patriotism

this weekend i read an article about campaigning.  specifically, the article mentioned how the obama campaigners in that neighborhood were intentionally skipping over all the houses with american flags out front to save time.

if i were an obama campaigner, i would have done the same thing.  correct me if i'm wrong here, but 90% of the time, an american flag displayed on a front porch or a bumper or a t-shirt is a clear message that says, "i'm a republican, and proud of it.  democrats dare not tread here."

when did the american flag become a symbol of the republican party?  it's clear that it's happened, and it makes me angry because it reinforces the same conservative contention that was repeated so many times this election season that democrats are "unamerican" and "unpatriotic."  it's faulty logic along the same lines as the whole, "if you don't support the war in iraq, then you must support terrorists" idea.  it's all b.s., but that doesn't make it any less effective.

i'm just as american as my republican counterparts, and i was just as invested in this election, and i have just as many hopes for my country.  so when did it come about that the republicans absorbed the flag of this country as their unofficial mascot?

and if the american flag is a symbol of the republican party, what is the symbol of the democratic party?

just a thought.