# Teenagers wearing MAGA hats in the airport **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 2, 2019, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929 "2019-06-02T23:07:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/41 "2019-06-03T13:13:46Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Hitler youth famously wore Kaiser Wilhelm II wife-beaters. Rebels! Also for some reason, I keep reading that as “fabulously” which makes it even more funny. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/42 "2019-06-03T13:18:15Z")
They are probably wearing them to get noticed. Perhaps it will work? ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/43 "2019-06-03T13:20:24Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > Feels like it is, but I can’t put my finger on why. Convince me I’m wrong. You’re just on the other side of that particular imagery, that’s all. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/44 "2019-06-03T13:21:48Z")
I have an airport on my lawn so I’d be doubly sensitive to this sort of display. ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/45 "2019-06-03T13:34:00Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > When I was growing up in Dixie, young conservatives wore tee shirts and hats with confederate flags. I guess MAGA might actually be…progress?😕 At least this time, white supremecists found a symbol for something that actually won something! That is better then they usually do. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/46 "2019-06-03T13:35:38Z")
It’s no different than kids getting stupid, offensive tattoos… except hats are easier to remove. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/47 "2019-06-03T13:46:43Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > I’m pretty sure that Che help establish a communist government that killed dissenters. Not sure how you can get any more corrupt than that. This is off-topic, but let’s not let ignorance go unfought. Che’s conscience and revolutionary nature were stoked by the brutal attacks against the Guatemalan people by the U.S.A. at the behest of the United Fruit Company. > [@Wikipedia](#): > > Juan José Arévalo was elected president in Guatemala’s first democratic election. He introduced a minimum wage and near-universal suffrage, and turned Guatemala into a democracy. Arévalo was succeeded by Árbenz in 1951, who instituted land reforms which granted property to landless peasants. The Guatemalan Revolution was disliked by the United Fruit Company (UFC), whose highly profitable business had been affected by the end to exploitative labor practices in Guatemala … > > … The CIA armed, funded, and trained a force … led by Carlos Castillo Armas. The coup was preceded by U.S. efforts to criticize and isolate Guatemala internationally. Castillo Armas’ force invaded Guatemala on 18 June 1954, backed by a heavy campaign of psychological warfare. This included a radio station which broadcast anti-government propaganda and a version of military events favorable to the rebellion, claiming to be genuine news, as well as air bombings of Guatemala City and a naval blockade. The invasion force fared poorly militarily, and most of its offensives were defeated. However, psychological warfare and the fear of a U.S. invasion intimidated the Guatemalan army, which eventually refused to fight. Árbenz briefly and unsuccessfully attempted to arm civilians to resist the invasion, before resigning on 27 June. Castillo Armas became president ten days later, following negotiations in San Salvador. > > Described as the definitive deathblow to democracy in Guatemala, the coup was widely criticized internationally, and strengthened the long-lasting anti-U.S. sentiment in Latin America. [U.S. efforts to justify their attacks by linking Árbenz to communism failed.] Castillo Armas quickly assumed dictatorial powers, banning opposition parties, imprisoning and torturing political opponents, and reversing the social reforms of the revolution. Nearly four decades of civil war followed, as leftist guerrillas fought the series of U.S.-backed authoritarian regimes whose brutalities include a genocide of the Maya peoples. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/48 "2019-06-03T13:57:00Z")
Oh, come on. Most kids wore Che shirts because he wrote a fun book about road trips. Not all, but most. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/49 "2019-06-03T14:06:23Z")
For some reason people often approach me at airports with questions. I usually go out of my way to help. I’d love to be approached by a MAGA hat wearing person, so that I could smile and say, “fuck off” with impunity. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/50 "2019-06-03T14:24:54Z")
Making Airport Grouches Abusive ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/51 "2019-06-03T14:44:51Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > Oh, come on. Most kids wore Che shirts because he wrote a fun book about road trips. Not all, but most. I’m guessing that most kids wear or wore Che shirts because it was a cool image and made them feel all rebellious, despite their knowledge of Che being limited to “he’s got his head on a t-shirt and something about Cuba”. Whereas I’m also guessing that kids wear MAGA hats because “it winds up liberal snowflakes”. I suspect only a minority of either had or have given a great deal of thought to any deeper sociopolitical ramifications of their chosen symbols. To the OP: if your gripe is just the hats, and the wearers are not otherwise being obnoxious (or no more obnoxious than other airport denizens), I’d suggest ignoring them. If they’re trying to wind you up and you let them, they’ve won, and if they’re not, it’s still not worth getting wound up about. And if they are being obnoxious, gripe about that and not the hats. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/52 "2019-06-03T14:48:41Z")
I am sure they all have cell phones ready and charged. Can either go viral with getting accosted for wearing a red hat or shooting up a school. Considering the options I think their rout is more productive. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/53 "2019-06-03T15:22:09Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > Considering the options I think their rout is more productive. We can only hope that they will be routed, hopefully in 2020. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/54 "2019-06-03T15:22:43Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > #1 son Do you actually call him that? > [@](#): > > and girlfriend just got back from a vacation in Alabama. Apparently, couples wearing matching rebel flag bathing suits/bikinis is a thing down there. Hmm, I am of mixed minds on this. It is against the Flag Code (non-enforceable, but still a good guide for respect) to wear the flag as clothing. So, in a way, they are disrespecting the rebel flag by doing so, but they are probably ignorant enough to think that they are promoting it. Wonder how they would feel if you pointed it out? > [@Slash1972](#): > > With this logic, wearing a Hitler T-shirt is better than a MAGA hat. Most people don’t know who Che is. He is, if talked about at all in High School level history, a paragraph. When people first think of Che, they think of “Revolution!”, and who doesn’t like to be the rebel? With revolution, of course, inevitably comes violence, and people should be mindful of that. A touch of ignorance with some rebellious tendencies makes the image of Che attractive to impressionable youth. There is not the same case for Hitler. There is little ignorance as to what he has done and is best known for. Che fails by a few orders of magnitude the damage that Hitler did. Do you feel that these teens are wearing MAGA hats out of a misguided ideology? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/55 "2019-06-03T15:29:55Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > To the OP: if your gripe is just the hats, and the wearers are not otherwise being obnoxious (or no more obnoxious than other airport denizens), I’d suggest ignoring them. If they’re trying to wind you up and you let them, they’ve won, and if they’re not, it’s still not worth getting wound up about. And if they are being obnoxious, gripe about that and not the hats. I don’t think that I would, but I’d be tempted to out troll them. “Yeah! MAGA! Let’s build that wall and keep those [depending on how committed you are, insert ethnic slur here]'s out. Shoot them in the head if they try to get in!” I could go on, but channeling MAGAts hurts my brain. Just go to any Fox News story and write down some of the comments on an index card for reference if you ever need it. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/56 "2019-06-03T15:30:47Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > > [@Folacin](#): > > > > #1 son > > Do you actually call him that? Only on message boards, to differentiate him from #2 and #3 son. Or if I’m channeling Charlie Chan. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/57 "2019-06-03T16:01:10Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > It is against the Flag Code (non-enforceable, but still a good guide for respect) to wear the flag as clothing It’s against the Flag Code to wear a rebel flag as a bathing suit? > [@](#): > > Do you feel that these teens are wearing MAGA hats out of a misguided ideology? I feel that these teens are wearing it because they are stupid and hope people get mad and bitch about them, maybe on a message board. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/58 "2019-06-03T16:06:34Z")
I must admit my ignorance. When I was in college in those dark times before the internet, I didn’t know any details about Che. Not even that Che wasn’t his real name. So when my fellow liberal collegians had Che posters on their wall, or wore CCCP T shirts unironically, I didn’t really understand the deeper implications. All I know is Che looked cool in his jaunty beret and Jesus beard. (I did like the parody poster I saw once where he didn’t have his famous hat and he was totally MPB underneath.) If I knew then what I know now, I’d have put up [this poster](https://www.imaging-resource.com/ee_uploads/news/1942/che-guevara-mad__largest-no-more-than-580x630.jpg), had it existed. Maybe these kids aren’t any smarter than I was at their age. Who can say? ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/59 "2019-06-03T16:10:09Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > I feel that these teens are wearing it because they are stupid and hope people get mad and bitch about them, maybe on a message board. Ooh, that’s so META! And edgy! Wow, I have to go rethink my whole world view now. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929/60 "2019-06-03T16:12:36Z")
The Onion used to sell a t-shirt featuring that iconic Che image. It was Che wearing a Che t-shirt. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teenagers-wearing-maga-hats-in-the-airport/834929.md?page=4)