Have you ever wondered why exactly we lower flags to half staff after a tragedy or a prominent death? Many believe that it originates from naval situations where the officers on a ship would lower the flag to make room for the “invisible” flag of death. Regardless of its exact origin, we currently lower the American flag to half staff as a sign of mourning; a sign of respect for those that have passed on or been a victim of a tragedy. There are particular days that the flag is always flown at half staff: Patriot Day (September 11 of each year), Peace Officers Memorial Day (May 15), and Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (December 7). On Memorial Day, the flag flies at half-staff until noon, at which point it is raised to the top of the staff. However, there is a lot of room for interpretation from the President and other leaders to lower the flag for many other occasions as well.
If you pay attention to social media and blogs, which I suggest you don’t, there has been a lot of buzz surrounding the Chattanooga shooting where American servicemen lost their lives. Most of the fuss has been directed at President Obama who has not ordered the flags lowered to honor and mourn our loss as a nation. The excuse seems to be that the President cannot pick and choose which event involving the deaths of servicemen and women should be honored and which should not. The argument continues by insinuating that if we lowered the flag every time a soldier dies, it would never reach the top of the staff. Obama supporters will gladly remind you that the flag was not ordered to half staff after the Charleston, SC, shooting of nine church attendees. He did, however, travel there to give a eulogy. What about the fact the President Obama ordered the flag to half staff after the Fort Hood shooting? Aren’t these two events almost identical? Here’s what David Mikkelson at Snopes.com had to say about the two events:
Some have speculated that the lack of a presidential proclamation might be because as tragic and senseless as they were, the Chattanooga deaths involved members of the U.S. armed forces who are considered to have been killed in the line of duty (unlike the other mass shooting events referenced above, which involved civilian deaths), and while individual states often lower their flags to honor local natives or residents who die in the service of their country, doing so at a national level would require the President to pick and choose among service deaths to decide which to so honor.
Others noted that that speculation seemingly ran counter to the fact that President Obama did issue a proclamation directing the lowering of U.S. flags after the November 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, that left thirteen people dead and another thirty-two wounded (both military and civilian, although predominantly the former). In the Fort Hood case, however, the shooter was himself a member of the U.S. Army, and the attack was classified as an act of workplace violence.
I’ve been reading this same excuse for several days now, and I think folks are splitting hairs with these two events. Workplace violence? Why are we so worried about calling things for what they are? In both situations we lost servicemen and women on American soil. In both situations the shooter had ties to radical Islam. Why is it so bad to point that out? Why are we as a society becoming afraid to call out Islamic radicalism when it strikes? The shooting in Chattanooga, TN, was nothing short of a terrorist act. Period. While the experts are trying to figure out the motivation of the shooter to determine whether the act was a crime or based in terrorism, the rest of us are trying to mourn the loss of life that we are becoming way too accustomed to. We expect leadership from the White House when it comes to policy and law enforcement; why should we not expect leadership in mourning as well?
I personally am very disappointed in the President’s non-action in this matter. In fact, his attitude and words throughout this situation have been insanely lacking in respect, concern, and authentic bereavement. Now, Obama supporters will remind you that no matter what the President does, he will be “criticized.” They will tell you that he is never given a fair chance. Well, I will continue to criticize the President when I believe it is necessary. It is not that I don’t like the President; it’s that I don’t trust the man. There is a pattern with President Obama that is unsettling. It is a pattern that shows more and more that he does not have this country’s best interests at heart; a pattern that shows the President sympathizing with our enemies even as we lose soldiers within our borders to the grasp of death. President Obama’s past education and influences cause great concern, as many of them do not view the United States as a country to be regarded well. Am I saying that the President’s sympathy for radical Islam is why he does not order the flags at half staff? No. I’m saying that the President simply does not prioritize events and situations accurately in the United States accordingly to the will and spirit of the people.
I think the President is purposely leaving the flags at full staff to rub his personal beliefs in our face just a little bit more. I don’t have any proof to back that up; it’s just the feeling I get from his shoulder shrugging approach to the entire tragedy. I don’t believe President Obama can relate or fully understand the sacrifices that a military family makes on a daily basis. He just doesn’t seem to care. After the Supreme Court decided that gay marriage should be legal throughout the United States of America, it was a matter of hours until the house that the President resides in was lit up in the LGBT national colors to show support for homosexuals and their victory. Meanwhile, we have servicemen murdered by an act of terrorism on our soil, and we can’t even get the flags lowered to half staff.
Perhaps President Obama is preparing us for things to come. Maybe he’s just trying to make things easier to accept down the road. If we continue to make deals like the one with Iran and we continue to leave our southern border wide open and we continue to disarm servicemen on duty, then unfortunately we could definitely see a spike in terrorist activity on our soil in the near future. I believe these men who had their lives taken in Tennessee deserve our highest gratitude and respect, and I believe it is appalling that they don’t receive this from the highest office in the land. The President of the United States continues to disappoint when we need him more than ever to succeed and lead. Is this a huge deal? Not in the realm of reality, no. However, it is very concerning to me and definitely worth remembering as we plunge toward this unknown direction the United States has taken. I will be keeping a watchful eye on our leaders and their reactions to terrorist victories such as this; it will be important to know who is actually on our side if the wheels fall off. We need you to be a leader, Mr. President. Fly the flags at half staff and bring us together to mourn and pray for our lost heroes. Do the right thing.
http://mentalfloss.com/article/23227/why-are-flags-flown-half-staff-times-mourning
http://m.snopes.com/2015/07/19/chattanooga-flags-half-staff/
