(f) The flag should never be used as a covering for a ceiling.

Believing that most laws (and rules) have an originating  factor, my mind races to understand what must have transpired requiring this sentence’s inclusion in the Flag Code.

I can see it now—

Dateline Washington D.C., June 1942. Hot and muggy, Congress is in session hammering out one of the most important documents requiring their attention—the United States Flag Code.

The Distinguished Congressman from West Virginia, "I say gentlemen. We need to make sure no one uses the American flag for a bedspread in their private bedroom. This would demonstrate willful disrespect for Old Glory."

The Distinguished Congressman from Minnesota, "Well, unless its made out of wool, it wouldn’t be warm enough to use in my home state, but someone might use it to decorate the ceiling of their fishing shed."

West Virginia Congressman—"You don’t say … Hmmm, maybe we should include a ban on using the flag to cover a ceiling instead."

Congress in unison, "Hey, that’s a really, really good idea. We all make a motion to add a sentence to the Flag Code banning ceiling covering."

Congress in unison, "Second the motion."

" I have a motion and a second, all in favor? … Motion carried by majority. Now included in the United States Flag Code is a sentence banning any individual from covering their ceiling with an American flag."

Ok, maybe my rendition isn’t historically accurate*, but just think about it. What factors could have taken place that even brought this to their minds with enough force to ban the practice? I can’t imagine.

I also wanted to include a photograph with this editorial showing the U.S. Flag covering a ceiling, but this is the only example I could find, dated 1896—almost 50 years before it became a violation. At least this law against disrespect has worked.

*This is a dramatization. The U.S. Flag Code was a compilation from many different sources—State Flag Desecration Laws, Military Flag Codes, and more, compiled in 1923 by the National Flag Conference.

Style over substance is the topic de jour—looking at the current trend of performers and their renditions. Here is part of The Code for the National Anthem of the United States of America adopted by the National Anthem committee in April of 1942.

… Since the message of the music is greatly heightened by the text, it is of paramount importance that emphasis be placed upon the singing of the National Anthem.

… It is inappropriate to make or use sophisticated "concert" versions of the National Anthem.

…The slighting of note values in the playing or singing of the National Anthem will seriously impair the beauty and effectiveness of both the music and lyric.

The NAC took the National Anthem very seriously and their document contained language to deter any symphonic changes to the music, in either melody or performance. I shudder to think what members of the committee would think of today’s performances that are so far from the original that the audience might have trouble recognizing the melody.

Stars and the National Anthem

Inviting a famous star to perform the National Anthem isn’t new. In 1968 Jose’ Feliciano was invited to sing before Game 5 of the World Series between Detroit and St. Louis. Although his performance was from his heart, the bluesy guitar-accompanied rendition of the National Anthem nearly killed his career.

Changing Attitudes

How attitudes have changed.  Since then many famous personalities have sung the National Anthem before sporting events, with two coming to mind immediately. The first—Roseanne Barr, the second was Whitney Houston. Roseanne’s comedy version is available if you really want to view it, but I advise against it. I want to focus on Whitney’s version for a moment.

After you get the lump our of your throat, let’s move on. I’ll tell you exactly what made Whitney’s version so powerful—she was accompanied by an orchestra. The tempo was set and the audience could sing along with them in our National Anthem. In fact, at the beginning of the video, you can hear the announcer ask the audience to join in singing the anthem.

Now, I want to look at another rendition of the anthem.

Did you try to sing along with Destiny’s Child? If you did, I hope you didn’t hurt yourself. Since they sang a cappella, there are no boundaries requiring their attention. They didn’t have to sing a single note contained in the melody line or hold to any tempo. While it sounded beautiful, it was all about THEIR PERFORMANCE, not the National Anthem. It was almost unrecognizable as the National Anthem, and it was all about THEM.

Today’s society is changing in many ways, and not all of them are good. We will spend millions of dollars preserving old buildings and works of art, but when it comes to following the U.S. Flag Code or the National Anthem protocol, we feel free to do what we want.

The National Anthem protocol is similar to the U.S. Flag Code in that it is a law of honor. Since there aren’t any Flag Code or National Anthem police, we are on our own to obey and respect.

Sec. 301. National anthem

(a) Designation.–The composition consisting of the words and music
known as the Star-Spangled Banner is the national anthem.
(b) Conduct During Playing.–During a rendition of the national
anthem–
(1) when the flag is displayed–
(A) all present except those in uniform should stand at
attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart;
(B) men not in uniform should remove their headdress with
their right hand and hold the headdress at the left shoulder,
the hand being over the heart; and
(C) individuals in uniform should give the military salute
at the first note of the anthem and maintain that position until
the last note; and

(2) when the flag is not displayed, all present should face
toward the music and act in the same manner they would if the flag
were displayed.

The questions range from flag ceremonies, to discussions about the changes in the Anthem protocol over the last sixty-six years. With all these exchanges taking place in the comment section, which many readers likely would not see, I wanted spend some time and expand on the previous article.

National Anthem Protocol

The text quoted above was approved by Congress in June 1942 after the National Anthem Committee (NAC) adopted The Code for the National Anthem of the United States of America (pdf link of original document) in April 1942. What I find interesting is the differences in the two documents.

The NAC code included such details as

• the proper keys for performances (A-flat)
• requiring no liberty be taken in either style or substance with the approved version of the National Anthem
• the requirement of an announcement before the anthem for the assembled to join in singing
• mandating the tempo of the anthem, and specified that on the metronome—settings 104bpm for the verses and 96bpm for the chorus.

The Congressional version left out many of the details recommended by the committee and included the phrase—with the right hand over the heart—which was not contained in the NAC document.

A Nation’s Song

One of the biggest differences between the two documents is singing. The law approved by Congress makes no mention of singing the anthem, while the NAC centers around audience participation. To the NAC the National Anthem was our song and correspondingly, we should sing the Star Spangled Banner at every opportunity.

The very nature of the song lends itself to participation. Look at the lyrics that Francis Scott Key penned.

O, say can you see,
By the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed,
At the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars,
Through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched,
Were so gallantly streaming.
And the rocket’s red glare,
The bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night,
That our flag was still there.
Oh say does that star spangled banner yet wave,
O’er the land of the free, and the home of the brave.

 

Keep in mind there are four stanzas to the National Anthem, although only the first is in general knowledge. The NAC included three stanzas in the official version, including 2) and 4) below. There is real significance in the lesser known lyrics. The words are full of images that Key saw that morning as the sun rose and the Star Spangled Banner did yet wave.

2) On the shore dimly seen thro’ the mists of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream:
‘Tis the star-spangled banner: O, long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

3) And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash’d out their foul footsteps’ pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

4) O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their lov’d homes and the war’s desolation;
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the heav’n-rescued land
Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserv’d us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

My concern involves contemporary renditions of the anthem. Controversy surrounds many, while others are hailed as new standards. I like to sing The Star Spangled Banner, and if the song’s performance is such that it is not singable by the audience too, I have a problem. That’s what I want to write about in Part 2—Style over Substance and the National Anthem.

The Texas primaries were held last week and I’m sure glad they’re finished. The influx of news stories including references to flags saw a significant increase over the last month.

I subscribe to a lot of feeds in my news reader to find the latest flag news to share with all of you. I look for references to the U.S. flag and state flags, and if you haven’t noticed, politicians love to stand in front of flags while they pontificate on their worthiness to lead. Because of this, my news reader has overflowed with news about politicians and the U.S. and Texas flags.

Thousands of news stories every day to wade through, looking for flag news to share. I’m already seeing some relief, with the news at a modest level over the weekend. I may survive until the real elections kick off in a few months.

I’m glad this doesn’t happen every year.

The Canyon Lake Times Guardian
What do you call a large group of birds sighted near Canyon Lake? A Flock of Eagles!!!!

That is exactly what was witnessed on Saturday, March 3, 2008, at a special rare event of an Eight Eagles Scout Court of Honor for Varsity Scouts Troop 441. Held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints chapel located off of 3159 FM towards Statzville. This spectacle event kicked off around 6pm.

Eight Eagles and their projects:
The following Eight Young Men achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank offered by the Boy Scouts of America. Listed are descriptions of their community service projects, a major requirement to demonstrate their leadership and service skills.

The map is very large when opened up, but it had to be or you couldn’t move around in it and read the notations. I experimented and the map size is 2000×1500 pixels, so you will have to scroll left and right, up and down since most computer screens are 1024×768 (as a reference point).

Mindmap of the 1836 Siege on the Alamo

If you click on the map to enlarge to its full size, remember the image close button is at the far-bottom-right of the image. And yes, after creating this image and uploading the file, I noticed the wrong century on February 26th. Sorry.

It was all over by 8:30 in the morning.

Santa Anna ordered a quiet approach to surprise the Texians, and caught the outside sentries asleep. As they approached the walls, several enthusiastic troopers yelled, "Viva Santa Anna!" and "Viva la Republica!" wakening the sleeping Texians.

Santa Anna’s troops were divided into four columns, which attacked from different directions. The Texians repulsed the first wave, and wiped out a large number of troops with cannon fire. The Texians turned back the second attack, inflicting heavy casualties on the Mexican army. Santa Anna’s third wave broke through the repaired north wall, flooding the compound with enemy soldiers.

Still causing heavy losses to the Mexican army, the Texians fell back from the north wall to the long barracks, while Crockett’s riflemen headed for the chapel.

The Mexicans turned the overrun cannon upon the barracks and the Texians, losing their defensive position, were put to bayonets. Hand-to-hand combat inside the long barracks was brutal, and the Mexican soldiers took no prisoners.

In three hours, it was over. The Alamo defenders—182 men—were killed, but at an enormous loss of life to the Mexican army.

In his last letter from the Alamo, Travis stated, "… the victory will cost the enemy so dear, that it will be worse for him than defeat." Travis was right. The loss to Santa Anna’s troops at the Alamo is credited as an assist at the Battle of San Jacinto just over a month later, April 21, 1836.

The cry of Remember the Alamo and Remember Goliad carried the Texians as they rallied to surprise and defeat Santa Anna and his army, on a drowsy spring afternoon in the marshy woods beside Buffalo Bayou, southeast of modern day Houston.

For those readers interested, here is the link to the official Alamo website.

Not long after cannon fire breached the east wall, the bombardment stopped. Silence fell over the mission as we waited to see what would happen next, but there was nothing. The men worked fast to close the hole, while the rest of us kept watch.

The Mexican army drew back at dark which means they will regroup. Mexican troops have continued to arrive in town and encampment, and now they number more than 5000 strong while we are at 182*. I don’t understand why they stopped the cannon fire, as they breached the walls these last two days.

At first the quiet was a relief but after a few hours, the silence is worse than the constant cannon fire. With the dark we can only wonder what is going on in the Mexican camp.

Travis sent several men outside the walls posted as look outs. If the enemy is preparing an attack, our men can sound the alarm before the walls are reached.

Victory or Death!

A.J. Williams

*the exact number isn’t known, but most scholars number the men between 180 and 185.

Our north wall was breached today by Mexican cannon fire. I knew the walls couldn’t stand much more. We’ll be working all night to get it repaired—I don’t know what we’ll use, but there is no choice.

A.J. Williams