Pages

11/11/24

A New (Old) State Flag for Maine?

Here in the US, we just had national, state, and local elections. Many of the state and local contests went the way I hoped. As for the national results... well, I don't even want to think about it, let alone talk about it. What I do want to talk about is one of Maine's state referendums. On Election Day, Mainers voted on this question: "Do you favor making the former state flag, replaced as the official flag of the State in 1909 and commonly known as the Pine Tree Flag, the official flag of the State?" 

I was hopeful they would vote yes. The current state flag is one of many state flags that features the state seal on a navy blue background. These flags are hard to differentiate from each other, are not especially attractive or attention-getting, and are difficult for crafting. Maine had the chance to vote in a flag with simple, eye-catching images (a single star and a pine tree). It would have been the only flag in the US with a buff background, making it immediately identifiable. And because it is the former flag of the state, nobody could complain about "erasing history" like you see in ignorant comments left online when other states have adopted new flags. I expected the referendum to pass. It did not

This is the current state flag of Maine:


The is the Pine Tree Flag, that would have replaced the current flag:


How would you have voted? Or how did you vote if you are a resident of Maine? Let me know in the comments. 

No comments:

Post a Comment

I moderate comments, so you will not see yours appear right away. Please check back if you had a question; I promise to answer it as soon as I see it. Thank you for taking the time to comment!