RON DAVIS -- Through my eyes

The Huntington Beach City Council and audience solemnly stood at the

beginning of Monday night’s council meeting as a young ponytailed

Brownie, from troop 413 from Sts. Simon and Jude, directed five other

Brownies to present the colors for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Last week I couldn’t write this column. What does a local guy, whose

charge is to write about local issues, say after the horrific events

occurring in New York and near Washington D.C. Events that reverberated

throughout this nation and the world and which will leave us with a

different nation and world? Last week wasn’t the time to discuss our

local budgetary issues and whether it was better to cut this program

rather than that, or subsidize this, but not that.

But now, a week later, our nation attempts to pick up the pieces and

go forward, as it should. And Monday night, our Huntington Beach City

Council continued to conduct the people’s business, as it should.

This council showed much more civility to one another than it had over

the past few weeks as it unanimously approved a resolution opposing a

waiver granted by the Federal government allowing the Orange County

Sanitation District to dump 240-million gallons a day of less than

completely treated sewage into the ocean. They approved the budget for

the next fiscal year. The council also restricted the hours people may

use Dog Park.

In the wake of the tragic national events, it was hard for me to focus

on the local issues being debated and discussed. While attempting to

concentrate, my mind drifted back to that young girl in her Brownie

uniform standing at the podium and uttering the words, “I pledge

allegiance to the flag . . .”

She reminded me of the American flags that had been so proudly

displayed by so many of you throughout our community -- flags decorating

homes, businesses and cars. So many of you hoisted those red, white and

blue banners to underscore your patriotism and concern. You took the time

to display our national symbol as an overt statement of your solidarity

and out of respect for the events of the past 10 days.

But some of our neighbors didn’t display a flag. Maybe they were on

vacation or out of the area. Maybe they had some other great excuse. Or,

maybe they just couldn’t be bothered.

I find it difficult to comprehend why so many in our community refuse

to display a flag on Memorial Day, the Fourth of July or on Veteran’s

Day. It seems like it takes so little effort, but means so much to so

many. It is particularly distressing, during these extremely difficult

times, to see so many homes and apartments in our community without an

American flag.

Those Brownies bothered to put on their uniforms and drive to City

Hall to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Out of respect for them, out

of respect for those who died in New York and Washington D.C., and out of

respect for those who were wounded or died in combat to protect a country

“with liberty and justice for all,” is it asking too much that we all

display an American flag on our homes and apartments through Oct. 11,

2001? Or, maybe you just can’t be bothered.

* RON DAVIS is a private attorney who lives in Huntington Beach. He

can be reached by e-mail at o7 [email protected]