Basics on proper flag etiquette
CATHY KAFRVE Bullard Banner News

July always feels a little extra patriotic, doesn't it?

Today's column is dedicated to all those folks who were children during WWII.

Like our own parents who remember watching the boys march off, many of you have carried the torch of patriotism, passing it down to children and grandchildren.

My son's grandmother saved a pamphlet printed in 1969, titled "Our Flag" all these years just for him.

That means she had it 28 years before William ever came on the scene.

He and I paraphrased its points just for you, in hopes that it will help you in your efforts to pass along the love of country to those children and grandchildren in your life.

! When the flag is hung over a street, in the event of a parade for example, it hangs vertically with the blue field of stars, also called the union, towards the north, if the street runs east-west.

If the street runs northsouth, then the union hangs towards the east.

! When our US flag is displayed with another flag on a wall from crossed staffs, our flag is supposed to be on the right, that is, the flag's own right, with its staff over the other flag's staff.

! When flown at half mast, it should be first raised to the top of the pole and then lowered to half mast. At the end of the day, it must be raised to the top again before it is taken down. Only the President has the authority to order that flags be flown at half mast.

! The US flag should be the highest flag on the same pole with other state or city flags. In a line of poles, the US flag should be the first one raised and the last to come down and it should be the first in line, that is, the one on the farthest right.

! When the flag is suspended from a rope over a sidewalk, say from a house to a pole, the flag's union should be toward the street and away from the building.

! When the flag is hung on a staff from a building or home at an angle, (like we all do now in 2007), the union goes on top.

! When it is used to cover a casket, the union is places at the head and over the left shoulder of the casket. It is not lowered into the grave or allowed to touch the ground.

! When it is not on a pole, the flag should be flat. Whether horizontal or vertical on the wall, the union is uppermost on the flag's right or on the left as you look at it. In the window, the union is still on the flag's right or on the left as you look at it from the street. Red, white and blue bunting can be draped as decoration, but not the flag.

! When carried in a parade, the US flag should be the first on the flag's right in a line of flags or it should be ahead of the others.

! In a group, the US flag should be the highest among all flags of states, localities, or organizations.

! International law requires that all flags of nations are flown from similar poles at the same height and the flags should be similar in size, forbidding the display of one flag higher than another during times of peace.

There is something about our red, white, and blue flag that brings us together. Perhaps, it is the vision that our forefathers had to establish a country based on self-government and respect for others.

Or, perhaps it is the cost that the flag represents. As my son put it, "we stand tall and straight together to salute our heroic fallen soldiers with our hats off and our hands over our hearts."

To all those who remember WWII, we hope you have a relaxed summer, enjoying all the benefits and blessings of living in a free country, especially the blessing of visits from grandchildren.

If, by chance, you are reading the Bullard Banner News over the internet for a little whiff of home because you are stationed in Iraq or Afghanistan, please know how thankful we are for your willingness to service our country.

May the Lord protect you and bring you safely home to us.

!

Cathy Primer Krafve, a.k.a. Checklist Charlie, lives in Flint with her husband, the father of their three children. She welcomes all comments, especially lists, and can be reached at the Bullard Banner News.