By Bob Tagert

I thought that I might weigh in on this flag controversy. You see, sometimes

when I go sailing I fly a Pirates flag on my sailboat. When I am tied up at the seawall at

Stoney’s at Broomes Island I usually fly the flag then too. To me, this is something of a

historical nature, but certainly doesn’t make me a pirate about to attack…unless of

course, you are talking about attacking the bar. Jolly Roger is the traditional name for the

flags flown to identify a pirate ship about to attack during the early 18th century.

According to Wikipedia, “The flag most commonly identified as the Jolly Roger today,

the skull and crossbones symbol on a black flag, was used during the 1710s by a number

of pirate captains including “Black Sam” Bellamy, Edward England, and John Taylor and

it went on to become the most commonly used pirate flag during the 1720s.

Well here it is 2015 and the flag still flies and there are still pirates in some parts

of the world, but if you see me flying my flag while sipping rum on my boat at Stoney’s

or sailing up the bay, don’t worry, I did not come to rape, kill, pillage and burn. It’s only

a flag, and I am only a sailor with only a super soaker for armament. I hope that you

enjoy reading our two articles about the Confederate flag – Civil Discourse – and its’

brief, but more complicated history – A Bit of History.

Enjoy reading about our Personality Profile this month, Ashley Whisonant, an

Alexandria firefighter who plays wide receiver on the division champion D.C.Divas,

Washington’s full contact football team. Our Road Trip takes you to peaceful Broomes

Island, Maryland. A short drive, but plan to stay awhile. Bonnie Browning is filling in

for Lori Welch Brown in Open Space again this month and talks about her new

sport…Roller Derby. This is a must read.

We bid a fond farewell to our long-time Points on Pets columnist, Ashley

Denham Busse. She has been a great asset to our fine list of contributing writers and will

be missed. Dean DeGood will have some big shoes to fill as he takes her place.

Remember to stay hydrated and keep cool – the “dog days” are upon us!