The flag part itself leaves my jimmies entirely unrustled.
It could of course be a part of jimmy rustling for a particular reason, eg someone is protesting SSM in the Netherlands and burning a flag to show their disdain for the country’s attitude to it. Well, that would make me mad as a lorry, but I’d be angry at the sentiment, not the action per se.
This reminded me - the other day I was driving behind a pickup with a big Confederate flag - stars and bars - flying from a pole mounted in its bed. Northwest Indiana. Didn’t really upset me so much as impress me as poor taste and ignorance. But to each his/her own. Not all that much different than the truck decal I saw yesterday of Calvin pissing on the word Obama.
I do my best to avoid broadcasting my personal ignorance and prejudices on my mode of transport.
I voted 1. It’s just a flag. I can’t vote 0, though, because it IS stupid and mildly disrespectful, and I don’t like stupidity or disrespect.
Of course, it depends on the specific circumstance. Someone throwing an old flag in the garbage instead of burning it is a solid 0 for me; it’s not your grandparent, it’s a flag, it doesn’t need a cremation. But flying a shitty, busted up flag means that you are doing the precise opposite of what you meant to do when you put the flag up there in the first place. If the intent wasn’t to put the flag up as a sign of pride in your nation, then why did you fly the flag at all? And if that is your intent, why are you flying a shitty, busted-up flag?
Everybody else already said it. But there are basically two reasons to burn a flag: to destroy it, or to make a point. And when you burn a flag in public, it is for a public protest. As others have said, it’s because you think the flag means something or is supposed to mean something, and you are burning it for a reason. That does not bother me. It was the medium you chose for your message. Your message might offend me, but that’s neither here nor there.
Hanging it on your car until it’s in tatters shows you only have patriotism to be an obnoxious git and don’t really care.
So off-topic slightly, when I was a young kid, we were the only non-white people in our neighborhood. I remember my mom specifically went out and got a beautiful American flag to hang on our porch, an outdoor one, to make sure people knew where our loyalties lay. Sometimes there was doubt, I guess. Anyway once we did it, a few other people also hung flags…and some of them didn’t get outdoor flags, and they got torn up and abused.
I remember wondering even then that we had to hang a flag just to appear “american” but white people could get away with these abused, torn flags and no one ever doubted their loyalty.
Many years ago, my uncle (retired military) observed the North Las Vegas police department flying the flag after dark. He lowered the flag, properly folded it, and presented it to the desk Sargent. He mentioned to them that they couldn’t fly the flag after dark, unless it was lit.
This event happened a few more times, until the police arrested him for trespassing or something else, I don’t recall. Well, they put him in a cell and his wife had to bail him out.
When the newspapers ran the story, the police dropped the charges.
I am sure he was proud of the flag, but his philosophy was that if there is a rule, it needs to be obeyed. I was proud of my uncle. Not so much because of the flag incident, but because he challenged the cops (authorities).
0- I don’t care whatsoever.
Baffling, truly.
It’s just a thing. I find it very odd that some defend any wretched hateful speech, (think Westboro Baptist!), the get all bent over a flag not being taken down every night. I find this confusing.
My second point is why doesn’t the OP do something instead of just being miffed? The area must have a few veterans. Buy a flag, grab a ladder, turn up, with a couple of veterans, and a guy with a camera, and set about doing it yourself. It’s raising a flag after all, not liberating France. I’d say there is a good chance that the store manager/owner will turn up quite quickly, and voluntarily take over getting the job done directly. Thank you very much, smile for the photo. And done.
Doesn’t seem too hard. Or just get the veterans to go meet with the store owner maybe? I can think of several proactive things you could do, if it miffs.
wow… i knew this was a liberal board, but… wow.
a rag on a stick: really? :eek:
Really. Not sure that’s a “liberal” thing, though.
I’m sure plenty of conservatives also don’t get bent out of shape over a flag.
I’ve heard of a very different variety of disrespect–from a group least likely to show it.
Many Dopers know about the threads I have posted on concerning Jehovah’s witnesses. One Witness I knew years ago told about himself and some others who were planning a circuit assembly (one level up from a Kingdom Hall) that they were going to rent an American Legion Hall (!!) for.
When they met with the Post Commander and a few other Legionnaires at that hall, the Post Commander said, “I’m against this from the very start. I know that if you people have your meeting here you’re going to take that flag down.” (He pointed at a large American flag on the wall over the stage at one end of the hall.)
The circuit servant said, “Yes, we are going to take that flag down. And we’re going to put a new one up–with fifty stars on it. Your flag has only forty-eight. Two states have been admitted since that flag was made.”
The Post Commander wished he could hide in a hole, he was so embarrassed. :eek:
As a Legionnaire–and a veteran–he should have known better; and so should all of the others at that post.
I know! Nylon and polyester make terrible rags. Stupid stupid liberals.
Really. Grew up in the UK, don’t care about the Union Jack. Live in the US, don’t care about the Stars and Stripes. I respect the countries they represent, not brightly colored cloth.
There is some scuzzy looking person in Indiana dripping mustard on a flag T-shirt from a hot dog right now. Does that bother you?
Over the flag? Doesn’t register. It’s a piece of fabric, and even as a symbol, the US isn’t really living up to its (supposed) ideals these days. A protest burn is a better symbol of those ideals than the flag itself is.
What DOES make me :rolleyes: are the people who get all in a huff over burning a flag in protest, and all recreationally outraged about “disrespect” to the flag, but their own flags are: up in all weather, tattered to hell, in the dark with no spotlight on it, and never taken down or even burned when it becomes faded and shredded beyond all recognition. Or, for that matter, all the political party conventioneers showing up in flag shirts, skirts, accessories… But a protest is disrespectful to this country and the flag and our ideals!!!111one!!eleventy!!
If you’re gonna bitch about respect… flag code, anyone? And I wasn’t even ever a boy scout.
(To be clear, I don’t personally care about flag code much, either, but the hypocrisy rubs me the wrong way.)
The only thing I could really get from the responses so far are :
A) You all are lucky this isn’t 1950
B) Somehow burning a flag is showing respect, or exercising freedom of speech by ‘smart’ people who ‘obviously’ have a ‘message.’
Or the reality is they are just little di** wads who think they are cool and showing off.
It reminds of under appreciative Gorbasm know-it-all college kids who engage in riots and cover up their face to protect their identity.
Cowards.
I don’t sweat it though, because for every big mouth liberal who talks a talk, there’s some old sixty something military vet that will walk straight out over and knock your ass out.
Balance is key to life…
Can you retype that in English?
A) What happened in 1950?
B) I don’t know any military vets who would knock a liberal’s ass out because he “talks a talk.” Most that I’ve met respect the first amendment. (and some are even liberals…oh no)
Yep. Right there in the Bill of Rights, we have freedom of expression and association, and the right to redress the government over grievances. I don’t see how you can be any more respectful of those ideals than when actively engaging in them.
Your math is as loose as your grasp on history. In 1950 your imaginary 60 something year old vets were toddlers. Those 60-something vets likely fought against oppressive Communist entities and realize that freedom of speech and expression is a large part of what they fought for in the cold war and Vietnam.
I always listen to things like this and go…WTF? I am a woman and about 5’5" tall. I’m not strong, and I’m very liberal. I know of no 60 something vet that would come and “knock my ass out”. Most of the ones I know are gentlemen who would no sooner dream of doing such a thing than they would dream of running around with their peckers out. The ones that would are crazy and probably would knock anyone out.
I don’t consider myself a big mouth, but the very few times I have disagreed with those types of people they have all disagreed with me very gently and respectfully. Sometimes condescendingly, but never with violence.
Your Internet Tough Guy idea that vets always kick the ass of someone who disagrees with them differs from almost every vet I know.