I have strong feelings on religious text disposal given that many extend this practice to floating quotes as well. Torn shirt with “allahu akbar” on it? Not in the trash. Water damaged painting with a prayer in the background? Can’t go in the trash, dummy. Bin you scribbled a verse on when you were a kid? Better keep your foot off the pedal but sure, trash is fine. By all means, dispose of religious texts as dictated by your sect of choice but anything further feels like fear-borne neuroticism.
Flags have been venerated for long long before America. It’s a war thing, but think about it, in the medieval days they would have a whole guy in an army unit dedicated to be a “flag bearer”. It was an important role and important to keep the flag held aloft. Not to mention the symbol on the flag was often linked to the divinity of the king or the pope. America just continued with that tradition, we didn’t start it.
In medieval and early modern times, the flag bearer was basically your radio guy. He was supposed to keep the flag held up high at all times, as if the entire fighting group’s life depended on it, cause very often it did.
And if it’s that important to hold a flag up, over hundreds of years, weird traditions develop around the practice.
Not to get political… buy why wouldn’t just washing it and generally treating it respectfully be good enough (Like, why waste a perfectly nice looking flag?)
Intentionally throwing one’s national flag on the ground and stomping on it… that’s one thing. But just dropping it by mistake? People make mistakes, it shouldn’t be considered bloody treason :p
Then again, I’m one of those people who avoids ever addressing ‘someone of station’ as ‘Your Grace’, ‘Your Honour’, ‘Your Highness’, etc. If I were ever in the situation of being expected to do so, I’d be very uncomfortable and would try to get away with “Sir” or “Madam”. I don’t believe anyone deserves such obsequious subservience. Guess I’d be dead if I’d been born a few hundred years ago.
Yup, I’m the same way. A flag is a piece of cloth, and it only has relevance due to the symbolism on it. Sure, be respectful of the freedoms it represents, but at the end of the day, it’s a piece of cloth.
And yeah, I would totally not be comfortable living somewhere like the UK, if only because of the traditions around the crown, royalty, and court and legislative procedure. I’d be civil for sure, but I’m only using reasonable titles. That said, I’m okay with “the honorable” or “your honor,” if it’s referring to someone respected in the community that represents justice under the law. But “your grace” and whatnot are right out, I save that for actual deity.
I guess I find that less bad, but I wish it would instead focus on the concepts in the Constitution, not the flag and Republic. I’d rather rewrite it to something like this:
I pledge allegiance to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America, and the values therein, of liberty and justice for all.
That reminds me, I need to ask my kids if they’re forced to do that. They go to a charter school, and I don’t remember seeing a flag in each room. But our state is quite conservative, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it was still a thing. That said, they’re minors, so any pledge cannot, by definition, be binding in any way.
Nowhere in the US Flag Code does it say to burn the flag if it touches the ground. The code says separately that you shouldn’t let it touch the ground, and that if it is too damaged for display it is to be disposed of by burning. Not that accidentally touching the ground automatically necessitates burning.
I’m curious if anyone else has the same kind of flag etiquette that the US does
Like if there’s any other countries where burning is the only acceptable method of disposal?
I’m pretty sure there are plenty countries where burning is a huge offense.
Burning the US flag except to dispose of it is considered offensive in the US as well.
I mean, the “burn the flag” people do want to dispose of it
I thought flags were made of non-flammable materials to prevent people from burning them.
No that’s stupid. There aren’t specific materials it’s made of lol. It’s that the colors were specifically designed by Lincoln to prevent people from desecrating it
But it’s not illegal.
You only burn to dispose of a tattered flag, burning an intact flag is offensive just like everywhere else
I don’t know if it’s in the law, but it’s common knowledge in Italy that you shouldn’t throw the national flag in the trash.
US flag code isn’t law either, you won’t go to jail for mistreating the flag, you just won’t be liked.
Yeah I’m sure there are some obscure guidelines like this in most countries it’s just we don’t give a fuck.
I’d wager the majority of Americans don’t really care, we’re not all flag waving, gun toting, psychos
FYI It’s one of two appropriate ways of disposing the Quran.
I have strong feelings on religious text disposal given that many extend this practice to floating quotes as well. Torn shirt with “allahu akbar” on it? Not in the trash. Water damaged painting with a prayer in the background? Can’t go in the trash, dummy. Bin you scribbled a verse on when you were a kid? Better keep your foot off the pedal but sure, trash is fine. By all means, dispose of religious texts as dictated by your sect of choice but anything further feels like fear-borne neuroticism.
What’s the other one?
Bury
Flags have been venerated for long long before America. It’s a war thing, but think about it, in the medieval days they would have a whole guy in an army unit dedicated to be a “flag bearer”. It was an important role and important to keep the flag held aloft. Not to mention the symbol on the flag was often linked to the divinity of the king or the pope. America just continued with that tradition, we didn’t start it.
In medieval and early modern times, the flag bearer was basically your radio guy. He was supposed to keep the flag held up high at all times, as if the entire fighting group’s life depended on it, cause very often it did.
And if it’s that important to hold a flag up, over hundreds of years, weird traditions develop around the practice.
Sure, but the question was whether there is any other nation which is so stuck in this medieval tradition.
Not to get political… buy why wouldn’t just washing it and generally treating it respectfully be good enough (Like, why waste a perfectly nice looking flag?)
Intentionally throwing one’s national flag on the ground and stomping on it… that’s one thing. But just dropping it by mistake? People make mistakes, it shouldn’t be considered bloody treason :p
Then again, I’m one of those people who avoids ever addressing ‘someone of station’ as ‘Your Grace’, ‘Your Honour’, ‘Your Highness’, etc. If I were ever in the situation of being expected to do so, I’d be very uncomfortable and would try to get away with “Sir” or “Madam”. I don’t believe anyone deserves such obsequious subservience. Guess I’d be dead if I’d been born a few hundred years ago.
Yup, I’m the same way. A flag is a piece of cloth, and it only has relevance due to the symbolism on it. Sure, be respectful of the freedoms it represents, but at the end of the day, it’s a piece of cloth.
And yeah, I would totally not be comfortable living somewhere like the UK, if only because of the traditions around the crown, royalty, and court and legislative procedure. I’d be civil for sure, but I’m only using reasonable titles. That said, I’m okay with “the honorable” or “your honor,” if it’s referring to someone respected in the community that represents justice under the law. But “your grace” and whatnot are right out, I save that for actual deity.
Do you think people in the UK have to greet royalty every other week or something? I’ve lived here for 34 years and it’s never come up.
Oh, I’m sure you’re constantly tripping over royalty over there. 😁
But seriously, just the idea of it would bother me, such as:
I just don’t think I can swear allegiance to a king or queen, even if it’s largely symbolic.
just wait until you hear about what kids in the US have to repeat every morning at school…
I guess I find that less bad, but I wish it would instead focus on the concepts in the Constitution, not the flag and Republic. I’d rather rewrite it to something like this:
That reminds me, I need to ask my kids if they’re forced to do that. They go to a charter school, and I don’t remember seeing a flag in each room. But our state is quite conservative, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it was still a thing. That said, they’re minors, so any pledge cannot, by definition, be binding in any way.
Nowhere in the US Flag Code does it say to burn the flag if it touches the ground. The code says separately that you shouldn’t let it touch the ground, and that if it is too damaged for display it is to be disposed of by burning. Not that accidentally touching the ground automatically necessitates burning.
Thanks for clarifying (and I should’ve looked it up myself! My bad for being lazy).
That sounds like a sane policy.
The United Kingdom does. Although you can also cut the flag up so it doesn’t resemble a flag anymore and throw it out.
I believe the EU flag is fire resistant, so good luck lol