Flagman's flag page

STATE FLAGS THAT I FIND AMUSING:
Redecorating the Wind

   Contrary to popular belief, America is about change. No matter how you look at it, America has been in a constant state of change since Day 1. Fashions change, laws change, morals change, currency changes, even the Constitution is ammended every so often. Change is good.
     Despite the history of, and even the anticipation of change, people still fear it. The fear of change is exemplified by the passion for our flags.
     George Bush (the old one, not the new one) won an election based on loyalty to the flag, if you can beleive that! Conservative lawmakers tried desparately to make flag burning un-Constitional. That would make this form of protest a federally punishible offense. The very symbol of freedom would then become a protected object keeping people from freely expressing themselves by desecrating the flag.
      The logic behind the anti-flag burning movement was that that burning of the flag is offensive to "real" Americans. History has shown that all change, even beneficial change is met by a group of resistors who are offended by the new changes.
     There are many fine examples of this. Women's sufferage was offensive to males who felt that women should not vote.
     Social, political, and educational intergration is considered by white supremicists to be offensive because they feel that should not have to mingle with African-Americans.
     The continually evolving sexual revolution is offensive to hyper-moral groups that feel that sexuality in any form (other than their narrow viewpoints) is offensive.
     Even the many of the flags of the individual U.S. states need change, but are met with severe restance. Why? Familiarity. In a world of change, familiarity keeps one anchored. The state flag, no matter how ugly or outdated, is familiar - and that's a good thing!
     The problem with most state flags is that they follow the old Civil War pattern for state troops. State infantry battalions carried a state color which was blue with the state seal or arms upon it. The problem is now you have a preponderance of blue flags with seals that are very hard to tell apart.
     I propose new flags for the new millenium. The 19th and 20th centuries are history. It's it is time to look at a brave new world.

FLAGS IN DESPARATE NEED OF CHANGE

FLORIDA: Florida is a state that almost has a good flag. The problem with the current flag of Florida is that silly state seal in the middle. I kept the white flag and red cross from the Florida flag, but I changed the state seal into a shining sun. Who can resist a sunny Florida vaction with this flag?

MAINE: Maine is guilty of having a flag made for a long ago war. The current flag is blue with an extremely complex coat-of-arms upon it. Here, I took elements from the flag and rearranged them. Blue is from the back ground. Green is in the shield. The tree is the central element of the shield. The star is is above the shield. From a distance you can't tell the current flag from many of the other state flags. This new one is bold and very distinctive.

More to come.

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Some flags are so bad that they are in desparate need of change. The ones in most need of change are the Civil War style flags. Basically, a blue flag with the state seal or arms on it. The design is so poor that states sometimes put the state name on it so they can tell it apart from the others! To see what a given flag looks like today just click "current flag" on each description of the new flags.

Connecticut: The current flag looks like an ad for a winery. In classic Civil War fashion we have a blue flag with the state arms. In my flag I removed the grapes and added 13 stars in a wedge to remind one of the bunch of grapes on the flag.

NEW YORK: Yet another state who's current flag blue with a complex coat-of-arms! I removed the complex arms and kept the sun, which is quite appropriate, as it represents the "Sun of York". I added 13 stars to make an awesome flag.

STATES & TERRITORIES WITH NEAR PERFECT FLAGS

Some states have near perfect flags. The only thing that they need to do is remove all of the lettering and scroll work, or in Wyoming's case, remove the small state seal. Just click each state to see what I mean:
ARKANSAS; CALIFORNIA; GUAM; INDIANA; LOUISIANA; NEVADA; NORTH CAROLINA; OKLAHOMA; RHODE ISLAND; VIRGIN ISLANDS; WYOMING

ILLINOIS: While the current flag of Illinois is very pretty, it also too complicated! I took the rays of the sun from the flag and spread it across a blue flag with stunning results.

STATES & TERRITORIES WITH PERFECT FLAGS

DELAWARE: The current flag is almost good! I removed the coat-of-arms and date. In it's place I added one star surrounded by 12 stars. This represents the fact that Delaware was the first of 13 states to ratify the constitution.

IOWA: The current flag is based on the French flag. Iowa's ties to France are marginal at best. Other counrties have honored the French flag by rearranging it's colors or patterns. that's what I have done here. The French tri-color is shown in a bold, new pattern. The golden yellow is for the grain for which the state is so famous.

MICHIGAN: The current flag is dull! I took a unique pattern that captures the spirit of the scene in the coat-of-arms that is on the flag. The woodland pattern captures the essense of the outdoor life of Michigan. The 13 stars in the blue sky remind us that Michigan was the 13th state to ratify the Constitution after the original 13.

MONTANA: The current flag is like most of the others! Dull! It is so dull that they have to put the name of the state on it! Here I took a diminished blue field and added interlaced chevronels. These represtent, the mountains, Native-American tipis, and the letter "M". the white above represents the snow covered Bitter root Range, and the flower is a stylized Bitter root flower, the floral emblem of Montana.

PENNSYLVANNIA: The current flag? What can I say? Dull! Here I kept the blue field, and added a golden keystone, the state's nickname. In the canton is the arms of William Penn, for whom the state is named.

WISCONSIN: Another dull current flag, and it has the name and date on it too! Yikes! For the new flag I took the name "America's Dairyland" and turned it to a green field with white stars and a yellow wedge. The stars and wedge represent dairy products. The blue stripe represents Wisonsin's maritime tradition on Lake Michigan. The 17 stars represent the fact that Wisconsin is the 17th state to ratify the Constitution after the the original 13.

The National Flag, and the flags of some states and territories have , what I consider, perfect flags. In other words, they use only colors and symbols to represtent a given jurisdiction. No words, names, dates, or scroll work is needed to convey the message .
U.S.A.; ALABAMA; ALASKA; ARIZONA; COLORADO; DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA; HAWAI'I; MARYLAND; MISSISSIPPI; NEW MEXICO; OHIO; PUERTO RICO; SOUTH CAROLINA; TENNESSEE; TEXAS

IDAHO: the current flag of Idaho has to be THE worst one. Not only does it have the most complex psuedo Coat-of arms of any state flag, but it is so hard to identify that the name of the state is on it - TWICE! Here is the improved version. The new flag remains blue, and retains the elk motiff but also adds a plum colored roundel representing the state gem stone - the Idaho Star Garnet.

SOUTH DAKOTA: The current flag is exceedingly complex. Here I kept the blue flag and added a Native American star with the colors white, black, and golden yellow.

UTAH: The current flag is in dire need of change. I have removed all of the coplex symbols and flags and used a highly symbolic pattern. The beehive is on the current flag and it recalls the origianl name proposed for the state - "Deseret" (Honeybee). I kept the blue field and added a hioneycomb pattern which reminds one of a honey bee.

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NEBRASKA: The current flag is pretty much like most of the rest. A dull, allegoric seal on a field of blue. This is a different tack to the flag and the state's history. In tribute to those who lived there before the coming of the European-Americans are stylized eagle feathers. The five feathers form a star in reference to Nebraska's place as a state of the American Union.