Random Thoughts — Page 366

You can buy a nazi flag on Amazon, but not a confederate flag...

Let that sink in.

TV's Frink said:

Post Praetorian said:

I too do not mind the Confederate flag...but that is mostly because it has zero negative connotation for me...being instead reminiscent of the Good Old Boys...

 But it has a severe negative connotation to a very large segment of this country's population.

It is a symbol of hatred and racism and it should be retired everywhere possible.

...and if some fundamentalist individuals might take similar umbrage with the rainbow flag...?

Tell me this also, my good Frink, considering the barbaric consequences awaiting any unfortunate enough to view the Jolly Roger* close at hand in a past era, why is no one outlawing that violent and fearful symbol...? 

*Yet I would be in agreement with you that flying such a flag upon a government building would be in poor taste regardless of its alleged historical function...

TV's Frink said:

Post Praetorian said:

TV's Frink said:

Post Praetorian said:

I too do not mind the Confederate flag...but that is mostly because it has zero negative connotation for me...being instead reminiscent of the Good Old Boys...

 But it has a severe negative connotation to a very large segment of this country's population.

It is a symbol of hatred and racism and it should be retired everywhere possible.

...and if some fundamentalist individuals might take similar umbrage with the rainbow flag...?

 I'd like to hear how it could be argued that a rainbow flag could be considered a symbol of hate.

On one hand, you have a system that literally enslaved an entire race of people.  On the other hand, you have people in love who can now marry legally.

I don't see the comparison.

 This, naturally is based upon the assumption that a certain god might yet be considered to hate homosexuality...if so, then is not the Rainbow Flag potentially a hated symbol from a certain point of view--indeed, a symbol that may cause hate? If so who might wish a large, clear, being filling itself entirely with anger? Have we learned nothing from the Hindenburg...? 

...and now, kindly, a comment on my issue with the Jolly Roger...?

We are pretending that a part of our history never existed. Yeah, I understand the stigma attached to the flag, and feel that for all intents and purposes, it shouldn't be flown high in certain places. But if it is up in a strictly historical sense, I can't agree with the total eradication of the flag in question.

This country was built with blood. I grew up with a false sense of our nation's history. I was told the bullshit story that we came to this land and ate turkey with the Indians, and it was all happy. When I grew an interest to dig deeper and found out how our history with the native people actually went down, I was shocked and appalled.

The issue with slavery was mostly glossed over as well. I was taught about Civil Rights, but I didn't get any of the key details. I learned more about Civil Rights and slavery through my own will to learn outside of school.

Look, every religious or political symbol can be considered hateful or offensive depending on whose point of view you take. All we hear about the Civil War is the glossed over red and blue of it. We don't hear about the sheer brutality and the stand points of both sides. It wasn't 100% about slavery. I had family that fought on both sides, and it was one of the most brutal wars we've ever been apart of. People think Isis and Al Qaeda are something to fear, but nobody kills Americans better than Americans.

We need to stop making revisions to history to make ourselves look better. Our flaws should be permanent scars to be a stark reminder of who we have been and could be again at any point. It wouldn't take much for this country to fight at that level again.

If you believe in freedom, you can't tell a person they can't fly a flag, because you don't like it. It's an American right to hate within the law. There is a whole lot out there that offends me, but I won't do anything about it, as long as it isn't physically hurting me.

I have said it more than a hundred times. Tolerance is a double-edged sword, and you can't cherry pick things you can tolerate. I don't care if it is a stark reminder of something painful to you. If we eradicated everything that offended somebody, we'd have to blow the planet up.

TV's Frink said:

You want the flag to represent history, put it in a museum.  Don't fly it from your Capitol or wear it on a fucking t-shirt.

 So nobody can wear a cross on their neck, a kippah on their head, or wear a shirt expressing pride in being gay, as it might offend somebody? I agree that it shouldn't be at a place that represents everybody such as a capitol, but again you can't cherry pick tolerance.

I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying that people should have the right to support whatever they want. If somebody puts on a shirt that says "Fuck the world" It is their right. And I have seen people wear that shirt. If Jim Bob who is flying a rebel flag starts enslaving people, then by all means punish him.

I don't fly a confederate flag, in any part of my decor and attire. Don't take me as a racist that is grasping at straws. I don't support a lot of things, but I support freedom, and especially freedom of speech.

If flying the flag from one's home might denote a certain solidarity with an outside position, is it not perhaps an improved situation to know such a stance from the street rather than to discover it upon attaining the porch? To clarify, is it not better to be forewarned from a distance that a given neighbor is a confederate supporter rather than perhaps discovering it over tea in the parlor at which point the door may no longer be in easy access?

For this reason it seems sensible to allow the flag to be sold, but simply not to fly it from a government building. In this sense I agree with both EyeShotFirst and Handman...let the rights of individuals to make unfortunate allegiances prevail...after all, was not one such unfortunate allegiance of yesteryear the LBGT movement?

TV's Frink said:

Nah.

 ...but I wrote all of those fine words...! Laziness, dear Frink...it will add to your waistline...!

TV's Frink said:

EyeShotFirst said:

You can buy a nazi flag on Amazon, but not a confederate flag...

Let that sink in.

 One wrong and one right does not make it right or wrong...it just makes it halfway to right.

Let that sink in.

 Ugh. What does he want now?

Well racism and racial segregation was openly practised under your current flag as well.

And if I sum up all the bad* US foreign policies in the last 100 years under your current flag, I would say Confederate flag represents the lesser evil of the two.

*I used a mild term

DrCrowTStarwars said:

If you are in the Delaware area this is happening.  Personally I can't wait.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dover-Comic-Con-2015/328123484028793

 But, when you have absolutely no way to get to town to find friends or look for work, much less hold a job (or any of the other things you always complain about), how will you get there? And how will you pay to get in?