Excuse Me While I Offend You

"America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on imagination and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand." - Harry S. Truman


After 9/11 happened back in 2001 you couldn't go half-a-block anywhere in the USA without seeing the American flag proudly displayed. It was all over America: bumper stickers, flags on cars, house porches, store fronts, flags flying high outside schools and buildings, and pretty much everyone wore at least one t-shirt displaying the stars and stripes.

And now, fourteen years later, the flag is no longer displayed proudly by many. In fact, it has been taken out of some schools along with the pledge of allegiance, universities won't display it, and in some schools students are not allowed to wear anything that symbolizes the flag, and businesses are scared of displaying it for fear of losing business, all for the sake of fearing we might offend someone.  So much for all of the we will never forget.

Our once great, proud nation has become a nation of dare I say, wusses. The American flag was created and meant for being a symbol of Americanism. Today it constitutes a symbol to only the few and proud ( sorry Marines, had to steal that one!).

Within my researching of the American flag I found that there is an extensive flag etiquette for displaying the stars and stripes. And the United States Flag Code outlines specific guidelines for the use, display, and disposal of the flag if it should be damaged. They even have listed particular days throughout the year that the flag must be displayed at full staff (15 days) and half-staff (7 days, not included funerals).

So, why do we have a United States Flag Code if we are too afraid to display it for fear of offending anyone or disallowed to display it? Your guess is as good as mine.

Harry Truman was right when he said, "America was not built on fear", but somehow over the last 14 years we've let fear take over our once proud nation, our lives, and how we live.

With all of the great men in our history who fought to bring us freedom, we have negated all of their hard work and have gone from a nation to a stagnation. Oh sure, we can hope something bad happens to our country to bring us back to being proud patriotic Americans, but none of us really want it that way. That is why it is important to fight for your freedom, for your rights, and elect leaders who want to honestly see us become that great nation that we once were.

"Fear stifles our thinking and actions. It creates indecisiveness that results in stagnation."
- Charles Stanley

Don't let fear take hold of your actions. Display the American flag proudly.

Just recently I read a story where a Seattle University is dropping the Pledge of Allegiance and the display of the American flag from a Veteran's Day service. Really? Where would our freedom be, or what's left of it, without the men and women who served and sacrificed to protect our country?

This Veterans Day I choose to proudly display my American flag and thank the veterans who have served our country well. I hope you choose to do the same as well.