City Flags Are Abominations 

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My father was a graphic designer and actually created the "flag" for Pocatello. It was meant to simply be a design that the Chamber of Commerce could utilize for banners and such for fairs or events. The city decided to make it flag and as a graphic designer my dad was never more saddened and mad that the city went that stupid. (Edit) I love how many likes and few hate this comment recieved. Brings tears of joy to my heart. To everyone that said "im a graphic designer and its still a bad banner" okay cool, you go back to before photoshop and AI existed and make a living off of commercial art.

The trademark on Pocatello is one of the funniest things I have ever seen.

The bear splitting the nucleus of an atom is the best Russian city flag by far. Some context for that one: Zheleznogorsk, or previously known as Krasnoyarsk-26, is a closed city that was created in 1950 for the extraction of plutonium. The last reactor for plutonium production shut down in 2010, however the city is still closed because of its importance to the defense industrial complex. So the bear is fittingly, doing nuclear fission to represent the city And when it comes to China, not just Hong Kong, but neighboring Macau has a neat flag too. It's a lotus with a bridge and lines for water below it with stars above it, on a nice shade of green. The lotus flower in full bloom represents the everlasting prosperity of Macau (which they're certainly not wrong about that; gambling being banned in Mainland China definitely helps). The bridge is the Governor Nobre de Carvalho Bridge, that links Macau Peninsula with Taipa. The bridge and water represent Macau's position as a port and its important role. And like the stars of Hong Kong's flag, the stars represent the PRC and Macau's relation with it, only this time the stars are yellow like the PRC's flag instead of red like Hong Kong's

14:07 Milwaukee kinda collectively decided we were done with this flag and started adopting a new unofficial one of the sun rising over Lake Michigan. that one's now 10x more common than the official one.

Bro, South Korea is legit corporate land - even their government department seals and logos look like some corporation. Its so corporate that it gives you dystopian vibes birthed by insurance companies

Provo’s flag looks like a logo for vitamins made for elderly people

When it comes to flags of American cities, Chicago does it right and there's a reason the Chicago flag is iconic! Initially the flag had just two stars when it was adopted in 1917, but it changed to three in 1933 and then a fourth in 1939. Each six-pointed star (six points were chosen because no other flag had this when it was made) represents an event in Chicago's history. The Great Chicago Fire of 1871, the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, the Century of Progress Exposition of 1933, and the establishment of Fort Dearborn in 1803. And each point on these stars has a meaning. For the Great Chicago Fire for example the points represent the virtues of religion, education, aesthetics, justice, beneficence, and civic pride. The three white bars represent the North, West, and South Sides of Chicago. The top sky-blue bar represents Lake Michigan and the North Branch of the Chicago River, while the bottom bar represents the South Branch of the river and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal

Shout out to Alexandria, Egypt (6:53). Not only is it a good design, but despite never having seen it before, I could identify its city immediately upon sight. Great flag.

I had no idea cities even had flags, I looked up the one for my city and was very disappointed, great video 10/10

"Britain is famed for making up symbols like it makes up village names" Never have I been more offended by something I completely agree with.

Phoenix Arizona has a badass state and city flag. What's even more badass is the city emblem is used on fire depot, police vehicles, and ambulances. You can't go into a clothing store without it on a shirt too

The Detroit flag is....something! Here's the symbolism for all that for those wondering: The lower left quarter represents France for founding the fort and settlement in 1701. The upper right quarter represents Great Britain, which controlled the fort from 1760 to 1796, imitating the Royal Arms of England. Bottom right has 13 red and white stripes and the upper left has 13 white stars on a blue field, for the US. The two Latin mottos, Speramus Meliora and Resurget Cineribus, mean "We hope for better things" and "It will rise from the ashes" respectively. Written by Gabriel Richard after the Great Fire of 1805. The figure on the left weeps over the destruction while the figure on the right gestures to the new city that will rise in its place. There's no denying that the Maryland flag is unique. It's a banner of arms...that makes up the WHOLE flag! It's the 17th-century heraldic banner of arms of Cecil, 2nd Baron Baltimore. The black and gold is Lord Baltimore's banner (from his father, George Calvert 1st Baron Baltimore), while the red and white is called the Crossland banner and is from his grandmother. During the Civil War, Marylanders who sided with the Confederacy affiliated with the Crossland banner while those who fought for the Union wore the Lord Baltimore banner. The flag in its present form was first flown in 1880 but wasn't officially adopted as the state flag until 1904.

6:32 - I almost spat my drink with that one. That flag's going to be dated in 20 years, which sounds weird for a city with 1400 years of incalculable cultural importance.

I went to college in Milwaukee and the funniest thing is seeing that people hated the official flag so much, they made their own and it became more widely used and basically became the new official flag

The best way I can describe the feeling I got when you showed the South Korean flags is that they all looked like they belonged on commemorative cups for the Olympics

Long Beach (10:04) is such a missed opportunity. Keep the background, remove the seal and the lettering, and you have a pretty nice flag.

Looks like a lot of US city flags solidly fall into the category "Graphic design is my passion."

So glad you mentioned the flag of Zheleznogorsk, if only briefly, because _that_ is a rabbit hole worth jumping in.

As a Brit, I would say that we have more than just ‘St George’s Cross’ on our city and county flags. Local flags are mainly coat of arms that are associated with the city or county like Shropshire has leopards, Staffordshire has a knot, Essex has swords, Leicestershire has a rose and a fox, Hampshire has a crown and a rose- these are all associated because of historical events or cultural meanings like the Leicestershire fox is for Charnwood forest, the Staffordshire knot is associated with the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia, and Shropshire has loggerheads (leopards) derive from the Royal Arms of England and that the blue and yellow colours represent those of Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury. This is without me going into other flags like the Caernarfonshire flag with three eagles as it’s associated as the wealth, power and prestige original capital of Wales from the 12th century king, Owain Gwynedd, king of the erstwhile kingdom of Gwynedd (apparently he had the idea of Wales being the heirs to the Roman Empire), The flag of Shetland is a white or silver Nordic cross on a blue background. The flag uses the colours of the flag of Scotland, but in the form of the Nordic cross in order to symbolise Shetland's historical and cultural ties with Scandinavia (Orkney is similar with blue and yellow cross on a red backdrop). The Skye Flag is a community flag proclaiming the unique identity of this Hebridean island. A yellow Scandinavian cross interlaced with a white circle creates the image of a Celtic cross, while the light blue field references Skye's name and the colours of its shinty team. And even the Province of Ulster Flag (nine counties)- represents the nine counties of the ancient province of Ulster, and is one of the four provincial flags of Ireland. The flag is based on the crest of the O'Neill Chieftains of Ulster, who were renowned for their strong resistance to English rule, hence the flag is regarded as being Nationalist. So U.K. county flags are far more interesting than you originally thought. Also your interpretation of French city and county/region flags is kind of correct but they do also represent local cultures whether that’s the royal association in Bourgogne or Saint Tropez in St Tropez- French flags are far more distinguishable and individual than you think

14:57 Provo looks like a gas station

The Russian flag with the bear splitting an atom in its hands goes inconceivably hard and I will not let anyone tell me otherwise.

I laughed too hard at the insults towards certain flags I literally had to pause to laugh at the flag of Pocatello

16:43 Glad to see Wichita's flag got some respect, even if it's just a throwaway bit.

"Be distinct" Cities, districts and three countries seeing a flag half white half red:

13:44 "I'll be an avid defender of the Maryland Flag until the day I die." Thank you Cody... you are an Honorary Marylander now (it's one of the few good things we have left that people recognize us for).

I love the flag at 3:55 so much. Just imagine the meeting where everyone's trying to come up with what to put on the flag and someone says "a picture of a flag".

Reno NV flag is unbeaten 💪🏼 Glad to see you included it in the vid!

10:52 just realized how much editorcody bullied us (Minnesota) in this segment. Elko, Apple Valley, Woodbury... RIP

7:34 "Nation of corporate logos" is a depressing summary of our flags, but it reflects our culture pretty darn well and accurately. Might change our national flag to Samsung logo anytime soon.

When Pocatello popped up I chuckled thinking “wow that is pretty bad” but then I noticed the copyright line and burst out laughing 😂

Starting the video I half-jokingly though that my islands flags should be in it. Imagine my surprise when he mentions Puerto Rico out of nowhere. Great vid!

As a person who grew up in Fremont, still goes there because my parents are there, just like 1½ miles from the city limits, i appreciated seeing our next door neighbor of Milpitas CAs flag at 1:33. Didn't know they had one!

As someone living in Idaho, I nearly died laughing at the reveal of Pocatello.

American Cities: we've got you surrounded! make a soulless flag for your city now! The City of Phoenix: I LOVE GOOD FLAG DESIGN!!!! I LOVE GOOD FLAG DESIGN!!!!

16:04 I keep retuning to this video just to watch this bit 🤣

5:06 man the music SLAPS

I grew up in Placentia, CA. The city flag flies above the civic center, and nowhere else (mercifully). A neighboring city, Yorba Linda, had a flag design contest a couple years ago. It looks so much better, and I wish Placentia would do the same.

As a Puerto Rican flag nerd, I must say it was very exciting to see you acknowledge the flags of our municipalities and set them as an example of city flags done right. Most of our towns have cool and interesting flags that I feel most citizens take for granted. Cheers from la Isla del Encanto 🇵🇷

He didn't do canada :(

My favorite city flag is Cambé, in Brazil Of course, it has the city seal on it, but the seal is just two red half circles a little separete, representing a grain of coffee. It's so simple yet so effective And you see this symbol everywhere in the city, so they sold the idea really well

Making your city's flag just a logo with the city name under it is like discovering a new planet and naming it "George."

16:18 This caught me so off guard I couldn't help but to let out a big belly laugh. Almost spilled my drink as well

The fact that this man will be an avid defender of the maryland flag gives me (a marylander) so much joy you don't understand.

14:48 The building looks like it should be for a national focus in oi4

The Chicago flag is one of the few things that makes me proud of the city. It’s simple yet well done, good colors, each star and point has meaning, very recognizable. There’s a reason you see it across the world at festivals and concerts. People know what it is and like it, it’s cool to people even not from Chicago.

What did Minnesota do to deserve getting dragged 4 times in this video?? My sister and I had to keep pausing to laugh, especially since our mom was on the committee that voted for one of those designs🤣

14:07 Milwaukee changed its flag in 2016, and its honestly a pretty cool design. It's a lot simpler than the old one, and definitely more recognizable from a distance.

after rewatching the same video 3 times i just noticed 4:05 my country and city Strumica 😭, the one with text. Prilep and Skopje are some that dont have text ( Prileps my fav )

The Chicago flag always stuck out as an exemplary design. It's simple and iconic, yet it doesn't try too hard to stand out. Why can't more city flags be more like that? You know you've gone way too far when you have a trademark symbol and a copyright on your flag. Turning your flag into an advertisement seems like such an American thing to do. That Provo flag is so bad, it's good. It's hilarious! Did the designer rip off the logo from a bottle of Centrum multivitamins?

Today's fact: Cards against Humanity bought an island in Maine to preserve wildlife. It is called Hawaii 2.

Man, to see Sanger brought up is a trip. I lived there while I attended Reedley College. It's such a small city that even people in California barely know it exists. I have to tell people I lived in "Fresno."

I was thinking about the Cascadian flag and how you'd even add it to a video... But maybe a series on flags of places that don't actually exist?

I was born in Pocatello, and even though I lived there for all of a few weeks over twenty years before that flag was adopted, I still feel like I need to apologize for it.

Russia actually has a really good and accessible art and graphic design education programs and universities, which may be the reason for having a lot of quality modern flags

Loved seeing Rockville, MD at 13:44. It’s the only town I’ve lived where average citizens would fly the town flag at their house

I actually like the new flag design that was made for Toledo, OH. (There’s one in Spain) but then they kept postponing the freakin vote and now I can’t find if they changed it or not.

Ok, let me tear into some of these flags a little: 14:40 Beverly Hills' flag look like a semi-3D image from an early 2000s DS game. 14:57 What is that? A cleaner brand's logo? 15:00 Did someone run out of toilet paper in the bathroom? 15:10 When your flag almost educes headaches in those looking at it... 15:31 "Your incorporation is approved! Just let me stamp your design as proof."

Most of Puerto Rico's flags where done before 1898 so that's a reason why they look so different. The people that lived in those areas had and still do to a degree have a distinct culture and history to them. Puerto Rico might be small but the history is HUGE.

12:57 ok thats baller asf

The featuring of the Wichita flag made me smile at the end. I’m laying right beside one rn.

7:28 A "nation of corporate logos" is a good description of South Korea.

16:30 the pocatello flag looks like something that your would find on an 80s neon coloured baggy jacket.

0:32 That was a low blow to Arkansas, without that I wouldn't know where I was.

The flag of my hometown in Kazakhstan 6:58, was the last thing I was waiting for. Thanks for the vid!

Japanese city flags look like the flags of fictional planets/worlds in Star Trek, which immediately makes them great.

4:22 Woah, that Greek flag is *_really_* good. The colors are mature and compliment each other, the sailboat is just epic, and while text on flags breaks the design rules, I think it works here. Probably because since there are so many more cities than countries, they get a pass for trying to help you understand where it's from, but also in that particular one the text's color, font and curvature just fits greatly in the flag's design. Also framed flags are underrated (frame as in a color that goes all around the rectangle).

Was not expecting that personal attack at 9:06

one flag in the US with wording in rhode island’s. it one word just “HOPE” on a small blue with simple yellow stars a white background with an anchor smack dab in the middle

I got so excited when you mentioned Puerto Rico, It's not just flags though, we are really prideful of the towns we come from, each town has their own anthem, their own patron saint festival, their own baseball/basketball/volleyball team, and their own coat of arms, and it's own culture in general. for example Ponce is known for Plena, Loiza for Bomba, and Carolina for Reggaeton.

If city flags make Portland one step closer to finally seceding from and leaving the union, I'm not against it...

I really like the flag of Wellington, New Zealand. IDK why but the yellow and black with three ships tickles something in my brain.

I did a bit of a dive into flags as well due to this video, and I was actually surprised to see many US Departments having flags. I was much more surprised that, out of every organization, the NOAA has an actually decent flag.

As a Puerto Rican I think the reason that the flags look better here than in the states is because of the longer colonial history and being older.

16:11 with that single holy edit dear sir, you just made me choke on my own laughter better than any joke or meme for past good year or few. Glorious, just glorious.

13:21 How did I just realize this now about my home town. Jesus Christ that is terrible.

CGP Grey did an awesome video on US state flags. You and he very much agree about the lettering.

I recently moved to Milwaukee and I liked the flag I was seeing everywhere that I looked it up. Turns out it's a design that was made a few years ago and everyone flies it, but hasn't been taken up as the official flag for various reasons. I think I've seen the real Milwaukee flag like once. Heck, even the city science museum flies the custom flag!

Glad you talked about Puerto Rican flags. I have almost learned them all! Also, you showed the Hormigueros flag, which is in every little corner of the little town. It’s flag is featured in a lot of artwork around town.

I live in the Greater New Orleans Area and I pass through Westwego some times (pronounced West we go, not West waygo) and I saw the flag when driving and nearly shit a brick that the terrible flag is near me lmao.

Rewatching thing video for the who knows how many-eth time, was not expecting to see the flag of the place I currently live (Belleville, MI) in the video lol. I did only move here from Ann Arbor in August, but I didn’t even know belleville had a flag

As a former Minnesotan I find it hilarious how many of these are the towns… Apple valley, Eagan, Woodberry, Fariboult etc. love it (also fun fact I was working on my eagle scout and was doing my “citizenship in the community” merit badge and got to sit in on a city council meeting in apple valley when they were discussing a possible rebranding of the flag. The proposed designs were… interesting)

The Pocatello flag made me feel like I traveled back in time to a 1980's food court. It's true that in PR, each town really did seem to think hard about what they wanted to do with their town flag since they wanted their residents to feel proud of them. Although, I will still engage in local flag slander because Cataño's flag exists & it's impossible to look at for prolonged periods of time without getting dizzy.

Portland, Oregon has an incredibly satisfying flag design. And it’s really distinctive too, with the offset Nordic cross which just looks badass.

The flag of Oeteldonk, the alternative carnaval name of 's-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands) is actually really good. It's a red, white and yellow tricolor - so vibrant and cheerful.

6:12 that bear holding the atom goes hard as hell tho

Saint Louis, Missouri has a great flag in my opinion. It has the fleur de lis connecting two rivers into one representing the french origin of the city that connects the Missouri and Mississippi rivers

7:45 just gonna nitpick on this one, the flag of Seoul changed bc the original was made by the Japanese Empire that is supposed to mimic the flag of Tokyo(which if u look it up, looks very similar)

About Tampa's flag, I really can't unsee the B-2/B-21 at the 'converging end' of flag🤣

Hail the Maryland Flag! There's enough symmetry to justify it

Glad I live in Chicago, one of the few US cities with an actually cool flag. Only place I’ve ever been in the country where people actually fly it or get tattoos of it, etc.

The Faribault logo at @8:11 looks just like the Family Mart logo but worse

13:20 I've been through this city before while traveling on I-35. Their water tower is on display for passersbys, and just like the flag the O is too big. It even crosses where the line is on their water tower. They tried making it look a bit better by cutting the line off before the O but it's pretty clear what the original design was. I don't know why they are so committed to writing their city name like that.

This made me look up my city's flag and found out they changed it two years ago from a city seal on a blue field to an actual halfway decent destincitve with no seals, gradients, lettering, or logos. Made me happy.

While not cities, I think the county flags of Liberia are some of the most interesting flags I’ve seen

Literally, in my town (Its not a city but with A population of 10k Id say its close) its just 2 crows. Red background with 2 crows in it, apparently it came by when some time ago 2 crows landed on the Cathedral during some religious event, and the people back then took it as a sign and now make everything that flag

The funny thing about the new flag of Cedar Rapids is that the city already had a logo that was distinctive, simple and symbolic (representing the Tree of Five Seasons sculpture in the center of town) that anyone in eastern Iowa would recognize as meaning Cedar Rapids, and yet they refused to put it on the flag

7:56 Ooh! I can answer this one! The Japanese are basically doing the same thing as the Europeans here, using their version of a coat of arms (called a mon, though you'll have an easier time looking it up by searching for kamon) or a derivation there of, and just sticking it on their flag. It just so happens that the principles by which the Japanese designed mon emphasize minimalism, symmetry, and and geometric shapes- or the same things as you're looking for in a flag. They are also used as the symbols for corporations too, like the Mistubishi logo.

11:12 I laughed so hard at the "advertising" version of the US flag. The land outline that overlaps the stripes, the tiny seal, the slogan that just says "A Great Place to Live", that has it all.

17:00 my father was just about to say he wanted to look up the flag for his hometown only for it to appear not even after he got the first word out.