What's that fluttering in the breeze?
It's just a piece of cloth
that brings a nation to its knees.
What's that unfurling from a pole?
It's just a piece of cloth
Again, Agard’s word choice (“just” and “cloth”) belittles the flag. The repetition of this  refrain  reinforces the irony. Agard is intentionally stirring the reader’s irritation. The tension is building and we expect a twist soon, something that will puncture the overblown patriotism.
Flag