President Bush has issued proclamations that the United States flag be flown at half staff through September 20th to honor the memory of the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Another order requires the flag be flown at half-staff through September 13th to honor the death of Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

For people with flags that are attached to a fixed pole, it turns out there is an appropriate way to fly those flags, even though you can't actually move them on the pole. I described that here last year, when several people I know asked me how to fly their fixed flags on their porches at half-staff.

For flags that can't be lowered, such as those on many homes, the American Legion says attaching a black ribbon or streamer to the top of the flag is an acceptable alternative. The ribbon should be the same width as a stripe on the flag and the same length as the flag.

If the flag is hanging on a wall, make three black bows from the same material and place one bow at each of the mounting points.