Here are (clockwise from top left): The Great Seal, the Seal of the President, The Great Seal of Barack, displayed at some of his campaign speaking engagements, and the Seal of the Vice President.
There are several problems with Obama's seal:
1) It is arguably illegal to create something this alike to the Seal of the President of the United States. Probably nobody cares about enforcing this rule, but still, technically, it's a rule.
2) It has as its slogan, in place of "E pluribus unum," "Vero possumus" which roughly translates to "Yes, we can." There are many problems with this slogan as Obama's selling point:
- It was suggested by someone else and Obama initially objected to it. His commitment to its message is questionable.
- It is not a logical slogan for a balanced country. It is a progressive slogan only.
- It detracts from the overall point of the seal because it does not relate to the Eagle, arrows, or olive branch in any obvious way.
- The eagle will root out corruption (the snakes amongst us or who tempt us).
- The eagle will confront its enemies.
Also, the animal is an eagle. Eagles are known to be keen-eyed and far-sighted animals. The snake, an enemy from within or without, was seen at great distance. Displaying the snake is part of the way the eagle shows its capability. It is able to use its arrows, at a great distance, because of its keen eyesight. The snake helps prove this is still a vital, competent eagle, not simply a show piece. Why would this be omitted? Does Obama not plan to root out corruption or to confront our enemies? I suspect that, regardless of what he intends, the desire not to 'make enemies' or 'seem warlike' is exactly the reason this was omitted. Somebody in the campaign said, "let's de-emphasize the confrontational or violent parts."
Too bad for us that they thought marketing was more important than the richly historied philosophy and symbolism.
4 comments:
Except there are no snakes on any of those seals.
Actually, there is a snake on the President's Seal, which came first. The banner in the mouth of the eagle on the VP's Seal and the Great Seal, which came later, is supposed to represent the snake as well.
Where?:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Seal_Of_The_President_Of_The_Unites_States_Of_America.svg
It looks like the Presidential seal on your diagram is missing a chunk.
Yes, you're right. It appears that it never had only the snake. However, I still assert that that ribbon is supposed to represent a snake (as it is based on ancient depictions of the eagle from Roman times). Also, whether it's a snake or a ribbon, the idea that the bird could grab or clutch it as a sign of its vitality and prowess is still relevant.
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