Key National Symbols

[MissLT]

"Societies throughout the world have drawn upon important key cultural symbols as a means of distinguishing their community from others. Some of these cultural symbols are secular or nonreligious in meaing, whereas others have religious connotations. Anthropologist Victor Turner (1967) described symbols as "multivocal," suggesting that they have multiple meanings for people within a society. He also said that symbols have the characteristic of "condensation," having the ability to unify many things and actions into a single formations........"
(Scupin. Pg. 43)

Questions:
1. Are there any disadvantages of national symbols that have influenced various societies?
2. Could international symbols be developed that would draw all of humanity together?