Our Flag Has Lost Its True Significance

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From my viewpoint, the grand, old flag has been saddled with implications ill-suited to her elevated position in the world. She’s become akin to the dowager who eschews all rules, to become as uncouth, disreputable, and ill-mannered as possible, without caring who she hurts, maligns, or bulldozes out of her way in the process. No longer does she stand for “liberty, and justice for all” (if she ever really did). Instead, she’s become a symbol for hatred, racism, exclusion, and justifiable homicide based on gender, race, and religion, all in the name of entitlement.
It’s used (or more accurately, abused) by wannabe rich, white men who think with their balls, and their frozen-in-time, pre-sixth-grade mindsets instead of their hearts, open minds, and inclusiveness. Most who attach it via specially made bracket to their gas-guzzling, “made in ‘merica” pickup trucks wouldn’t know how to exercise critical thinking if it pistol-whipped them with an AK-47.
What baffles me most is the women who support the concept of a male-dominated society where women are once-again relegated to the position of property rather than partners who work together to make a better world for all. I’m not sure I even want to know what kind of brainwashing they were subjected to.
A Symbol of Hate, Not Hope

Photo-The National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center via Flikr
Is it any wonder I now cringe at the sight of a flag being flown from a vehicle, or someone’s home? Or that I’m baffled by those who scream about the flag being disrespected, when the mere fact they fly it from a vehicle going 70 or 80 MPH down the freeway, or 24/7 from a house with no lighting at night, or protection during adverse weather are actual acts of disrespect? There are specific requirements and instructions in the American Flag Code for disposing of a damaged flag, for heaven’s sake. To whit:
According to the U.S. Flag Code, “The flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning”.
Furthermore, the Department of Veteran’s Affairs States:
…flags that display tears or appear worn down in a significant way should not be hoisted under any circumstances.
If you ask me, frayed edges, and rips between the stripes would be considered significantly worn. Displaying a flag in such a way as to incur damage every day from the elements, or the environment would be willfully destroying a flag, and NOT in a dignified way.
Agreement Isn’t Necessary for Respect

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I know there are plenty of people out there who still display the flag respectfully, and treat it with the dignity it deserves. Who also continue to honor human dignity, common decency, and inclusion. I doubt they’re the ones storming the Capitol, or bitching about their rights when asked to wear a mask to protect their own health and the health of others. That’s not to say they don’t quietly protest what they disagree with, but they’re not abusing other people in the process. And they’re not using the American Flag as a symbol of their not-so-silent resistance.
I struggle as much as the next person to be as kind and compassionate as I wish to be. But I am less compassionate and considerate when someone insists they’re more equal than me, or anyone else, and that they have right to decide what they can and cannot do with their body, but also to dictate what a particular group (namely women) can do with theirs.
As a suicide survivor who’s had years to process 2 suicide losses, I even believe you have the right to decide when you’re done living, as long as the ending you choose doesn’t involve taking a bunch of people out with you, thereby denying them the same choice.
Come Together, or Fall Apart

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In recent years, I’ve seen too many instances where the flag is used as a symbol for those who believe in all manner of gross inequities as long as they, themselves can have and do whatever they please. I’m watching and waiting for things to explode, or more likely, implode when it becomes abundantly clear that without cooperation, compassion, and compromise, no society will survive.
You can never please 100% of the people, even 10% of the time, much less 100%. Insisting one group has more rights than anyone else (and no responsibilities to boot!) is the surest way I’ve seen to kill a society from the inside out. In a world gone global, you can be sure there are plenty of vultures sitting on our borders waiting for the right moment to start picking the bones clean, and further desecrating our flag.
Fortunately, I truly believe there are more of us who honor and respect the symbolism of the flag, the concept of liberty and justice for all, regardless of ANY differences, and who are already seeking ways to detoxify our flag and all it stands for.
Still Time to Save Ourselves…I Hope

Photo-FoodCraftLab via Flikr
It won’t happen overnight. Our flag and what it stands for have been soaking in a pit of raw sewage for longer than has been made obvious of late. We have some serious cleanup to do; to our actions, to our image, and for our citizens. It won’t be easy, and it won’t be neat, because the necessary purge will likely leave all of us wanting in some way for awhile, until we’ve torn away all the rotten wood, burned it along with those aforementioned damaged flags, and had the chance to rebuild on a stronger, kinder foundation, with cleaner, greener materials.
The rumblings have been building for a long time. If Nature herself doesn’t manage to shake, burn, freeze, blow, or drown us out of here first, those who usurped our flag for their own, nefarious purposes will ultimately find themselves buried in the rubble they necessitated, and if you ask me, it’s a good place for them as long as precautions are enacted to keep them from infecting our soil, groundwater, and air with their rotting putrescence.
Until the malodorous taint has been cleared, though, I won’t, for any reason, be flying a flag which no longer represents my beliefs, or my loyalties.
Grateful for the Right to Disagree
My gratitudes today are:
- I’m grateful for the choices I still have.
- I’m grateful for like-minded people who are done with the usurping of our flag for evil, selfish means.
- I’m grateful for strong, vocal, powerful people who believe in equitable treatment for everyone.
- I’m grateful for dinosaurs who don’t know how to change their ways, so they ultimately go extinct.
- I’m grateful for abundance; love, compassion, kindness, acceptance, equity, friendship, friendly disagreement, diversity, joy, peace, harmony, balance, philanthropy, and prosperity.
Namaste
About the Author
Sheri Conaway is a Holistic Ghostwriter, and an advocate for cats and mental health. Sheri believes in the Laws of Attraction, but only if you are a participant rather than just an observer. Her mission is to Make Vulnerable Beautiful and help entrepreneurs touch the souls of their readers and clients so they can increase their impact and their income.
If you’d like to have her write for you, please visit her Hire Me page for more information. You can also find her on Facebook as Sheri Levenstein-Conaway Author
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