TO THE EDITOR: THE NORTHFIELD NEWS DID YOU KNOW that nearly half of all U.S. state flags are roughly identical in that they are all blue and include either their respective states’ seal or arms in the center? At a distance, these flags are virtually impossible to distinguish from one another. Vermont is one of these states as is New Hampshire, Idaho, Maine, Michigan, to name a few. It is because of this lack differentiation that the North American Vexillological Association (vexillology is the study of flags) considers this flag design to be "bad". As a proud Vermonter and a budding vexillologist, it is my concern that our state, with its independent nature, is somewhat lost among the many in regards to its’ representative flag. It is my sincere hope that this will soon change. I have made contact with a few offices in Montpelier, and a few prominent vexillologists in the hopes of starting a grass-roots movement to change Vermont’s flag design. I can say that I have been greeted with a large amount of support thus far, but was advised that popular support will be paramount to getting this proposal off the ground. With that in mind, I have created a website (http://vt-vexillology.webs.com) where Vermonters can go to learn about what I am doing, how to get involved, and to see my potential designs for the new state flag. Visitors to my site may also vote for the design they like best.

Vermont prides itself not for being "one of the crowd", but for being innovative. I am confident that changing our flag to represent our distinctiveness would serve us well.

GREG STONE

BRADFORD