instilled in me makes me a hardnose on this topic..........

Folks not striking the colors at sunset?

Don't have to if you light it up.
I was never clear(no pun) on rainy weather, though. :confused:

Yes, flying the colors after sunset w/o lighting, Flying in inclement weather, Flying tattered and faded colors, Displaying with the union on the wrong side,
flying the colors with other flags on the flags right, dipping during parades, etc. etc. etfuckincetera..........
I'm not sure if everyone's interpretation of flag rules and etiquette are like mine, and I won't deny being a little fanatic about the issue.
But come on guys...... Does it hurt to go an extra step to show respect for a country as great as America? I owe that and MORE to this country and will, as long as I live do so AND seek ways to be even MORE respectful. We've only got one country, and so far, only one flag. Lets stand behind these with dedication and vigor.
check out www.usflag.org/flagetiquette.html for some guidelines as to displaying true patriotism.
GOD BLESS THE USA.

I don't question the official status of those rules but don't agree with the wisdom of some of them. I'd rather see it front and center. Maybe it's to keep it out of the way of flying bullets? How do you determine "it's own right" if you can view the poles from both sides?

The bad weather thing I mentioned before, our Marines don't quit and go home in bad weather so why should the flag?
If you have scattered showers do you run the flag up and down every time it starts to rain?

Back in 'Nam days, I thought the flag represented the Jingoism that allowed Johnson and Nixon to keep us mired in that mess. I see Bush doing the same thing but now I realize it's not the flags fault. :us:

The faded and tattered issue is why I stopped using a car flag. Takes less than a week to get nasty looking, and now I have a flag in search of a bonfire.

Stage right.

The only reason not to fly the flag in rain is to keep it from getting tattered and...well, weathered. It would indeed be illogical to lower the flag each time a drizzle passed through. Especially if you are in a duty/combat situation. I don't see why government and/or other employees, though would just sit and watch it weather through their cushy little office windows. At any rate, at least if they must leave it out in inclement weather, they should have enough respect to retire and replace it after it begins to fade or fray. Basically I am refering to the asshats in my town, and not as a generalization. As a rule, most citizens, given the choice of themselves or the flag getting wet would, yes...keep themselves dry. Nothing wrong with a wet flag, mind you, but a weathered flag IS disrespectful. I don't expect everyone to feel as strongly as I do on this issue, as stated in an above post. But I wish they would. I just feel that, with a more patriotic attitude perhaps we could have an even stronger country.

I was thinking more along the lines of civilian use like the courthouse, manufacturing plants, banks, VFW and schools.
I know a woman that sews flags for Valley Forge Flag Co. Since most of their flags come from China now she was scheduled to be laid off in the fall of '01.
After september 11th they cancelled the layoff but the huge upsurge in business was 99% imported. Now they are closing down for good(bad) and all the flags will come from China. :mad:

***********************************
U.S. FLAGS ...PRODUCT OF CHINA:
The epitomy of an oxymoron.
Very sad. Seems like this is the ONE thing they should make stateside at any/all cost. Oh well.....there goes the neiborhood. :mad2:

I guess if you were killed on duty in Iraq, your folks would get a flag made in china, after the gun salute and taps? Thanks all you asshole folks that pass the laws. Congress & senate

I don't remember the details - name of company or location - but I recently learned about a U.S. flagmaker still in business on John Ratzenburger's Made in America show. It has been in the same family for many years - one of their flags draped Abraham Lincoln's coffin.

I agree with you Capn' H , I cant tell you how many times i have seen some body lower a flag and just WAD it the fuck up , that just chaps my ASS !!!!!
I also can't count the times i have stoped some body from doing that and helped them fold the flag up properly , ALL blue and stars , no RED showing !!!!!!!
Show some FUCKING respect !!!!!

In the Marines I always seemed to get honored with the color detail , Ever had to fold a full size garrisin flag , its about the size of a UPS truck , it takes 4-6 guys to do it correctly
In Iceland we would lower the flags if the wind got over 25 knots , the Us flag was ALLWAYS the last one down .

Zip, you named two problems.
How many building custodians have help or even know how, to fold the flag properly. I'd be happy if they'd just keep it off the damn ground. :(

the key is, IMO: do the BEST you can.
and don't be negligent.
we don't live in a perfect world,
and it never will be. I don't think.

Interesting workaround
 

Here's one guy's proposed workaround: just make flags that are ALMOST the US flag, but NOT QUITE :)

That's a good find, TK, so good that it was mentioned earlier in this thread. But you could do worse (a lot worse) than following in xoB's footsteps.