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Section 3 says:
...The words ''flag, standard, colors, or ensign'', as used herein, shall include any flag, standard, colors, ensign, or any picture or representation of either, or of any part or parts of either, made of any substance or represented on any substance, of any size evidently purporting to be either of said flag, standard, colors, or ensign of the United States of America or a picture or a representation of either, upon which shall be shown the colors, the stars and the stripes, in any number of either thereof, or of any part or parts of either, by which the average person seeing the same without deliberation may believe the same to represent the flag, colors, standard, or ensign of the United States of America.
...

I am an average person, seeing the shirt, and I believe it to represent the flaf of the US. You four don't. That is the heart of the disagreement. No need for personal attacks.

We will not see eye-to-eye on this. A flag tie (which I do own and wear) is one thing. It looks like he made his shirt out of a whole big flag. That's my point. Call me legalistic, nit-picking, whatever. If it was Stars and Stripes on the helmet, I would not have a problem. But, agreed, this has gone on long enough.

For all who have disagreed, my apologies for having stirred you up. I think not the less of you. Nor do I call you silly, a downer, or other epithets thrown my way. I do not challange anyone's patriotism, not Gen Myers, or Rumsfeld's nor yours.

All, have a good night.

Look, dude, I respect your point of view, I just diagree with it.

And I do know what I am talking about. I have a whole load of pathos here, if we want to talk about sad moments, and I should never have opened up that can.

I DO know what I am talking about. We just disagree. As for "motif" instead of "flag", yeah, I get the concept. I just disagree with 1) Gen Myers shirt, and 2) your interpretation. No need to decend into personal attacks.

I respectfully disagree. However, that, too, is one of the freedoms bought by the blood of the military - the right to disagree and the right of free speech.

Read your own post. And BTW - thank you ofr posting it.

Sec. 8. - Respect for flag

......
(d) The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery.

(e) The flag should never be fastened, displayed, used, or stored in such a manner as to permit it to be easily torn, soiled, or damaged in any way.

.....
(j) No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. ... The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing.

---

What part of 8(d) is so difficult to understand?
I believe an apology to me is in order. However, I will agree to disagree, should you believe that the flag is fine as a shirt, pants, bikini, underwear, etc.

Full disclosure: I have a tie with the Stars and Stripes on it. I wear it when I am with a convention of like-minded people. Technical infraction? Sure.But, really, it's not as gaudy and tacky as a whole shirt.

I honor GEN Myers' service. He's a vet like my dad, bro, sis, other bro, uncles, granfathers (you get the idea) He served in a very unpopular war, and continued to serve even during the depredations of the Clinton and Carter years. He is entitled to a certain degree of lattitude.

My point is, I saw the news report, said to my wife "who's the guy in the flag shirt", then found out he was the top guy! I think Rummy should tell him to lay off the shirt next year.

Have you ever been presented the flag that draped the coffin of a 32-year military veteran? Or had the honor of being in the color guard of a military unit?

If so, you understand how disrespect for the flag is really disrespect of all the members of the military.

As for "slapping around", I mean for someone like Rumsfeld to take him aside, in private, and give him a good lecture about flag etiquette.

Everyone makes mistakes. GEN Myers made one. He should be called on it. I said nothing about Rumsfeld. (amazing how people will put words in your mouth sometimes)

A little flag disrespect here, a little there, and soon, nobody respects it.

He is the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs! He should know better than anyone how to treat the American Flag.

I am angry at his thoughtlessness. There is NO mention of his patriotism, pro or con. You can be a patriot and mishandle the flag. I brought up the movie entitled The Patriot only to mention the flag scene, and why this symbol is held in such regard.

Sorry about the 'driveby' - didn't mean to post and run.

Interesting that they showed "The Patriot" on TV last night. Watch how Mel grabbed up the flag and turn around the soldiers, and you know why the flag is so important to those of us who served. Myers should be slapped around for his disrespect for the flag, but quietly. Don't need to hand the libs another argument against the administration.

Saw that on the evening news. GEN Myers, who should CERTAINLY know better, was wearing some kind of shirt made to resemble the American Flag.

I am so mad, I want to spit. THe Flag Code prohibits exactyly this kind of garment.

My apologies. Too quick to post, too impatient to think. My bad.

DC = third rail (PATH, LIRR)
AC = catenary

All NJT electric locomotives run catenary. There are no third rails on NJT territory.

Health comes first.

I had a walking cast on for 5 weeks once. Never got a seat. Two days after it was off, someone offered, as they remembered the cast. "No thanks, I could have used it when I had to stand with one foot 3" higher than the other, thank you very much." Choom.

Reommendation: drive to Newark, take PATH to WTC station, then subway to where you need to go

Most of the Northeast infrastucture is like that. Make sure you aren't thinking of the Pulaski Skyway - that's an auto bridge. This one was north of that.

Politicians get elected for new housing developments, or office space, or ball parks. Bridges run until they fall down...then they get replaced.
Just think Williamsburg Bridge or Gowanus Expressway if you need examples. That retaining wall was built in 1908 and has been noticably shifting over the years. My bet is they overloaded the ground behind the wall, and the rains of March and April started the slow creep of soil behind it.

No word on cause. Want my best guess? That area of the bridge is where the catenary (overhead power lines) have a gap - from the permanent structure on the bridge to the movable on on the ground. Sparks shoot out of the gap all the time. I betcha this time, a spark or chunk of heated metal lasted long enough to hit the pilings and start them afire. That's how most subway fires start - they are electrical in origin.

You are correct - it is one of the piers that the bridge structure locks into when it completes its swing. That makes it better than I thought.

Here's the deal: the ties look like they burned completely through. That means the rail is suspect. And the substructure of the abutmett was suject to fire both above and below, so the entire girder must be considered suspect. I anticipate that the Portal Bridge will be completely out of service until they:

1. Assess the swing bridge superstructure. Pray it is undamaged.
2. Cut out and replace the running rails (simple) and the miter rails (may require custom fabrication)
3. Disassemble the support girders on the abutment.
4. Shore up the pier below.
5. Replace the bearings and bearing plates
6. Fabricate the support girders, hoist into position.
7. Replace the ties and rails.

To do this in one week would take a miracle. I would guess it will take them until Mem Day to get it all back in service.

I saw some news video, and the flames were shooting up through the substructure. As a non-practicing civil engineer, fire + steel = reconstruction.

There are not alternate routes for the trains.

This is going to be at least a week (if not more) before this bridge is back in service.

The fire engulfed the center pier of a swing bridge, with flames shooting through the substructure. If you take any NJ Transit train into NYC, you better figure on a LONG commute.

And don't get complacent, PATH riders....everyone's coming over to snuggle up to YOU.

My recommendation: 3-day weekend.

You know, they are keeping it up - see http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1346812/posts

Also, check out #49 on that thread, seems that Susan is patronizing GoDaddy for her domain registration. Isn't that the domain registrant that had the hot babe doing the wardrobe malfunction commercial during the Superbowl? Doesn't Suze have an issue with that? Why isn't she boycotting them?

Forgot the other point. Phatback? Is that some kind of 'code' for an ethnic food? Relation to her build? How about the average size of the folks following her?