Why people like me aren't flying the flag on Memorial Day in 2023


When I bought my house, thirty years ago, one of the first things that I did was to get an American flag to hang out front. I've never been particularly patriotic, and I'm not a veteran, but I like my country, and besides it just looked great above my very own garage door. I was living proof of the American dream. When people saw it waving it simply meant that - never a boast or brag, just red-white-and-blue.

But this year, 2023, I'm not flying my flag on Memorial Day, and I'm inclined to think that a lot of people aren't, and for the same reason that I'm not. I can't speak for them, so I'll just tell you my reasons - I don't want to be confused with the people who have done everything that they could in the last few years to show disrespect for American democracy. And unless you've been living under a rock, you know what I mean. Of course, if you have been living under a rock, and are displaying the American flag for the same reasons that I used to, I understand, and I respect that.

This morning I did my usual ride, which lasts for several hours, and noodled through my suburban neighborhood, and saw very few flags. When I did see one, I cringed a bit, and then tried to remind myself that maybe someone is flying it for old-fashioned reasons, not for the reasons that I saw in the past few years.

How strange it was this morning to go by the houses that used to fly the flag every Memorial Day, and see almost none. And it actually filled me with the same sense of pride that I used to feel when I would see a flag waving. And when I did see the occasional flag, I'll admit I cringed. Yes, I know that those people are still around, but at least their symbolism isn't out there on flagpoles as much as it was a few years ago. I'd rather not see it.

But don't get me wrong, I'm not turning my back on what's going on in the world. I'm not an Isolationist, I'm a Progressive, and I want to see my country continue to thrive. So I'll keep an eye on the news, and of course I'll vote. My forefathers fought, and some died, to give me this country, and I know that they would have wanted me to live in peace, and to soak up the freedom.

Image at the top of this post: My grandfather Robert (Clyde) Hall in WWI. He survived, but a lot of people didn't, in the war to make the world safe for democracy.

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