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Michael Cianchette is a Navy reservist who served in Afghanistan. He is in-house counsel to a number of businesses in southern Maine and was a chief counsel to former Gov. Paul LePage.
Some things don’t change. Like people getting confused about flags.
In the early days of the LePage administration, I heard rumblings of complaints from long-term state employees that various commissioners were acting “political.”
One rumor was pointed at Department of Public Safety Commissioner John Morris. He was accused of flying one of those “tea party” flags at work. It had a snake and “Don’t Tread on Me” prominently displayed.
Before becoming commissioner, Morris had been the chief of police in Waterville. And prior to that, he served our country with distinction, retiring as a captain from the United States Navy.
The flag which generated discontent was not the yellow “Gadsden flag” with a coiled snake and “Don’t Tread on Me” centered below, but rather a horizontally-striped red-and-white flag displaying an elongated snake and “Don’t Tread on Me” aligned on a white stripe.
It was the “First Navy Jack.” An appropriate momento from then-Capt. Morris’ service to our nation.
In the early 2010s, the Gadsden flag had a resurgence in popularity with the so-called “tea party” movement. It was a moment in our national story where anger against a far-off government led Massachusetts to elect a Republican U.S. senator to replace Ted Kennedy.
The Navy jack has some superficial resemblance to the Gadsden flag, sharing a snake and a phrase. Yet those who griped about the former flying in the commissioner’s office were, hopefully, just terribly misinformed.
Some things don’t change.
With all the ongoing vexillological hoopla, confusion about flags reigns once more. And the Navy is involved again.
The “Pine Tree Flag” was another nautical gem from the early days of our nation. The Continental Congress commissioned several vessels to engage British shipping traffic in 1775. They all flew the flag.
Massachusetts’ legislative assembly officially adopted the flag a year later for its martial maritime efforts, decreeing “the Colours be a white Flag, with a green Pine Tree, and the Inscription, ‘An Appeal to Heaven.’” They still use the flag today as the official ensign of the Commonwealth, although they removed the verbiage in the early 1970s.
It has been used on and off elsewhere over the years, including appearing on postage stamps. Recently, it has made headlines since it has been seen — alongside numerous other American symbols, including the Stars and Stripes — at so-called “stop the steal” events and outside the offices of right-leaning elected officials.
Again, the “Pine Tree Flag” has some superficial resemblance to the 1901 Maine State Flag. They share a light colored background and a pine tree. We have a referendum this fall on whether or not to return to that earlier version of the Maine state flag.
Because of that superficial resemblance, some people are starting to express concerns about returning to the 1901 flag.
Some things should change.
I’ve been in the “yes” camp for returning to the 1901 Maine flag. Set aside aesthetics and politics for the moment in favor of economics. Distinctive flags — Maryland, Texas, Chicago — provide a marketing boon for commerce originating in their respective jurisdictions.
The idea of “Maine” — as a place, an ethos, and a people — holds a certain cachet. “Maine lobster” and “Maine blueberries” are sought after. Our wood products are highly regarded and should be a growth industry as we move towards manufacturing highly advanced, engineered building materials.
A return to the historic 1901 flag can provide savvy communicators with an additional avenue to encapsulate the concept of our state as we look to export products both traditional and new. Which comes with jobs, investment, and prosperity.
And the fact that some groups that some people don’t like used a different historic flag that has superficial similarities to the 1901 Maine flag is simply too flimsy a foundation to build opposition upon.
It’s time for a change. It starts with recognizing flags for what they are — and what they aren’t.
