# Neighbor takes down Trump flag. Implications? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [June 8, 2020, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257 "2020-06-08T17:26:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/41 "2020-06-09T05:49:10Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > It is, however, normal in many places to have a preexisting relationship (usually acquaintance level) with your neighbors. OP specifically says, “I don’t know the residents, although from the cars in the driveway it’s clear at least one of them is a cop.” From this I take it that they have never interacted at all. If they did have a pre-existing relationship, it would be different. Heck, even standing in line at the grocery story it would be normal to exchange pleasantries with the people around you, at least here. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/42 "2020-06-09T06:31:03Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > I know a house that is for sale and the guy next door has 2 big Trump signs up on a fence. Before that he had signs bashing Obama. One said “Obama wants us in chains” I guess the guying selling will have to find a MAGA buyer. Well, there goes the neighborhood. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/43 "2020-06-09T09:55:41Z")
It could be a Trump hater that stole the flag as a “fuck you” to the owner. Or maybe a neighbor stole the flag because he is trying to sell his house and doesn’t want potential buyers to see it. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/44 "2020-06-09T10:21:44Z")
A bird cr-pped on it, & it is in the wash. Be back by next washday. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/45 "2020-06-09T12:08:56Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Well, there goes the neighborhood. Remember when having a black family move in to a middle class white neighborhood caused consternation? Now it’s MAGA neighbors that bring down the values. What next? [A ban on confederate flags at NASCAR?](https://sports.yahoo.com/bubba-wallace-wants-confederate-flags-banned-nascar-races-042025323.html)_…for the times they are a-changing._ ---
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/46 "2020-06-09T13:04:13Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > It is easy to fill in your own reasons for what the neighbor did as long as you don’t bother asking him, isn’t it? > [@CairoCarol](#): > > Is it normal where you live to knock on the doors of complete strangers and ask them why they’ve taken a particular action? Because that would be considered pretty odd here, even though people are usually pretty friendly. > [@BigT](#): > > It is, however, normal in many places to have a preexisting relationship (usually acquaintance level) with your neighbors, and thus be able to bring it up in your usual idle chit-chat. > > Granted, since this one has political implications, it might be a bit harder to pull off. I might have been able to do ask why they dropped a Bush/Cheney sign, but it’s much harder with a Trump sign. > [@CairoCarol](#): > > OP specifically says, “I don’t know the residents, although from the cars in the driveway it’s clear at least one of them is a cop.” From this I take it that they have never interacted at all. > > If they did have a pre-existing relationship, it would be different. Heck, even standing in line at the grocery story it would be normal to exchange pleasantries with the people around you, at least here. The only interaction I’ve had with them was to wave and say hello if they happened to be outside when I was walking past. I’ll admit the Trump flag deterred me from wanting to start a conversation before\*, and now of course it would be seriously awkward to come right out and ask, _Yo, where’d the flag go?_ \*Yes, I’m aware this kinda makes me a chickenshit, too. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/47 "2020-06-09T13:24:16Z")
Why would he be afraid of getting his tires slashed? Surely, the tire-slashers would leave their fellow cops alone, wouldn’t they? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/48 "2020-06-09T14:11:57Z")
> [@Akaj](#): > > The only interaction I’ve had with them was to wave and say hello if they happened to be outside when I was walking past. I’ll admit the Trump flag deterred me from wanting to start a conversation before\*, and now of course it would be seriously awkward to come right out and ask, _Yo, where’d the flag go?_ > > \*Yes, I’m aware this kinda makes me a chickenshit, too. Not really. Perhaps there was a time when neighbors would get together for street party cookouts and get to know each other, in some idyllic version of America of the past. In this reality, they likely don’t want to talk to you any more than you want to talk to them. In fact, they took some pains to let all their neighbors know what their values are and thus limit or invite interaction based on those values. I suspect that if you were to approach them about it, the response would likely be defensive. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/49 "2020-06-09T14:21:36Z")
> [@](#): > > Neighbor takes down Trump flag. Implications? House values in the neighborhood increased. The least likely explanation is that they changed their opinions. People in the Donald Cult do not change their minds. Most likely explanation is someone stole their flag. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/50 "2020-06-09T14:23:24Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > Maybe he just thinks he’ll be targeted by all the looters? Leave me alone! How many TVs do you think I have? ---
**Author:** ![eenerms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cdc98d/32.png) [@eenerms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eenerms)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/51 "2020-06-09T14:29:41Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Colin Powell, just yesterday, announced that he would be voting for Biden and not Trump. This is a so what? He can vote for anyone he wants. ---
**Author:** ![Translucent\_Daydream](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/translucent_daydream/32/16170_2.png) [@Translucent\_Daydream](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Translucent_Daydream)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/52 "2020-06-09T15:05:32Z")
I have a neighbor I don’t know that has proudly displayed “TRUMP 2020 NO MORE BULLSHIT” flag on the fence where everyone driving on the road to a national monument can see it. The corona/oil recession hit, now his house looks abandoned and for sale. The flag is gone. I’m sorry for his family it looks like they lost everything. We like the signs, so we know where to look when gunshots happen. The trumpy banner folks around here are often involved in stupid domestic shit, or have a house full of dead cars and engine blocks on dirt with grass growing through the cylinders. I am not saying they are the source of crime around here, but if I cop is rolling through the neighborhood that doesn’t live here, it’s usually at one of these houses. I suspect there are a lot of Trump voters here, but the “trump sign” Trump voters are the ones that have messed up environmental disaster yards and beer cans and stuff piled everywhere. I think the Trump Bullshit flags are the new bars and stars. ---
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/53 "2020-06-09T15:24:39Z")
Well, there’s a farmhouse in my blue state with a very large trump sign on the roof you can literally see a mile away, so I guess my anecdote cancels out yours. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/54 "2020-06-09T15:32:19Z")
> [@Ashtura](#): > > Well, there’s a farmhouse in my blue state with a very large trump sign on the roof you can literally see a mile away, so I guess my anecdote cancels out yours. Probably covering up roof leaks. ---
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/55 "2020-06-09T16:38:31Z")
> [@Translucent\_Daydream](#): > > I have a neighbor I don’t know that has proudly displayed “TRUMP 2020 NO MORE BULLSHIT” flag on the fence where everyone driving on the road to a national monument can see it. The corona/oil recession hit, now his house looks abandoned and for sale. The flag is gone. I’m sorry for his family it looks like they lost everything. > > We like the signs, so we know where to look when gunshots happen. The trumpy banner folks around here are often involved in stupid domestic shit, or have a house full of dead cars and engine blocks on dirt with grass growing through the cylinders. > > I am not saying they are the source of crime around here, but if I cop is rolling through the neighborhood that doesn’t live here, it’s usually at one of these houses. > > I suspect there are a lot of Trump voters here, but the “trump sign” Trump voters are the ones that have messed up environmental disaster yards and beer cans and stuff piled everywhere. I think the Trump Bullshit flags are the new bars and stars. There’s an unincorporated area near our neighborhood where really nice homes stand on multiple-acre lots. Several of those houses sport Trump flags. These aren’t ignorant, America Fuck Yeah rednecks – they’re well-off exurbanites. They may be Republicans for any of the usual reasons, but I cringe when I imagine the pathologies that make them not just conservative or Republican but literal, flag-waving Trump supporters. It’s like they’re saying _I’ve got mine, the rest of you can fuck off and die._ ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/56 "2020-06-09T17:08:57Z")
> [@Akaj](#): > > It’s like they’re saying _I’ve got mine, the rest of you can fuck off and die._ so you _have_ read the official Republican Party Platform ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/57 "2020-06-09T17:52:06Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > When the police car is there I would assume the officer is there. When it’s not the armed officer isn’t but the family probably still is. > > And I know it’s ridiculous to think anyone would be targeting cops. Ffs is right. Just ridiculous. > > [Deputy killed in California ambush by Air Force sergeant](https://www.google.com/amp/s/fox6now.com/2020/06/07/deputy-killed-in-california-ambush-by-air-force-sergeant/amp/) > > That article doesn’t mention it but the person they arrested is also suspected in killing the Federal Protective Services Officer in Oakland. WTF does this have to do with anything? FFS was in regards to “antifa” targeting cops. Do you have any evidence that this was politically motivated? The article doesn’t mention it. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/58 "2020-06-09T20:57:27Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > When the police car is there I would assume the officer is there. When it’s not the armed officer isn’t but the family probably still is. > > And I know it’s ridiculous to think anyone would be targeting cops. Ffs is right. Just ridiculous. > > [Deputy killed in California ambush by Air Force sergeant](https://www.google.com/amp/s/fox6now.com/2020/06/07/deputy-killed-in-california-ambush-by-air-force-sergeant/amp/) > > That article doesn’t mention it but the person they arrested is also suspected in killing the Federal Protective Services Officer in Oakland. I lived in Boulder Creek/Ben Lomond area for years. I find it very upsetting. I need to check the Dept website to see if I can find out more about his funeral and if there is a fund for his family. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/59 "2020-06-10T01:20:44Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > WTF does this have to do with anything? FFS was in regards to “antifa” targeting cops. Do you have any evidence that this was politically motivated? The article doesn’t mention it. Loach’s article didn’t mention it but apparently according to other articles his now removed Facebook page showed that he had become more and more upset with police brutality so this was potentially politically motivated. Haven’t seen anything at all related to Antifa though so FFS still seems appropriate. This guy was a deadly nut and this was tragic – the victims and families have my sympathy. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257/60 "2020-06-10T13:32:17Z")
FWIW, these 2016 Trump voters in Florida still support him: [A world away from Washington, loyal supporters stand by the President in Trump country | CNN Politics](https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/09/politics/trump-supporters-florida/index.html) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neighbor-takes-down-trump-flag-implications/855257.md?page=4)