The experiences I've had here and the people I've met here will last my lifetime. And I know I am not the only one. These memories mean a lot to many of us, and they are symbolized by the continued existence and activity of this forum. Shireroth being active gives us a fun way to play around with politics and a good excuse to stay in touch with friends, but it's also a place that's becoming increasingly more anchored in our own lives.
So, with that said, how many people can honestly say that this enjoyable decade is best symbolized with this thing:
Yes, I am re-kindling the flag debate. Feel free to scream in horror now, then get back to me when you've got it out of your system.
... you good now? Okay.
I know why you changed the flag. You were afraid of what people thought of it. The old one was made in MSPaint and looks it. I mean, what the heck is that white thing in the middle. A square? A smashed diamond? Some sort of circle? It's a secret everyone. But these were the right questions to ask. We can overcome this. We can subtly tweak the flag, remove the fuzziness of the lines and decide once and for all if that thing is a square or a circle. We can even incorporate new ideas into the flag, such as Scott's quite brilliant use of coding our birth date into the color code of the blue. That was the solution; improvement and refurbishing, not throwing the entire thing out because it was old.
And who were we trying to impress by changing our flag? The other nations of Micras? They could be so lucky to be as stable and active as Shireroth! Historically, we have been quite successful in luring foreigners into Shireroth's borders, yet I have not seen any significant increase in immigration or indeed any foreign-related statistic that shows that our reputation has been enhanced by changing the flag. And newcomers into the hobby? They may think Shireroth's flag is a bit dated, but that's simply because we've never redrawn it more professionally. It has nothing to do with the style.
Are there people out there that avoid Shireroth because of our flag? No. I think not. People either want to join micronationalism or they don't, and there's not a flag design in the world that can make them interested if they aren't or keep them away if they've been bitten by the bug. The real reason we changed the flag has always been internal. We were ashamed of the the fact it was dated. We let fear of the insubstantial jeers of the meek take hold and we made a mistake because of it.
You may confront you own personal fears with a psychiatrist at your own leisure and expense. I merely say that these fears are not much to base a future on, and reassure you all that damage can always be undone.
Shireroth has been around for ten years. It has had its ups and downs; it's periods of brilliance and its tragic mistakes. What matters in the long run is not losing our identity. It is too late to welcome our tenth birthday with a proper flag as a symbol, but at least we can do ourselves justice by reversing the mistake. Erik has said that he would not change the flag during his reign so I will not call for him to go back on his word now. But I think it's something that the country as a whole, as well as hopeful Kaisers-to-be, should be taking very, very seriously. For now, merely give it some thought and feel free to express your opinions.
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