For those of you who were lamenting the destruction of the flag and wishing it could be saved for a museum, this is an excerpt from a note my beau sent this morning. Seems to me, if any flag should be saved, it's this one when it returns. Not that it diminishes the value of the one to be destroyed, and not that there isn't more than one museum that could use and cherish such an artifact. But now that I've chosen to sound in on this (I have restrained myself from posting due to a less than charitable comment I received earlier this week) my take on the American Legion's destruction v. a museum is this: As you know, I love museums. They have been an integral part of my life from my tiniest years because it was someplace my then very poor dad (now a self-made whatever) could take his noncustodial daughter on biweekly visitations. They were free or nominal, and he had a place to entertain me, while I had a place to learn and be loved. So part of me says yes, I truly would love to see the flag in an institution. BUT, with that said, you can ask my stepmother. We got into a HUGE argument when I was about eight because our family flag fell to the ground, and she would not burn it! I was livid. Everything I had been taught said that a flag is to be treated with love, honor, and respect (better than a husband, LOL) and that, if it EVER touched the ground, it had to be burnt. I'm sure those values are shared by the American Legion. I am convinced they are burning that flag out of love for it, and I'm afraid that (and it's probably a moot point at this time) if you take it away from them in a time such as this, it could do as much damage as the good it could cause by preserving it. Granted, it may mean a lot to future generations. But my thoughts include the fact that a lot of the American Legion folks are WW II vets who put their lives on the line for their country and that symbol, and they feel duty bound to preserve the integrity of America by symbolically destroying this flag. It's too bad. I would like to see it, touch it, hold it, cry on it, but I think if anybody cares how I'd vote, it would be with destruction for the emotional balm it will create. Let's be sure to monitor this one and hope it has a safe and auspicious home--my favorite, of course, would be at the Smithsonian (perhaps on a display that tours). My beau wrote" I was watching FOX news channel early this morning and they had a little story that started the tears streaming again. Have you ever wondered whatever became of the American flag raised by the 3 firemen over the ruins of the WTC? It was given to President Bush by Mayor Giuliani and subsequently sent to the Captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt where it is being flown from its mast at the front of the action by special request of the Pres. It will remain there until the Teddy returns. ===== Indigo Nights [log in to unmask] __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Make a great connection at Yahoo! Personals. http://personals.yahoo.com ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).