Operation AXIOM
Two hundred thirty-six years ago to the day, 14 June 1777, the Second Continental Congress passed the first Flag Act, establishing the official flag of the United States of America. The text read: "Resolved, That the flag of the thirteen Unites States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation." That glorious banner has flown over the growth of the greatest nation the world has ever seen, prosperous & populous, a beacon of freedom & hope. The armies that have fought under that star-spangled banner have defeated the forces of piracy (Barbary pirates, 1803), slavery (Confederate rebellion, 1865), Nazism (Nazi Germany, 1945), & Communism (Soviet Union, 1991); liberated countless nations from foreign occupation & domestic tyranny; & tamed a wild continent so that civilization could flourish from sea to shining sea. Some Libertarians have scoffed at the Pledge of Allegiance, thinking that pledging "allegiance to the Republic for which it stands" is tantamount to endorsing the policies of whomever happens to be the current occupant of the White House, but in this, as in so many, many things, they evince a profound inability to reason clearly. The flag of the United States stands for something larger than President Obama, larger than the presidency, larger than any of us; ours is a chosen nation with a self-chosen call to spread the Empire of Liberty to every corner of the world that all peoples might be free. Our flag is the banner of what Father Abraham called "the last, best hope of earth." The flag of the United States of America was adopted two hundred thirty-six years ago to-day. 'Tis Flag Day.



The Rebel Black Dot Song of Flag Day
The University of Michigan Marching Band, "The Star-Spangled Banner" from Hurrah for the Yellow and Blue (T.L.A.M.)