We read periodically of misguided demonstrators burning our flag. But a different sort of disrespect for the flag was on display recently in Florida.
The Lake County Democratic Party headquarters displayed for months an American flag from which the traditional field of blue and the white stars representing the states had been removed. In their place was an image of President Barack Obama.
There is no indication that the president approved of the flag alteration, or knew about it. But it was a shocking act, and it stirred understandable anger among veterans when they spotted it.
"It's a cult of personality to show his face [on the flag], like Stalin or Mao," John Masterjohn, a former Marine, told the Orlando Sentinel. "It's despicable."
Another veteran, Jim Bradford, told another newspaper: "When I saw the picture on the flag, I thought, this is wrong. I really hate seeing the flag not being respected, and to me this was not respectful."
Veterans went to the Democratic Party headquarters where the flag bearing Obama's image was flying and demanded that it be taken down.
The local party chairwoman at first balked at lowering the flag, saying the party was "proud of our president" and "felt it was time to display that." But she later relented and took down the flag after a Korean War veteran, Don Van Beck, read to her a part of the federal flag code stating that the flag "should never have placed upon it or any part of it, any marks, insignia, letters, words, figures, designs, picture or drawings of any nature."
"You don't desecrate the flag, especially for the veterans who fought the wars and died for it," Van Beck said, according to news accounts. "In dictatorships, they have a picture of their dictator on some of the flags, but we haven't arrived at having a dictator, yet."
There is already too much careless or inappropriate use of the flag. Putting a politician's image on that symbol of our country reduces the already diminished regard in which some Americans sadly hold the flag.