Please forgive me for not reading all of this thread, it is very long. My questions may have been answered if I had the time to read the whole thing. I want to attend this rally, but I don't understand not being able to fly an American flag at the Wall. The American Flag, a weapon?? Negotiating sites to fly the flag? I have family lost to Viet Nam. I have family in Iraq. I don't understand.
The National Park Service is worried about the flags for 2 reasons: (1)The poles could be used as weapons. (2)A "wall" of flags could obscure the rangers' view of the Memorial as to any actions possibly taken by our opponents to damage or vandalize it. So, being law-abiding citizens, we're submitting to the NPS directives while also trying to arrange for a spot away from the Memorial where our flags CAN be flown.
I have not verified this, but I think small, hand-held flags will be allowed. (But not my 3x5 ft flag on a 9-ft PVC pole for example.) Hope this helps.