The #1 question I am being asked today is if I don't like the Top 40, what then do I think the flag should be?
I'm glad you asked, except that it meant trawling through all 10,292 national flag submissions at some considerable effort. I do have better things to do, I just must not want to do them.
Let's be clear from the outset, this is not a national logo picking competition. If it were, the fern would win hands down. Well done to all the marketing people who have wretchedly and increasingly obtusely forced it upon us over the years.
I think this is where the official panel of flag pickers got it so wrong, they went logo and we went "oh no". Perhaps someone could have explained to the panel that we live in three dimensions, not one.
A flag should be simple and it should represent everybody. This is the flag Tony Veitch has been bandying around. Congratulations, if you like this flag, you like a sport.
The flag should represent everybody, even the knock kneed science geeks with no sporting code of affiliation. So while navigating the maze of ferns, koru's and kiwis, I did try to keep an open mind in coming up with my own Top 40.
I tried to take basic flag design into consideration as well as my own 4 rules which I laid out previously. So here goes, in some semblance of order, but certainly not favouritism, my Top 40 NZ flags.
I'm going to start inexplicably with those which have ferns on them. I know this breaks rule #2, but then I don't think every flag in my Top 40 should be the new flag. I accept that it needs to be here as part of the discussion, so if it has to have a fern on it, this is what I would choose from.
In fact I broke rule #4 there as well, so let's cross these off, but expect to see them on a speedway derby car sometime in the future.
Let's move on to the use of korus. I'm not entirely opposed to the use of korus, but as pointed out to me by a few people, you don't want the flag to look like it's going down the drain.
I think the use of korus here isn't too bad, but again, I wouldn't choose any of these as my flag.
This sheep here is as surprised as anybody that it pooed stars
On to korus used within convention. I kind of like these, it feels like I'm giving the finger to the Queen.
I actually wouldn't mind having one as our new national flag, busy though they might be.
Maybe we could aspire to be like another nation?
But if we stick with the Queen for a moment, I do like this Kenya inspired option..
But I would change the colour scheme.
Anyway, on to red, white and blue bars and stripes
These are strong flags, if a bit sea faring. I would lean towards the first and the fourth ones in this section, I like the back story of the first that the three main stars are our major islands, while number 4 makes me feel like our country is actually in the Caribbean.. and therefore warmer.
Maybe we should go with red, white and blue baa's.
That was low. Great flag though, it fills me with patriotic fervour, sort of like these 1990 commonwealth games numbers..
Or this ode to Taumaranui
I'd certainly be worried if I was the other countries watching that flag come out at the games.
It's crisp blue skies, fluffy clouds and green hills lead me to our next group, the blue, puffy.. green.. ocean.. err.. what "NZ looks like when you get here" group
Again, I would be pretty comfortable with almost any of these being our flag. They're bold, reflective of our country and not copyrighted. To me they do say New Zealand, but if they don't go far enough for you, there's always this
Except this might help the ongoing confusion amongst foreigners about which kiwi we want to be likened to.
Here are a couple more flags which I think have strong ideas
None of them would really look out of place flying above the Beehive.
But what's my favourite you ask?
This, obviously.
But if it came right down to it, if someone held a gun to my head and said "you can't have awesome bike flag", well then I'd choose this
To me, this is a strong, robust, New Zealand flag. I identify with the colours and I'd be happy seeing it flown in a stadium or patched to the arm of one of our "peacekeepers". To me, without being cheesy, without lowering ourselves to logos and emblems, this is the flag of Aotearoa.
Also, I heard those other flags said you looked like dorks!
I'm glad you asked, except that it meant trawling through all 10,292 national flag submissions at some considerable effort. I do have better things to do, I just must not want to do them.
Let's be clear from the outset, this is not a national logo picking competition. If it were, the fern would win hands down. Well done to all the marketing people who have wretchedly and increasingly obtusely forced it upon us over the years.
I think this is where the official panel of flag pickers got it so wrong, they went logo and we went "oh no". Perhaps someone could have explained to the panel that we live in three dimensions, not one.
A flag should be simple and it should represent everybody. This is the flag Tony Veitch has been bandying around. Congratulations, if you like this flag, you like a sport.
The flag should represent everybody, even the knock kneed science geeks with no sporting code of affiliation. So while navigating the maze of ferns, koru's and kiwis, I did try to keep an open mind in coming up with my own Top 40.
I tried to take basic flag design into consideration as well as my own 4 rules which I laid out previously. So here goes, in some semblance of order, but certainly not favouritism, my Top 40 NZ flags.
I'm going to start inexplicably with those which have ferns on them. I know this breaks rule #2, but then I don't think every flag in my Top 40 should be the new flag. I accept that it needs to be here as part of the discussion, so if it has to have a fern on it, this is what I would choose from.
In fact I broke rule #4 there as well, so let's cross these off, but expect to see them on a speedway derby car sometime in the future.
Let's move on to the use of korus. I'm not entirely opposed to the use of korus, but as pointed out to me by a few people, you don't want the flag to look like it's going down the drain.
I think the use of korus here isn't too bad, but again, I wouldn't choose any of these as my flag.
This sheep here is as surprised as anybody that it pooed stars
On to korus used within convention. I kind of like these, it feels like I'm giving the finger to the Queen.
I actually wouldn't mind having one as our new national flag, busy though they might be.
Maybe we could aspire to be like another nation?
But if we stick with the Queen for a moment, I do like this Kenya inspired option..
But I would change the colour scheme.
Anyway, on to red, white and blue bars and stripes
These are strong flags, if a bit sea faring. I would lean towards the first and the fourth ones in this section, I like the back story of the first that the three main stars are our major islands, while number 4 makes me feel like our country is actually in the Caribbean.. and therefore warmer.
Maybe we should go with red, white and blue baa's.
That was low. Great flag though, it fills me with patriotic fervour, sort of like these 1990 commonwealth games numbers..
Or this ode to Taumaranui
I'd certainly be worried if I was the other countries watching that flag come out at the games.
It's crisp blue skies, fluffy clouds and green hills lead me to our next group, the blue, puffy.. green.. ocean.. err.. what "NZ looks like when you get here" group
Again, I would be pretty comfortable with almost any of these being our flag. They're bold, reflective of our country and not copyrighted. To me they do say New Zealand, but if they don't go far enough for you, there's always this
Except this might help the ongoing confusion amongst foreigners about which kiwi we want to be likened to.
Here are a couple more flags which I think have strong ideas
None of them would really look out of place flying above the Beehive.
But what's my favourite you ask?
This, obviously.
But if it came right down to it, if someone held a gun to my head and said "you can't have awesome bike flag", well then I'd choose this
To me, this is a strong, robust, New Zealand flag. I identify with the colours and I'd be happy seeing it flown in a stadium or patched to the arm of one of our "peacekeepers". To me, without being cheesy, without lowering ourselves to logos and emblems, this is the flag of Aotearoa.
Also, I heard those other flags said you looked like dorks!
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