Sure … “farmers, contractors and people who live in barren arctic wastelands” … maybe it’s just The West Coast in me speaking, but who drives on snow? … that just sounds like a really bad idea … but yeah if you did drive on snow, dumping a half ton of steel behind your rear axle is a lot easier with a pick-up …
Good, you know to climb up on the outside of a horse … [adorable grin] …
If we didn’t drive on snow, we would be home-bound for 6 or more months of the year.
Also, which side of the outside of the horse? 
I know that one too.
It is my experience that people who feel the need to be extremely patriotic are also quite authoritarian. That’s not to say you can’t show your patriotism sometimes with a flag, but if you’re putting it on your truck permanently, where you’re neglecting the point that the flag is supposed to remain unsoiled and not be worn as clothing or a symbol, then you’re probably very much just jingoistic.
The 9/11 thing could be an exception, but I would also argue that it inspired a lot of authoritarianism. I mean, what is the Patriot Act but authoritarianism? So, sure, the base level of appropriate patriotism was higher, but there was still an authoritarian bent.
I mean, it makes sense, doesn’t it? A flat is the symbol of a country, and what specifically makes something a separate country? Its government. So while those who use it sparingly may be just celebrating some governing principles, those who use it a lot are celebrating the government–the authority.
And, well, Republicans and conservatives are actually more authoritarian, despite their claims for a smaller government. If they were truly libertarian, Trump would have been anathema. The idea of a strongman leader is anathema to those who primarily pursue personal liberty. The stronger the authority, the less free you are.
Now, granted, modern liberal thought has that at a balance, realizing that some government is necessary, and does not create predetermined lines like libertarians do. But it’s still all about freedom. The regulations that liberals want are ones that they believe allow more freedom.
I guess I’m rambling a bit, but I think you can see why it makes sense that the pro-authoritarian and pro-Trump style people would be the ones who feel the need to constantly signal their patriotism with the flag. It makes sense that these are the same people who go after others for being insufficiently patriotic. And that is very much a mark of authoritarianism.
It’s not at all uncommon for conservatives to speak of the Constitution with reverence and respect, and treating the flag the same way, while railing against the federal government with an enthusiasm that would make a sailor blush. I suspect many would disagree with the interpretation that those who display the flag generally are “celebrating the government–the authority” (at least in its modern form).
It really depends on whether or not one looks like they enjoy hunting.
The people who actually go hunting aren’t that bad.
The ones who actually go hunting and enjoy it aren’t really that bad, as long as they don’t look like they are enjoying it.
If you have a flag in front of your house and your go around looking like you enjoy hunting, well, that speaks volumes.
Outside of a dog, a book is a man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read.
– Groucho Marx
If I understood the OP’s post, he is not talking about smaller patriotic displays, but massive flags placed on huge staffs in the beds of these trucks.
The individuals who tend to perform this type of display are intentionally trying to invoke a reaction as they tend to believe that their society and culture is being attacked.
While there are always exceptions to any generalization, this is typically based on nativist and nationalist ideals, which almost universal return back to a perceived risk to “white” “christian” values.
It often relates to the militia movement or the white nationalist movements up here, which tend to have more similarities in beliefs than differences.
While not universal, this is intended to be a statement.
Well nobody likes the Finns.
Always making good food , and taking saunas.
That’s a joke, those of you with no sense of humour probably missed that.
Sometime you can do it without a pickup (southern Utah).
What america hater put that flag up to be displayed in such a dishonorable fashion?
Flags-on-trucks often co-occur with rubber testicles hanging off tow hitches.
Ostentatious displays of patriotism are done to make the people feel like they are so patriotic in the “I have a bigass flag in my truck” department that they can get away with having exactly shit-all patriotism in the “actually care about the country” department. It’s basically the same deal as those people who make a big deal of how righteous they are while acting like complete assholes.
When I see stuff like that I can conclude with reasonable certainty that the only america they like is the one in their fantasies and that given the chance they’d happily see the actual country burn.
Okay, can’t resist telling my flag story.
We had Swiss neighbors in So Cal who flew a Swiss flag in their front yard. One day a friend, who visited us often, asked us why our neighbors were “so into the Red Cross.”
Can we see your research on this matter? I’m sure your data is good, but it would be interesting to see nonetheless.
In the last couple of weeks, I have seen several pickup trucks flying the Mexican flag. Should I assume that they are racists, plotting my doom?
Bad hombres, for sure!
It might be worth ascertaining whether they’re doing it as some sort of protest to people who fly flags with clear racist intent.
And don’t look now, but everyone’s plotting your doom.
I don’t think we are talking about off-the-shelf, stock pick-up trucks. I think the OP is directing toward those huge, lifted monsters with ginormous wheels that look barely street legal (AKA “small penis truck”), with big American flags staked into the bed. I guess it’s easier to deck-out your big toy that way than to join the military and do something useful while getting to drive such a large vehicle.
Hey, my doom can do just fine without anyone else’s help.
If it is replacing the Confederate Flag I’m all for it. It might help if you mentioned a general area of the country though.
