By Justin Isherwood

On holidays, we Americans like to fly our flag, to fly, hoist Old Glory ceremoniously from pole or porch. It is not to my personal taste to instill the American flag on my clothes, my work jacket, as seems a current American fashion plate. While our flag desires our respect, I do wonder if the Pledge of Allegiance is truly in the American law and spirit, seemingly more aligned with what a dictatorial regime might impose.

As for the “Star Spangled Banner,” I prefer “America the Beautiful,” if to the favor of the “Star Spangled Banner,” which so challenges our lungs and vocal chords as may well be the appropriate metaphorical reach for that entity on planet Earth we call America.

As for the flag on my porch, I like to show the color and range of our continental experience, illustrated by a veritable suite of flags, all of which reflect our national experience, the good, the bad and the ugly, nevertheless an experience that was us.

Numerous commercial outlets sell an array of flags associated with our history and rise to nationhood. To the end I have a modest collection, if memory serves, priced about $15.95 each (lately $16.95). They are quite cheap flags, printed versus sewn, decorative, not meant to survive for long the conditions at the far end of the flag pole, if do nicely off the bow end of a farmhouse porch.

There is a statute that an American flag shall not be flown after dark without a light being shown on it. Myself, I do not believe the American flag is afraid of the dark. Besides believing in the intrinsic worth to mind and liberty bestowed by any dark sky, a sky festooned with stars, that seems an altogether right environment for our American, not-afraid-of-the-dark, flag.

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