during times of peace, the eagle on the carpet of the oval office in
the white house faces towards the olive branches in its talons. during
times of war, it faces towards the arrows. which way does it face
today?

Howdy curiouscitizen-ga,

The way the eagle faces has been the same since Truman changed the Seal of
the President in 1945.  Here is the "White House Interactive" Q&A exchange
that covers the fiction of the direction changing in times of war.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/interactive/July2004.html

"Q: ... Is there any truth to the section about switching the carpet in the
Oval Office when the country is at war or peace?
...
A: ... There is just one Seal of the President at any given time, and it
does not change according to whether or not the United States is at war."

Here is more from the same Q&A.  The [] comment is mine.

"In the new [after Truman made the change] Coat of Arms, Seal and Flag, the
Eagle not only faces to its right--the direction of honor--but also toward
the olive branches of peace which it holds in its right talon. Formerly the
eagle faced toward the arrows in its left talon--arrows, symbolic of war."

Why was the change made?  The Jimmy Carter Library and Museum web site gives
Truman's reasoning.
http://www.jimmycarterlibrary.org/tour/ovaloffice/popup/pres_flag.html

"In 1945, Truman ordered the Presidential Seal and Flag redesigned. He did
not like the way the eagle's head faced the arrows of war. He believed that
the president, although prepared for war, should always look towards peace.
He had the head turned toward the olive branches."

The White House web site has an excellent picture of the presidential rug
placed in the Oval Office in December of 2001.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/12/images/20011221-2-1.html

"The rug, which is unique to the Bush administration, arrived earlier in the
week and was unveiled to the media on Friday December 21, 2001."

This Detroit News web page has another image which shows the eagle's head
facing to its right.
http://www.detnews.com/2001/nation/0112/22/nation-373632.htm

"With first lady Laura Bush by his side, President Bush showed off a new rug
designed for the Oval Office that was being enjoyed by their English springer
spaniel Spot ..."

There is some indication that the current rug was designed by Laura Bush, at
least according to the NewsMax.com web site.
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2001/12/21/135857.shtml

"Bush spoke from the Oval Office after he and first Lady Laura Bush showed off
the rug she designed that will grace the floor there."

If you need any clarification, feel free to ask.


Search strategy:

Google search on: "Oval Office" eagle war peace
://www.google.com/search?q=%22Oval+Office%22+eagle+war+peace

Google Images search on: "Oval Office" Bush
http://images.google.com/images?q=%22Oval+Office%22+Bush

Looking Forward, denco-ga - Google Answers Researcher

excellent, well-researched and well-written response.  Thank you!

I believe the myth about swapping the rugs in the Oval Office may have
originated with a remark in the television series "The West Wing."

The "White House Interactive" Q&A referenced points to the November 2001
novel "Deception Point" by Dan Brown.  As I have neither read the book
nor do I watch "The West Wing," beats me.

The myth is sufficiently widespread to have won mention on Snopes:

http://www.snopes.com/history/american/turnhead.htm

Much thanks for the kind comments and 5 star rating, curiouscitizen-ga.

For whatever it is worth, I am going to read "Deception Point" in the
next week or so, to see if that adds to the Snopes entry provided by
my friend and colleague pinkfreud (thanks!) above.

Looking Forward, denco-ga - Google Answers Researcher

Ooops!  Forgot to point out that Dan Brown, the author of "Deception Point," 
also wrote another novel that mixes facts with fiction, that being the very
popular "The Da Vinci Code."

pinkfreud-ga is right about the West Wing. I saw this episode, and
Percy Fitzwallace (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs) asks about it, but
the president says he's not sure. It's probably just a bit of fiction.
The real president, (BUSH) on a virtual white house tour on the actual
government site says it was changed.