It’s got me thinking. A lot. Thinking about a nation’s pattern and history of Inclusion and Exclusion. Thinking about who flies the biggest flags. About who has the most magnetic ribbons on the back of their car. Thinking about how one is judged more and more by the external trappings and symbols and less and less by internal feelings and actions alone.
What pains me so much about the idea of Red Shirt Fridays is not that people wish to do something to show support and pride. It is the belief that once this catches on, it will become perverted very quickly. Our country’s history shows that it is a short skip and a jump from national pride to near-fascist thinking. ( Senator McCarthy, your table is ready…) Before long the issue will not be who is wearing a red shirt on Red Shirt Friday, but who is not.
And what that “means” about them. About their patriotism, or should we say, about their Patriotism. About their love of country and freedom. About their lack of support of our troops serving worldwide. About how they fit into the community. Maybe…they don’t fit into the community as well as we thought they did because they aren’t wearing a red shirt on Red Shirt Friday. Maybe they don’t belong living with the rest of us (Us) because they don’t think the things we think and do the things we do.
It seems to me that this movement is distinctly UnAmerican in tone and concept.
Again, lest this immediately head to The Pit where I am pilloried for hating our men and women in uniform, let me repeat: I think the idea is a perfectly acceptable one and a lovely silent statement of support. Based on how Americans, and most modern societies think and operate, I suspect it will quickly be sullied and become something of a yardstick by which Just How American You Are is measured.
It is Friday morning. What are you wearing? Is this idea catching on at your place of business? In your home? In town? Are you doing this or not, and why?
Lastly, the irony and ignorance of history is certainly not lost on me. 50 years ago it was “Are you a Red Commie?” and now it is " Are you a Red Patriot?"
I’m wearing red, but it’s because NC State will play (and probably lose) tomorrow. Personally, I resent being told how to show my patriotism. So had I heard about this, I’d have probably worn my black shirt with the NC State logo.
I’m wearing a red shirt today because it was a black-pants day, and the only clean shirt I had to go with black pants was red. I look like Tiger Woods! (If he were a geeky white guy.)
I’ve never heard this before. I usually make my 7 am clothing choices pretty much randomly. I really hope I don’t have to start thinking about what political statement I’m making with my choice of fabrics.
Hmm, I’m wearing red today by chance, hadn’t heard of this. I don’t really get the premise though… in what alternate reality were people who support the troops “silent”?
Ha. We have red shirt Fridays quite often during football season because of the Chiefs. So that was the first thing I thought of when I read the title of this thread.
I always wondered what that meant, it never occured to me to read it backwards!
I don’t think the troops care if you wear a red shirt, a blue shirt, or no shirt at all. They aren’t dying because people aren’t wearing red shirts or putting magnetic ribbons on their cars, they’re dying because they got sent to a shooting gallery.
I haven’t heard of this, but I wouldn’t participate. I don’t support the troops, and I don’t look good in red. I don’t think anyone would care, though; I’ve never gotten any trouble for not standing for the anthem, for example.
I agree that this is odd. I think it’s an outcropping of the red state/blue state meme. I find the association objectionable because it furthers the absurd notion that “red staters” love the troops while “blue staters” long for their defeat. Why not wear an orange shirt for the troops? Orange is actually distinctive and uncommon enough as a shirt color to be noticable. The idea seems to be “I am a Republican who supports the troops”.
I support the troops completely and consider myself a patriot. This would make me intentionally never wear a red shirt on a Friday again. Tasteless, pointless, and unnecessarily divisive. No thank you.
A great many people? Really? I’d be amazed, things like that never seem to fly here in NYC. I think time and effort would be better spent encouraging people to support our troops in other ways, such as voting.
I hate it. I’m a veteran, and the wife and daughter of veterans. My son is active duty right now. I do support the troops and I am almost sloppily patriotic.
But I hate this kind of stupid, useless glurge. If you want to support the troops, support them. If you want to support the country, then support it. Participate in the process – educate yourself, be sure to vote, volunteer for an organization that does some actual good.
But don’t just put on a stupid shirt (or sign an internet petition, or whatever) and think that makes you superior.
I received this email a couple of years back, speaking about Canadian troops. So perhaps it really is unAmerican.
I personally would not do this. I am the child of a military father and step-father, and was engaged to marry a military member. I have great respect for and do support our troops. I just don’t think this is the way to go about showing that support.
Count me in the don’t like, would not participate column.
I see little harm in wearing local team colors–whether that team is NFL or college or some other pro sport, but do not usually participate in such activities.
But I don’t like people using patriotism as a weapon and I don’t like political activism in the workplace. Especially where it’s mild activism, unrelated to the details of the workplace.
Never heard of it. I don’t own any red. Neither does my husband. I haven’t noticed any seas of people wearing red lately.
I can see the concern about this idea, but I also think that the vast majority of people are going to go “meh” and not bother. A magnetic sticker for the car is a lot easier.
stupid
It’s a meaningless gesture to demonstrate a totally nebulous and undefinable cause. What does “support the troops” even mean? Is supporting the troops synonymous with support for the war? Or is it just stating my support for the idea of a standing American Army. Does it, by extension, demonstrate support for the entire military-industrial complex? In WWII people rationed cheese and went on aluminum drives to support the troops. What effort or sacrifice does putting on a red shirt take?
It’s not about supporting the troops, it’s about political tagging and smug superiority. The unnecessary and irrelevant religious language is proof that this movement (if it really exsists) is not sincere about finding any solidarity with other Americans but only seeks to identify dissenters.
What does “support the troops” even mean in this context? Way too often, it’s just code for “Support Bush.” The injection of religiosity into the mailer only reinforces that. I’ll just go ahead and assume that everybody supports the troops unless I have reason to believe otherwise. I have no desire to participate in this kind of jock check.
I am wearing a Yankee shirt today for casual Friday. I never heard of this movement and I won’t be buying a red shirt for this nonsense.
Oh, I guess I should mention I am a Vet. You want to support troops, look into a program that sends Christmas letters or something. Somebody organized that back in 1987 and it was appreciated by many of us.
A few years back, **Robin ** organized an SDMB book sending while **Airman Doors ** was deployed. Look for something like that, not an empty and foolish gesture.
