Thursday, June 14, 2012

Today is Flag Day.

The Stars and Stripes were officially adopted as our flag in 1777.

Prior to 1912, there were no regulations or laws regarding the proportions of the flag or the style and placement of the stars. This made for some interesting flag designs.

The flag that flew over Fort McHenry (The Star Spangled Banner) had 15 stars on it because Vermont and Kentucky had just become states.

There are numerous locations where, by declaration of Congress, the U.S. Flag is flown constantly. The most notable locations are:
  • The White House.
  • The U.S. Capital Building.
  • The Marine Corps War Memorial (the Iwo Jima Memorial).
  • The Washington Monument.
  • Two flags are flown constantly at Ft. McHenry - the 15-star version and the current 50-star version.
  • The Battle Green at Lexington, MA (site of the first shots of the Revolution).
  • The War Memorial in Worcester, MA
  • Valley Forge, PA
  • Gettysburg, PA
  • Any U.S. border crossing or port of entry that is open constantly.
  • The Moon.

When I was born, there were only 48 stars on the flag. That makes me old.

The current flag (13 stripes, 50 stars) was created and adopted in 1960. Credit for the design is given to a 17 year old named Bob Heft. He designed it as a school project and received a B minus. After Congress adopted the design, his teacher changed her mind and upped his grade to an A.

With the possibility that Pueto Rico may soon become the 51st state, there are numerous 51-star designs being looked at. None of the designs have been approved by Congress but it should be noted that one of the designs was submitted by none other than Bob Heft.

You now know more about the U.S. Flag than you did a few minutes ago.

You're welcome.

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Last night in that weird yet bizarre place we call "San Francisco", a  27 year old kid named Matt Cain did something only 22 other MLB pitchers have ever done - he threw a perfect game of baseball. No hits, no runs, no walks, no errors.

That, my friends, is quite the feat.

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Here are some links that you can click on if you would like:


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