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
That makes the guts of men grow bold.
What's that rising over the tent?
It's just a piece of cloth
that dares the coward to relent.
What's that flying across a field?
It's just a piece of cloth
that will outlive the blood you bleed.
How can I possess such a cloth?
Just ask for a flag my friend.
Then blind your conscience to the end.
This indicates to the reader the flag, an emblem of one’s country, can be obtained easily, just as one’s mind can be readily ‘turned’ by patriotic nonsense. Just as anybody can possess a flag, so anybody can be mentally fooled — either by another person or by self-delusion — into believing that fighting is justified.
Flag