Flags of the Day

Today is Flag Day in India; and Independence Day in Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, and Trinidad and Tobago.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Biloxi devastation: Beauvoir destroyed

BILOXI, MISSISSIPPI--Biloxi residents got their first look today at the devastation Hurricane Katrina wreaked on their famed beach front.

Landmarks like Beavoir, the final home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, are virtually demolished.

The Davis home, built in 1854, has been reduced to rubble and a frame of a house.

UPDATE: Wednesday morning (31 August) Knight Ridder Newspapers are reporting: "The bottom floor of the library and the home itself were gutted. A Confederate flag, though, still draped over the arm of Davis' statue in the library."

Space Flag?

Can the Space Flag be a rallying point for support for human spaceflight?

Designer of Vietnamese Communist flag identified

The Vietnam News Agency has published an article on Nguyen Huu Tien, the revolutionary who designed the red flag with the yellow star used by the Viet Minh, which became the national flag of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Flags and girls

"Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - A Malaysian men's magazine may be censured for a cover featuring a semi-nude female model draped in the national flag that has sparked an uproar among Muslims, a senior official said on Monday."

Flags of the Day

Today is Independence Day in Azerbaijan; St. Rose of Lima Day in Peru; and Victory Day in Turkey.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flags of the Day

Today is National Uprising Day in Slovakia; and Flag Day in Spain.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Maryville students finding ways around Confederate flag ban

Students at Maryville High School in East Tennessee flew their Confederate battle flags at the football game against their rivals in Alcoa. Maryville's ban on flag sticks and poles only applies at home games.

But even at home, the ban only applies to the sticks, not to the flags themselves.

"Students have already figured out ways to display the flag without running afoul of school administrators.

"Abbey Cruze, another 17-year-old Maryville senior, wore a flag wrapped around her waist as a skirt and tied her pigtails with Rebel flag strips. Other students wore the flag as ponchos and halter-tops, on hats and as patches on their jeans.

"'No matter what,' Cruze said, 'we'll find a way around it.'"

Rare 47-star US flag donated to Smithsonian

Bob Adamowski, of the State of Washington, has donated a rare 47-star US flag to the Smithsonian Institution. Officially, there never was a 47-star US flag, because the flag can be changed only on the Fourth of July. But unofficially, the flag was correct for a few weeks. New Mexico became the 47th state January 6, 1912, and Arizona the 48th state the following February 14. So on July 4, the official flag switched from 46 to 48 stars.

The 47-star flag is so unusual that although New Mexico museums and the Fort McHenry National Monument in Maryland have some, the Smithsonian didn't.

Flags of the Day

Today is Flag Day in Liberia; and Independence Day in Moldova.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flag of the Day

Today is Namibia Day.

Animated flag provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Original 50-star flag is up for sale

In 1958 a Lancaster, Ohio, high school student made a 50 star flag as a school project. His teacher gave him a "B-" grade. Two years later, when President Eisenhower presented it as the new flag design, the teacher raised his grade to an "A".

The designer, Robert G. Heft, a retired professor from Northwest State Community College in Archbold, Ohio, is now auctioning that original 50 star flag on e-Bay. Ths starting bid is only $250,000.00. In addition to the flag itself, the winning bidder will receive a large number of photos, news articles, and other documents relating to Mr. Heft and his flag.

Flags of the Day

Today is Constitution Day in Paraguay; and Independence Day in Uruguay.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flag of the Day

Today is Independence Day in Ukraine.

Animated flag provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Debate on meaning of Confederacy's banner's unflagging

There is a surprisingly good article on current perceptions of the Confederate battle flag (erroneously refered to as the "Stars and Bars") in yesterday's edition of the Indianapolis Star.

Yesterday's flag

Yesterday was flag day in Russia. But I overslept yesterday and had to rush off to the office without posting any vex items.

Flags of the Day

Today is Liberation Day in Laos and Romania.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

New "Old Glory"

Above is a photo of the full-scale replica of Captain Driver's "Old Glory" made by the fine folks at MrFlag.com (Charles Ashburner) in Swansea, Wales. It arrived at my office Friday. It is displayed here on the front of my house, flanked by the flags of Pitcairn Island, with which Captain Driver had an important connection, and the Rock City Guards, the Confederate infantry battalion from Nashville, in which Captain Driver's son, George, fought and died.

George Driver was Captain Driver's youngest son of military age, being 20 years old when he enlisted in 1861. Driver's Oldest son, William Christopher Driver, born in Salem, Massachusetts in 1827, also served in the Confederate army as Captain in the 7th Louisiana Infantry.

These three flags will displayed at a gathering of members of the North American Vexillological Association in Nashville in October during our visit to Captain Driver's grave. At the end of the convention, we will auction "Old Glory" to the help cover costs of the convention.

The web site for the NAVA convention is at http://nava39.info/.

Flags of the Day

Today is Constitution Day in Latvia; and Scanian Unification Day in the Swedish region of Scania.

Animated Latvian flag provided courtesy of Pascal Gross, and Scanian flag courtesy of FOTW.

American Kids show colours for World Youth Day

Pilgrims from the United States had been warned not to display their flag during the World Youth Day in the city of Cologne, Germany, because it might make them targets of political hatred. The young Catholics decided to display their flag anway, because "they were not ashamed to be American."

Flag celebration in St. Petersburg

Monday is Russian Flag Day, but the folks in St. Petersburg are getting an early start on the celebration.

140 Jeep's Raise Awareness of National Anthem Project

Jeep owners created a US flag made of Jeeps at the 11th annual Camp Jeep® in the Pocono Mountains, as part of the National Anthem Project, a national effort to re-teach Americans the words to "The Star-Spangled Banner."

The Grammy award-winning Oak Ridge Boys, who serve as the official musical ambassadors for the National Anthem Project, led the Jeep owners in the singing of the national anthem.

Huge Indonesia flag fails to fly

An attempt this Wednesday to unfurl the world's largest flag from the top of a new Jakarta tower block failed to fly when it was torn apart by strong winds. The unravelling of the 164 foot wide and 512 foot long flag was part of the Indonesia's 60th independence day celebrations.

Flag made of Rice

The students and teachers at a Malaysian school ushered in the Merdeka Month celebration by creating a giant Malaysian flag out of 700kg of "pulut" (glutinous rice).

Flags of the Day

Today is Independence Day in Estonia; and St. Stephen's Day and Constitution Day in Hungary.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Vietnamese Heritage Flag

The city of Bowling Green, Kentucky, has joined the growing list of communities and States that have officially designated the flag of the former Republic of Vietnam as the flag of their local Vietnamese community.

Man draws flag on paper, arrested

The laws in India about flag useage may have relaxed, but on Monday a man was arrested after he drew a picture of an Indian flag on a piece of paper for his grandson.

Flags of the Day

Today is Independence Day in Gabon and Indonesia.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flags of the Day

Today is National Restoration Day in the Dominican Republic; and Statehood Day in Hawai'i.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

India flags sales flourish

Until recently, it was illegal for any other than Government facilities to fly the national flag of India in India. Now that the ban has been removed, flag sales are much higher for today's Independence Day celebrations than in the past.

Additionally, with the new liberal rules, flag inspired fashions are making the scene in India.

Plan to redesign flag divides Mozambicans

A controversy has divided Mozambique over a plan to redesign the flag and the national emblem, which sports an AK-47 assault rifle, to reflect the country's return to peace, with critics blasting it as a waste of money and time.

Flags of the Day

Today is Great Lady Day in Croatia; Independence Day in India; Liberation day in the Republic of Korea; the celebration of the Formal End of World War II in the Netherlands; and Flag Day for the Sami people.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross; Sami flag courtesy of FOTW.

Flags of the Day

Today is Independence Day in the former French Congo and in Pakistan; and Allegiance Day in Morocco.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flag of the Day

Today is Independence Day in the Central African Republic.

Animated flag provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flags of the Day

Today is Independence Day in Chad; and Heroes Day in Zimbabwe.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flags of the Day

Today is Independence Day in Ecuador; and Statehood Day in Missouri.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.

Flags of the Day

Today is Flag Day in Gabon; Independence Day in Sinagpore; and National Women's Day in South Africa.

Animated flags provided courtesy of Pascal Gross.