The flag should only be worn when it is on the right shoulder of a military uniform. I don't get offended by clothes with the flag on them though, it's usually obvious the wearer means no disrespect.
The United States Code is a consolidation and codification by subject matter of the general and permanent laws of the United States. It is prepared by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the United States House of Representatives. So, yes it is actually against the law, but a law where no penalty for breaking the law exists.
This is where I think most opinions fall and I am usually not offended either... but then I see someone using the flag replica as a seat cushion or something like that and I wonder why they think it is appropriate to sit on it. Now... in our PC world... why would it be okay for a person to be chastised for doing something for which he meant no disrespect to a certain group... Yet it is perfectly fine for someone else to do something like wear the flag as a garment... in violation of a clearly established code... and use "I meant no disrespect" as an adequate excuse or even a total dismissal of the offended's feelings? I am really not going anywhere with this... I just see it a lot and was wondering why no one seems to take notice anymore. I am guessing... someone stopped teaching respect for the flag to their children.
sounds like typical lawyer language to me, that statement isn't clear whether it is a law or not. It talks about law but doesn't seem like it is, I am also not a lawyer. As for muzzy, honestly I don't think those guys in the picture would care, I doubt they even knew about this code or law. I'm wondering when that code or law was even established. For some reason without using Google the year 1954 pops up in my head randomly. it's OK to be ignorant of the flag code to me because it's something like...A cultural thing to me. Like when you go to another country and do what you think is being respectful when in fact you're actually disrespecting them. No harm was intended, yet it happened.
I bet they cared... a lot. I bet they didn't need a congressional code to know the importance of our flag... American children understood this back then... Today our children aren't even allowed to recite the Pledge of Allegiance? We used to recite the Pledge and sing a patriotic hymn every morning in school.
Im sure they cared if someone stomped on the flag, but as long as they weren't blatantly being disrespectful, I doubt they knew the law. I mean most people who know about the law now are ones who google it and find out for themselves. I doubt people were digging through the books back then to confirm whether this was a law or not. Yea I think it's stupid why we can't recite the pledge of allegiance, seems unamerican to me, but it's the way this country is going.
http://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RL30243.pdf There used to be a law and penalty but that was quickly overturned.
That flag to those men on top of Mt Suribachi on Iwo Jima would have cared. That flag represented everything they were fighting for. It represented their hometown, their family, their upbringing, their safety net. A lot of today's younger generation can't comprehend that because patriotism became non-pc after Vietnam and when it returned after 9-11, it was only a temporary condition because too many grew up in a society of instant gratification. From the time I was a small boy to the day they remove it from on top of my coffin and hand it to my next of kin, it does and will continue to represent all that I hold dear.
I know a man who was spit on after returning from Viet Nam... He was drafted... to fight a war so others wouldn't have to and he was spit on by those he fought for when he returned... Disgraceful... absolutely disgraceful.
So what are we considering something that is bad or in bad taste to have the flag on it? Just out of curiosity. I ask because for instance I just bought a new pair of work boots about a month ago and both have a little tag on them that represents being made in America and have a flag on them. Working construction these tags will be ripped off in short time so is this disgracing the flag? So those along with shirts, hats, firearms, and probably more things I own have a flag on them but according to the flag code this is a sign of disrespect. So what's ok and what's not? Again just out of curiosity, because from some of the responses I'm gathering any depiction of the American flag is to be veiwed on as wrong if not used for official purposes.
Just my opinion and obviously we won't come to an agreement, but id have to disagree and say that as long as no one was messing with the flag in a disrespectful fashion, they would not care.
There is a right and wrong way to display it just like there are right and wrong things to say and do in public... whether we mean any disrespect or not. I guess what got me thinking about all this was going to my cousin's funeral this past Thursday... He was a State Trooper and of course they had a military flag ceremony. I swam the next day and saw a flag on a swim cap and it just struck an odd nerve.
Would wearing a flag as body paint on the face or the body be offensive? It would seem patriotic to many.
To those who believe the flag is to only be displayed correctly... probably so. To those who "couldn't possibly care less if someone wanted to wear the flag"... I seriously doubt it. Would wearing a confederate flag to a Braves game be offensive... even if the offender meant no disrespect?
One of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen was over in the desert. After an Company assault upon an objective, my platoon of Bradley's took the objective and setup a perimeter defense. As a lead element, we kept our antennas tied down because they stood up really high. The Company Commander came busting up to the objective with the Flag fastened high atop one of his antennas. The glory of the Red, the White and the Blue was such a remarkable sight when compared to all the brown and tan we have seen for many days. I will never, ever, forget the feeling I felt upon seeing THE Flag in full color against a desolate background. It is freedom to the oppressed, it is victory to the persecuted, it is delivered in grace to the ones who thought of themselves as undeserving, it is life to those who were downtrodden. I still struggle with seeing the faces of the ones I knew who gave all within the deep field of blue during each playing of the National Anthem. Yes, I had it affixed to the baseball and softball uniforms of all the teams I have since coached. All in deep respect for those who gave all, assuring it was properly attached to the uniform, the blue field and stars attached so it was always on the right when worn. Some of the kids had father's and mother's deployed. Some where to become Gold Star families. For those who have not bled enabling it to fly high, you may ponder such a question. For those who have suffered and bled, disrespect caries a heavy weight. Worn as decoration I detest. Worn in respect I uphold. The real question is respect.
Why does the us army wear the flag on their right shoulder? What my Google turns up is to serve as a reminder that we are at war. To me, the flag doesn't serve any purpose on the uniform and therefore could be construed as a decoration. It definitely is not used to identify American soldiers, it was used as an ir patch, but you don't need the flag to do that.
