American Flags Are A Symbol Of Hope After Katrina & Rita
The professional protestors, power-hungry politicians, Anarchists, Socialists, Communists, and America haters of the stripe that populated Saturday’s anti-war protest event in Washington typically view the American flag as a symbol of the repression they imagine themselves to be suffering from. So they treat the flag accordingly, spray painting it, burning it and otherwise defacing it in the deluded hopes of making their gnarled political point. But the notion that the American flag deserves respect never sees the light of day with these folks.
Fortunately for the rest of us, there’s an America out there that’s brimming with love of country and a conviction that the future will remain as bright as our past has been. A case in point is the undaunted spirit of those who are now picking up the pieces in the wake of two hurricanes.
John McFarland of the Sun Herald newspaper on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi recently emailed his colleagues at the Newspaper Association of America’s Marketing Federation about the miraculous enthusiasm the people there have for rebuilding. Here’s some of what he had to say,
"As you know, my beautiful Mississippi Gulf Coast has been devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Some 75 percent of all structures in our three counties along the Gulf of Mexico have been severely damaged or destroyed. Our casinos and other tourist attractions, most of which were on or near the beachfront, were washed away by 30 foot seas. Many of our priceless cultural and historic attractions are gone. And for an area founded in 1699, that’s a lot of lost history. Thousands are homeless and thousands more will be out of jobs for months to come. But we will rebuild. And first, we are working to rebuild the spirit of our neighbors."
One of the early signs of this determination to prevail are the American flags that are literally everywhere. McFarland points out that this isn’t the first time that residents of the Gulf Coast rallied around the flag in the aftermath of devastation. In the wake of Camille in 1969, the Sun Herald (then called the Daily Herald) contacted newspapers across America asking that they help by collecting American flags to send to the people of Mississippi in a show of support.
McFarland wrote of this event in his email, "At that time, flying the American flag above the rubble of homes and businesses was a visible act of determination and became the symbol for our community’s recovery. That same phenomenon is occurring after Katrina.
""The site of flags flying amid the rubble of Camille is the most endearing memory of that storm, and is already becoming a symbol of our neighbor’s determination to rebuild again. There just aren’t enough flags."
What a contrast - from the spoiled, self-absorbed and unhappy demonstrators in Washington to the good folks in Mississippi who are proud and grateful to be Americans in the midst of so much destruction.