There's a Reason for the Name

I've read Jez Butterworth thinks
There's a countervailing wind
Called Mercy that blows against
Life's prevailing ruthlessness.
I think of this when the flags
That usually billow taut
Hang lifeless in Hurricane
On a calm, indifferent day.
They've never been, never will
Be alive. They're strips and rags,
Whatever they symbolize.