Tag Archives: war

The Truck of the Flag

Nationality: Caucasian
Age: 82
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Walnut Creek, CA
Performance Date: April 28, 2015
Primary Language: English

*Note: The informant, Harriet, is my grandma. She was born in the 1930s, so she’s seen her fair share of wars and has collected some interesting facts about wartime. This particular story is a legend about the truck of the American flag (the ball at the top of the pole).

 

INFORMANT: “So during the Cold War, Americans were always afraid there was going to be a Soviet invasion. Or, at least this is how people claim this got started, even though there were balls on the flags way before the Cold War. Anyway, where was I? Oh, yes, so everyone was in constant fear of this Soviet invasion. So what they did was they put these balls, which were called trucks, on top of the American flags, and supposedly inside they put one bullet, a bag of rice, and either matches or a knife or razor or something like that. And it was to keep the Russians or whatever enemy from getting to the flag. In an emergency, a soldier would be assigned to the flag and he would eat the rice for energy and use the razor or the match to burn or destroy the flag so the enemy couldn’t get it. And then the bullet was to kill himself.”

COLLECTOR (myself): “Why would he have to kill himself?”

INFORMANT: “Well, either to avoid being captured by the enemy, or out of guilt for destroying the flag, maybe. He’d done his duty but he did still destroy the American flag, and that’s a big no-no in the army.”

—

This rumor holds little weight – most experts say that the ball atop the flag is made of solid metal. However, this myth has spread through many channels, having become a favorite of veterans and soldiers. It’s a piece of nationalistic folklore, relating to American pride, wartime patriotism and an undying devotion to the country and the flag. Protecting the flag is a metaphor for protecting the country as a whole, and patriotic myths like this bestow honor on those who serve our country and add a sort of allure to the army. Perhaps my grandma had a connection to this particular myth because my grandfather served in the army – he fought in the Vietnam war.

Vietnam Vet joke

Nationality: American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Waukesha, Wisconsin
Performance Date: 4/25/2012
Primary Language: English

My informant told me this joke as we were commenting on jokes in bad taste, such as racist jokes and dead baby jokes.

How many Vietnam vets does it take to screw in a light bulb?

YOU DON’T KNOW MAN, YOU WEREN’T THERE!

 

She thought it was funny because it plays off of the stereotype of the PTSD Vietnam soldier who overreacts to the slightest thing.  She says that people love stereotypes, even if they know they aren’t true.

 

This joke takes a known form of a joke “How many x does it take to screw in a light bulb?” and throws in the vetern sterotype.  This form is very easy to make blason poulaire out of because it relys on puns and stereotypes as the punchline.  It is also a way to cope with the difficult issue of the Vietnam war.  The punchline is a quote from Jacob’s Ladder, a thriller about a Vietnam war veteran made in 1990.  The movie is about a traumatized vet who finds out that his post-war life isn’t what he believes it to be when he’s attacked by  horned creatures in the subway and his dead son comes to visit him*

 

*Jacob’s ladder: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099871/