CSotD: Could Every Day Be Flag Day?
Skip to comments
Well, perhaps.
It’s clearly a good thing that we defeated the Nazis and thwarted Japan’s imperialism, and the famous raising of the flag on Mount Suribachi is an iconic image of how America rallied in that time of crisis.
However, we shouldn’t forget that, while we rallied on the battlefield, we had also rallied on the home front, with the scrap iron drives and victory gardens and rationing that imbued the nation with a sense of unity and purpose in a time of crisis.
That unity should be remembered as a goal, not celebrated as an accomplishment. One of my favorite images from history is the Double-V movement, sparked by the Black press and meaning that we would rally to beat back the dark forces of Hitler and Tojo, but that then it would be time — past time — to rally for a second, long-delayed victory: Civil rights.
There were specific reasons behind that movement, because Black soldiers had served in World War I and came home with a new sense of pride and accomplishment, only to be met with a spate of lynchings.
Their children were willing to sacrifice on behalf of their nation, but did not intend to continue to endure second-class citizenship when peace returned.
The search for that second V was a long and imperfect battle, and it’s still ongoing today. There was a raising of the flag on another glorious peak in the passage of the Voting Rights Act, but you can’t just raise the flag and cheer, because that is only one step in the process, as we’re seeing today as the VRA is being disassembled before our eyes.
And it’s not just that. Whenever people are hungry, whenever people are sick, whenever people are homeless, that is a call to battle. Civil rights are for everyone, and are about far more than race relations.
“In vain I have looked for a single man capable of seeing his own faults and bringing the charge home against himself,” Confucius said, and 2500 years later on the other side of the globe, his observation seems still sadly relevant.
Yes, every day should be Flag Day, but the flag should be a banner for those who look inward, at their country and at themselves, acknowledging the faults, bringing home the charges, and pledging to seek victory, not only on battlefields of war, and, certainly, not in an octagon.
Speaking of that octagon, a judge declined to halt today’s commercial exhibit of prizefighting on the White House lawn, and some who approve of the event have pointed out that Theodore Roosevelt boxed in the White House when he was president.
This Puck cover demonstrates that his hobby was well-known, making it a symbol of his political intensity. But it should be noted that boxing was, for him, just a hobby. Obama put up a hoop at the White House, but that wasn’t the signal to begin staging NBA games there, nor would the presence of Caroline Kennedy’s pony, Macaroni, justify hosting PRCA rodeos.
Still, the show must go on, particularly since Trump has invested in the company hosting it.
Mother Nature may have something to say about the show going on, but de Adder recalls how Dear Leader dozed off during the Knicks/Spurs game he attended and wonders if a series of MMA bouts will be any more energizing.
Juxtaposition of the Day
What if they gave a party, and nobody came? The collapse and cancelation of Dear Leader’s concert may have been an omen, since the announced performers bailed out when they realized it was not to be a unifying celebration of our country but a partisan, prideful political gesture.
No such danger for the birthday brawls being staged on the White House lawn as he turns 80. The celebrity guest list is somewhat up in the air, but the audience of 5,000 is to be filled with servicemen to make sure of a good turnout.
The Lincoln Memorial will be closed off in order to host the weigh-in of the fighters, and giant screens will let people gather to watch on the Ellipse, the assumption being that the event will attract more people than showed up for last year’s Trump birthday parade.
Luckovich points out the need to put on a happy face, and while the use of troops as a guaranteed audience recalls Bob Hope’s famous shows on military bases, even Hope found himself being booed by troops at a 1969 show in Vietnam when he told them of Nixon’s promise to end the war.
I realized they weren’t booing me or the jokes, but they knew the show was going to be seen at home and it was the only way they had of trying to let the country and the President know how they felt.
The military members at today’s extravaganza are getting in free but have to get to Washington and find accommodations on their own, so those who attend will be motivated and primed to enjoy the experience.
Juxtaposition of the Day #2
Two visions of Dear Leader and his birthday cake, neither of them flattering. Deering accuses him of snuffing out liberty in America while Markstein suggests that he is desperate to end the Iran war
We’ll know more about that latter effort later today, when Trump has promised that there will be the remote (autopen?) signing of a memorandum of understanding to signal an end to the war, though it may be a bit one-sided, since Tehran denies that they will sign today, though they may agree to the MOA later.
Bear in mind: A memo of understanding is not a treaty, and all that’s promised is a 60-day cease fire and an agreement to talk. North Vietnam agreed to come to the table in 1968, but the final treaty was not signed until 1973.
It doesn’t seem we’re in a position to celebrate much yet, but, then again, very little good has ever happened without time, effort and sacrifice.
So let’s celebrate Flag Day every day, not as a glorious, crowning triumph, but as a reminder of efforts already made and of promises still needing to be fulfilled.
Mike Peterson has posted his "Comic Strip of the Day" column every day since 2010. His opinions are his own, but we welcome comments either agreeing or in opposition.
Comments 6