When reaching my age or thereabouts, many suffer from old age pestilence. Cancer; tendons, ligaments, and bones weakening, breaking or disappearing. At eighty, i too have some of those ills but marginally so compared to many of my friends and others.
Many in all age groups that call themselves adults have their problems because they were in the military service, a large number of them in battle, some in hand to hand combat, some who didn’t come home or died early because what our country required them to do. Oh, i was too close to battle numerous times but was never in actual combat. i experienced losing someone at sea, an electrician losing his arm in ship’s switchboard, a airman losing his leg in a helicopter crash, and a list of such harms too long to list here. i was in a number of situations on ships that had the potential for losing my life. Like those casualties and those life threatening situations, they occurred in service of our country.
i play golf once a week or more at a military golf course, mostly at Sea ‘n Air, Naval Station North Island’s course. Usually there are about six to eight of us. We play early. Somewhere around the fourth through sixth holes, we hear a bugle play first call to colors from base loudspeakers. Five minutes later, our National Anthem begins. If golfers are out of earshot, someone who can hear the opening notes, yells “colors.”
Everyone on the course stops, takes off their covers (hats to you civilians) and puts their right hand over their heart until the anthem is concluded and “carry on” rings out from the bugle call. The players resume play.
You see, these folks served their country and continue to honor their country by honoring our flag according the “U.S. Flag Code.” They are not honoring a president, a congress, the supreme court, or a political party, or philosophical position on government. They are honoring our country. They are honoring our citizens, all of them, whom they defended, through showing respect for our flag.
It seems the citizens of our country don’t feel they should honor and respect the flag. Judge Alito and his wife displaying the flag upside down was a gross disrespect for our flag and our country. The US Flag is not a platform nor should be used as one to state a political stance or be used in a squabble between neighbors. i am not taking sides politically. i’m done with that. All political parties have lost their moral compass to get their people elected.
The citizens are even worse in their disrespect for the flag and our country’s constitution. Here are some things all should consider before displaying our flag. These come straight from the U.S. Flag Code:
The flag should not be displayed on a float in a parade except from a staff.
The flag should not be draped over the hood, top, sides, or back of a vehicle or of a railroad train or a boat. When the flag is displayed on a motorcar, the staff shall be fixed firmly to the chassis or clamped to the right fender.
When displayed either horizontally or vertically against a wall, the union should be uppermost and to the flag’s own right, that is, to the observer’s left. When displayed in a window, the flag should be displayed in the same way, with the union or blue field to the left of the observer in the street.
No disrespect should be shown to the flag of the United States of America; the flag should not be dipped to any person or thing.
The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.
The flag should never touch anything beneath it, such as the ground, the floor, water, or merchandise.
The flag should never be carried flat or horizontally, but always aloft and free.
The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. It should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free. Bunting of blue, white, and red, always arranged with the blue above, the white in the middle, and the red below, should be used for covering a speaker’s desk, draping the front of the platform, and for decoration in general.
The flag should never have placed upon it, nor on any part of it, nor attached to it any mark, insignia, letter, word, figure, design, picture, or drawing of any nature.
The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever. It should not be embroidered on such articles as cushions or handkerchiefs and the like, printed or otherwise impressed on paper napkins or boxes or anything that is designed for temporary use and discard. Advertising signs should not be fastened to a staff or halyard from which the flag is flown.
This includes political advertising. And making it different colors or otherwise altering its appearance is disrespect for it and our country.
No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations. The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. Therefore, the lapel flag pin being a replica, should be worn on the left lapel near the heart.
So now, if you are using the flag to support your political position, you are not only showing disrespect for our flag, but for our country and for those who have served to defend that flag, our country, and our citizens.
No, i’m not going to come after you or try to punish you. My service to my country was, in part, to defend your rights to say and do what you want within legal limitations. But you should be ashamed. You are showing disrespect for the country that allows you to do what you are doing. Shame.
There are many other things i would like to include here, but those things smack of politics, which i try to avoid. i will add an observation:
Folks of my vintage and beginnings, think of the Golden Rule as being espoused by Jesus in the New Testament of the Bible. It was. It also was a key rule from around 2340 BEC in Egypt and is found in nearly all religions in various forms — DO UNTO OTHERS AS YOU WOULD HAVE THEM DO UNTO YOU.
It seems to me all of our politicians and damn near all of everyone else in this country, especially those who claim they are “religious,” have decided to ignore that dictum. i think the world would be a whole lot better off if each of us made that our primary watchword.
i am a citizen of the United States of America, i served my country in the Navy for more than 22 years and sacrificed some of my rights while serving. i believe our constitution with some flaws due to the time in which it was written contains the ideas for the best government on this earth throughout history. i belief many, from the start, has abused its ideas of equality and freedom to gain wealth and power and abuse others. i honor the United States of America Flag, Old Glory to signify my beliefs.
i am worried we are destroying our constitution and our country by our selfish and blind adherence to party politics. It seems we have not learned from history, just ignoring it to repeat its failures.
i am ashamed of what it appears we have become, or at least on the road to becoming.