What a perfect way to honor the promoters of war sitting in the halls of Congress and the White House than by invoking a little-known holiday, Flag Day. Woodrow Wilson, the president who dragooned the U.S. into an unnecessary war after winning reelection on his promise to keep the nation out of it, officially proclaimed Flag Day in 1916, less than a year before he got his war from a Democrat-controlled Congress. Defying the traditional meme that Republicans are the war party, two-thirds of the votes against the war were Republican. 116,516 young Americans paid the ultimate price. Although Flag Day is touted as a celebration of the adoption of the Stars and Stripes, a more accurate description would be the way it was celebrated in New York City during World War II — “New York at War.” Like most other national symbols, the flag is inextricably linked to America’s war obsession. Before you thank another veteran for serving in U.S. wars, check out “Flag Day, June14: When the Empire Honors Its Flag, Ignores Its Veterans.”
