The Czar-Mangled Banner

Ugly, but legal.

World Net Daily has posted on this story about these flags being sold on eBay, pondering the possible legal action for defacing the flag, but it is fruitless.

First off, the U.S. Flag Code is one of the few federal laws that really is a suggestion. There is no penalty for violations of the code, save for a few state or local ordinances, which usually include fines.

Here's the deal: if the people making these flags are manufacturing them themselves, instead of buying the flags and silk-screening Herr Obama's face on the canton, then there is no violation; if it don't have fifty stars, it ain't a U.S. flag, and is thus exempt from the restrictions of the code.

It's a whole other story if they are truly defacing U.S. flags, but like I said, the penalties would be subject to the local law enforcement's discretion.

The dimensions of the flag are also important. The flag pictured, I would hazard to guess, is about 3:5 and the U.S. flag is defined as being 10:19; that, too, is important.

What would it mean if one flew that flag upside-down, I wonder...

Outrage? Why? They're Just Showing Their True Colors

This is the flag that shall wave over the White House on September 20th.

If you don't recognize it, it is the flag of the People's Republic of China. You will note its color is red, which represents Communism. Communism and its offshoots are the exact opposite of Capitalism and the Free Market System. Simple politics; even a child of ten knows this.

The thought that this flag should fly over the White House is an outrage to some, but not to me. It is only right and fitting for a corporation to fly the flag of the country that owns it, and the United States federal government is no exception to that rule.

And why not? With the espousal by the administration of Communist views and policies, and the appointment of Communists to high offices, how shocking can our President's assent and concurrence to the flying of the Chinese flag be? Not to mention the fact that China owns a large portion of our debt, and their policy concerning the handling of that debt can either make or break the back of our economy.

China is among the hefty progenitors and employers of the White House's strongest held political ideology, which espouses the policies of totalitarianism, especially in the control of its population's growth, exposure, education, entertainment, politics, and nutrition; how can the Leader of the Free World reject a request from his political soul-mates to fly their Statist regime's flag?

I have no connection nor allegiance the White House, nor its occupants, nor its grounds; neither have I any to the the city which surrounds it, nor to its citizens, nor legislators.

I declare that the men occupying the houses of government in the District of Columbia do not represent my views or opinions, and are, in fact, illegitimately occupying said territory. They have all defied their oaths, and, indeed, hijacked the seats of government they hold. They are not held to the Constitution or any other law, by de facto, and have no legitimate claim to American government.

Nothing these hellions do can surprise me. They prove their intentions at every turn, showing themselves to be the oppressive tyrants we know they are. Flying this flag is just one more way they have shown their true colors. Why not openly declare their illegitimacy?

Go ahead, D.C., fly your flag. Make my day.

A Couple of Interesting Flags

If you didn't already know, I have somewhat of an interest in flags, of all kinds, colors, and creeds, and I have had this interest for a good many years.

"The U.S. Civil Flag"

This style of flag was purportedly a "flag of peacetime" flown over non-Federally controlled government buildings in times long past, but there is little evidence of this being true. I stand neutral on this issue, and see it only as an interesting flag. A white canton instead of blue, and blue stars instead of white, and vertical stripes instead of horizontal are a radical departure from the almost-cliched look of the U.S. flag.

"Constitution Pride Flag"

This is of lesser, historical controversy, as it is admittedly a new design, but it's still a conversation starter, as it displays the year 1787, the year our Constitution was signed. Three stripes, red, white, and blue, signify the connection our Federal government's flag.

There are more flags out there that aren't known to the general public; take the Gadsden Flag, for instance, as it only became popular again a few years ago, despite being over 200 years old!

Where've I Been?

Away.

Battle of Bunker Hill Anniversary

(Flag similar to that flown at the battle.)

Tomorrow marks the 234th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill.

More accurately known as the Battle of Breed's Hill, it was a loss for the Americans, but a Pyrrhic victory for the British. Out of over 3,000, 1,000 Redcoats, with a disproportionately high number of officers, were put out of commission as they assaulted the American redoubt on Breed's Hill.

450 out of 2,400 American militiamen were killed, wounded, or captured.



An excellent account of this battle may be found at Sipsey Street Irregulars.

A Sign of Distress, not Disrespect

In 2007, North Carolinians Mark and Deborah Kuhn decided to show their distress at the way our country had fallen into such terrible disrepair by flying the U.S. flag outside their home upside-down.

A local sheriff's deputy had just come back from Iraq, being a National Guardsman (whom I thought were supposed to stay home and guard the nation...), and was going to give a citation to the people flying the flag upside-down, because "somebody complained".

It is a lawful sign of distress, not disrespect, but having their patriotism questioned in a very confrontational manner by another Guardsman in full combat uniform at their doorstep, they attached two signs to their flag, seen in the above picture, explaining their reasons for flying it inverted.

The sheriff's deputy, Brian Scarborough, arrived at the Kuhn's home very early in the morning to talk to them about the flag.

They told him at the door that the inverted flag is an internationally recognized, accepted, and lawful show of distress; the officer informed them that it was not that the flag was upside-down, the problem was the signs attached to it, saying it was "desecration"!

Mark Kuhn then removed the flag from his porch, but that wasn't enough for the deputy, who then demanded ID; after refusing to produce ID, the deputy ordered that they put their hands behind their so he could arrest them. Again, they refused.

Being both angered and wary of the cop, they both went back into the house and locked the door.

A moment later, the deputy was kicking-in the door; after he shattered the glass with his bare fist, he reached in to unlock the deadbolt.

He proceeded into the kitchen where Mark and Deborah had run. Deborah called 911 while Mark kept the deputy sheriff at bay.

The deputy put Mark in a headlock while he pulled out his pepper-spray, but decided not to use it, instead reaching for his billy club; this gave both Deborah and Mark a chance to escape into the street where they shouted for help from their neighbors.

Apparently, it was a short time later that nine police cars showed up, with their drivers jumping out saying, "Get down we're gonna Taser you!"

They were both arrested, despite immediate protest from their neighbors who wanted to know why they were being taken, but they were ordered to leave.

Sheriff's deputy Brian Scarborough claims to have injured his hand when the Kuhns shut the door on it, though it was maintained by Deborah Kuhn and another neighbor who witnessed that he injured it when he shattered the glass on their front door.

There is no punishment for violating any part of the U.S. Flag Code, as there is no provision for law enforcement of the Code, and the Supreme Court has ruled many violations of the U.S. Flag Code to be protected under the First Amendment.

On a recent trip to southern Missouri, I spotted a house along the highway that had a stately flag pole with a large U.S. flag flying upside-down; I knew they meant no disrespect, they just wanted to outwardly show their lack of support for the policies of despots and of tyrants.

I believe it reasonable to fly a flag upside-down for political reasons, though I find it unreasonable to burn one, unless it is disrepair, in which case I advise burning.

I also find it revolting that a person would fly a flag of another country over, or instead of, the U.S. flag., the latter of which I have noticed in town.

The U.S. Flag Code's provision for flying an inverted flag is that one's safety or property must be in immediate peril, but I can't think of a single such scenario where one can find the time or necessity to invert the flag.

"My pants are on fire! Quick, turn the flag upside-down!"

Vexillogical Profile Picture

I get very sentimental over certain things like freedom, the Bible and God's teachings, individual liberty, the Constitution, America... raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens... and profile pics. (And brown-paper packages tied-up with strings; these are but a few of my most sentimental things.)

It was a difficult decision, but I have currently dropped my previous profile picture and replaced it with a little bit of a creative vexillogical artistry. Sort of. I guess.

President-Elect Effect

Obama's Presidency has already proven beneficial to the American common welfare and defense, because guns and ammo sales are up, up, up!

He hasn't even been inaugurated yet, and already he's better than Bush!
That is, if he's even going to be inaugurated. (See article below.)

What next? Food sales? Shrapnel-proof helmet sales? Nuclear-proof bomb shelter sales? The market can only go up from here!

However, we may still have to change the flag...



"I've campaigned in... I think... 57 states, with three more to go... uhh."

Don't Tread on My Flag: The Gadsden Flag Song Competition

I feel it's a shame that one of the grandest flags ever to fly over American soil doesn't have a legitimate song, so I plan to bring attention to the forgotten flag, and restore it to prominence as an American symbol.

And so, I do hereby state that I shall be holding a competition for best music and lyrics for a song about the Gadsden Flag. You may enter a tune, lyrics, or both.

(I'm well aware of the various rock "songs" named "Don't Tread on Me"; that is not legitimate music, so don't even think of entering anything like that.)

The winner will get full credit at an exhibition of the song here at my blog, and possibly other places. Again, tunes, lyrics or both may be entered; the best of either of these categories will be chosen.

You may use this post to comment your entry for lyrics. If your entry contains music, simply comment a link to your video such as from Vimeo or YouTube.

So, show your musical genius as well as American patriotism, and get to work on it!
If nobody submits a decent song, I will submit my own song and declare myself the winner. (And nobody wants that!)

The competition ends November first; the winner and song will debut here on the third.

Alaska: The Last Frontier

Eight stars of gold on a field of blue -

Alaska's flag. May it mean to you

The blue of the sea, the evening sky,

The mountain lakes, and the flow'rs nearby;

The gold of the early sourdough's dreams,

The precious gold of the hills and streams;

The brilliant stars in the northern sky,

The "Bear" - the "Dipper" - and, shining high,

The great North Star with its steady light,

Over land and sea a beacon bright.

Alaska's flag - to Alaskans dear,

The simple flag of a last frontier.

U.S. Flag Revision

Barack Hussein Obama, presumptive Socialist-Swine Party nominee, has released his revised edition of the U.S. Flag. It is to be called: "Stars and Stripes We Can Believe In".

The flag sports sixty stars, the same number Barack alluded to in May of this year.

He said, "...it is just wonderful to be back in Oregon, and over the last fifteen months we've traveled to every corner of the United States. I've now been in fifty seven states, with, I think, one more to go. Alaska and Hawai'i, I was not allowed to go to, even though I really wanted to visit, but my staff would not justify it."

Well, that makes sixty, alright!

"For the first time, I'm truly proud of my flag."

[NOTE: Obama obviously made a slip of the tongue and knows that there are only fifty states, but in the interests of making fun, I created this flag; credit should go where credit is due.]

The Gadsden Flag

In 1775, two battalions of Continental Marines were recruited in Philadelphia, in accordance with an act of Congress.

The first Continental Marines that were recruited there carried yellow drums depicting the soon to be famous coiled rattlesnake and the words "DON'T TREAD ON ME".

In the same year, one Colonel Christopher Gadsden, a member of the Marine Committee tasked with organizing the first mission of the newly formed Continental Navy, presented to the freshly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Commodore Esek Hopkins, a flag with a field of brilliant yellow, its charge, a coiled rattlesnake of thirteen rattles, below it the infamous words of defiance.

The flag was given with the intent of being the Commodore's personal standard.

The yellow ensign was also presented in Charleston, South Carolina, where it often flies to this day.

Though mostly forgotten, the butternut banner is as old as the nation itself; many men fought and died under its sempiternal phrase. Shamefully, the Betsy Ross flag coaxed it out of history books as the flag of the Revolution.

Not many Americans know what it is or means.

Old Glory remains the flag that symbolizes the Union of States, but the Rattler Flag stands as an emblem of the ideology and aspirations of the Nation thereof.

That is why I fly one of America’s very first flags.

An Article about Confederation

Our government structure is a Federalized Constitutional Republic, not a Democracy. The only form of Democracy involved is in the election process, where majority rule.

But note that we are a Federalized Constitutional Republic; we have a central federal form of government. These United States were not always so, though.

When the Declaration of Independence was written and signed, we were under Articles of Confederation.

Believe it or not, Confederate isn’t another word for a slaveholder.

It means a decentralized form of government, with no concentration of power; each unit of local Government has as much power as the next.

In the late 1780’s, when the Constitution was being written, one could say that there were basically two political parties: Federalists and Anti-Federalists.

The Federalists were those that felt not that the current government wasn’t big enough under the Confederation, but that it wasn’t strong enough to exist as a Union; it had no provisions for the collection of taxes, among other basic things.

The Anti-Federalists were those the felt that the fewer powers that a central government had the better, as the idea of “Americanism”, if you will, was the sovereignty of the individual.

Just so long as the government was in-fighting, they felt, the people couldn’t be oppressed.

As you know, the Federalists won, but with a few compromises with the Anti-Federalists.

The Federalists were against the idea of a Bill of Rights, stating that if an enumeration of an Individual’s writes were put into law, it might cause the Government to take any rights not enumerated.

Never the less, the Constitution was written with a Bill of Rights, (for what it was worth), and the Confederation ended.

Not another Confederacy sprouted up in America until 1861, but that died just five years later due to an overwhelming invasion by an opposing government.

You may have previously noticed a Confederate States of America flag on my blog header; I removed it because the C.S.A. is gone and I have an allegiance to the Constitution. But, I didn’t put up the current U.S. flag in its place, I put up a flag of 1770’s, as it is the flag of what America used to be.

The current flag represents the current state of affairs, as the flag changes with the times , and I don't like the current state of affairs.

I think I would prefer that we still lived under a Confederation, but who knows what it would have been like.

Never the less, I am an individual, free and sovereign, answerable only to the law of God and the law of this land, respectively. I neither owe, nor am I indebted to any state or governing body, past or present.

I support my Constitution, and pray God brings confusion on upon its enemies, be they peasant or prince.