DescentBB

This is about foreigners, not how to define the government of the United States.

Then why don't you stay on topic? People being picky about Republic/Democracy details is silly ... which is why I butted in to remind everyone.

You want to talk about foreigners, get on with it.

null0010 wrote:This is about foreigners, not how to define the government of the United States.

This is about foreigners wanting to redefine the United States to suit their needs.

This is about foreigners who left their drug lord controlled, economically destitute country who snuck illegally into our country and now want America to turn into the same thing they left.

Back to the original topic:

vision wrote:One of my pet peeves is people flying their nation's flag too proudly in the USA. I'm not even a patriot; I just think it's disrespectful.

What do you mean by "too proudly"?

My downstairs neighbor is proud of both his nation and his heritage; he flies both the U.S. flag and the Puerto Rican flag equally. Yet his family has been harassed for celebrating Puerto Rican holidays.

Conversely, do you think it's disrespectful for a U.S. Citizen living overseas to proudly fly the U.S. flag?

re: flags

I don't think it's \"disrespectful\" to fly a flag, but I do think it's tacky. It's like whoever's flying the American flag in this country has forgotten where they live, so they had to string up Old Glory to remind them where their land is. I've never really understood the concept of national pride, since people can't choose to be born in the USA. The only people who I've ever thought could fly the flag without being silly/tacky are veterans.

I fly my flag everyday and so do some of my neighbors. I'm a vet they are not. I don't think it's tacky in one least bit. I do think they need to fly them in the right manner ie if you fly it at night put a light on it. I put this out to them and they have since put lights shining on them.

null0010 wrote:..I've never really understood the concept of national pride,...

It's a double edged sword, without it we're screwed. Too much of it and everyone else is screwed.
We could make good use of a little more right now.

null0010 wrote:...I do think it's tacky.
...I've never really understood the concept of national pride, since people can't choose to be born in the USA...

You misunderstand the motivation here, I think.

It's not that folks are "proud of where they were born" (you're right, that would be unbelievably tacky). Rather, the motive is to display what one has chosen to support.

It's analogous to the reason I choose to wear my favorite team's jersey on game days. I'm not wearing it to say I'm somehow a member of the team; I'm simply indicating the team/player I'm supporting/cheering.

Foil wrote: It's not that folks are "proud of where they were born" (you're right, that would be unbelievably tacky). Rather, the motive is to display what one has chosen to support.

So I'm really tacky when I say The United States is the best country and Texas is the best state? Darn, I'm tacky for life, I guess.

almost forgot:

Foil wrote:You misunderstand the motivation here, I think....

It's analogous to the reason I choose to wear my favorite team's jersey on game days. I'm not wearing it to say I'm somehow a member of the team; I'm simply indicating the team/player I'm supporting/cheering.

Yeah, I don't get that either.

Isaac wrote:

Foil wrote: It's not that folks are "proud of where they were born" (you're right, that would be unbelievably tacky). Rather, the motive is to display what one has chosen to support.

So I'm really tacky when I say The United States is the best country and Texas is the best state? Darn, I'm tacky for life, I guess.

No. That's not what I said.

You're saying, "I've chosen to support the U.S. and Texas, because I think they are the best."

IMO, that's quite different from, "I'm proud because I was born here", which is tacky simply because people don't control or earn their birthplace.

null0010 wrote:

Foil wrote:...I choose to wear my favorite team's jersey on game days. I'm not wearing it to say I'm somehow a member of the team; I'm simply indicating the team/player I'm supporting/cheering.

Yeah, I don't get that either.

No problem, you don't have to understand it. Sports fandom certainly can seem odd.

I like the United States and all, but I don't feel the need to fly a flag to let all my neighbors know how patriotic I am.

Null, we respect your right to not fly a flag and you will notice we do not call it \"tacky\" for you not doing so.

We fly a flag off our front porch, and so do a couple other houses in the neighborhood.

woodchip wrote:Null, we respect your right to not fly a flag and you will notice we do not call it "tacky" for you not doing so.

I respect your right to fly a flag as well and I'm sure as heck not going to stop you or even try to stop you from doing so. I'm just saying I think it's silly.

And you are silly for saying it is silly

null0010 wrote:

woodchip wrote:Null, we respect your right to not fly a flag and you will notice we do not call it "tacky" for you not doing so.

I respect your right to fly a flag as well and I'm sure as heck not going to stop you or even try to stop you from doing so. I'm just saying I think it's silly.

I think, since you say you don't get it, that you shouldn't refer to it as silly. You are mocking what you don't understand and that isn't a smart place to be. Just because you don't have a reason to do something doesn't mean there is no good reason for it to be done. It comes off as arrogant if you don't have a reason other than you don't do it.

Honestly I'd want to fly the flag myself if our government didnt totally suck.

I listened to the school official last night and you're all missing the point of 'why' he banned the flag on this kid's bike. It was a safety issue. Did any of you take a look at how the kid was displaying the flag? He had a little flag pole with it's little flag strapped onto the back of his bicycle.

Well, about the time this kid wiped out on his bike, jammed the stick into his eye and pithed his little brain on his little toy flag pole while riding on school property, you'd see no end of lawsuits and parents yelling and screaming why this kid was allowed to ride his bike with a hazardous stick pointing off of it.

Remember the stick shift on the old Stingray bike? That was banned for that very reason, impaling hazard.

http://bicycleapparel.com/Stingray.html

Those socialist fools! If little Jimmy wants to get impaled by a flagpole on his bike that's his own business. He'll just have to pull himself up by his bootstraps and trade a few chickens for his healthcare like nature intended.

Instead of banning the flag, wouldn't it of been more educational to show the kid a safe way to fly the flag?

You make it sound like most public school faculty are actually allowed to and capable of thinking...

tunnelcat wrote:I listened to the school official last night and you're all missing the point of 'why' he banned the flag on this kid's bike. It was a safety issue. Did any of you take a look at how the kid was displaying the flag? He had a little flag pole with it's little flag strapped onto the back of his bicycle.

Well, about the time this kid wiped out on his bike, jammed the stick into his eye and pithed his little brain on his little toy flag pole while riding on school property, you'd see no end of lawsuits and parents yelling and screaming why this kid was allowed to ride his bike with a hazardous stick pointing off of it.

Remember the stick shift on the old Stingray bike? That was banned for that very reason, impaling hazard.

http://bicycleapparel.com/Stingray.html

Guess you didn't read the article first posted did you.

Denair United School District Superintendent, Edward Parraz, says that the reason Cody Alecia was told to remove the flag is because flying the American flag might cause “racial tensions“.

I guess the safety issue was racially motivated. Seeing how the boy was being threaten with violence.

The superintendent plans to now focus on those who are making the threats and not the flag.

Cody Alicea says that he does this to be patriotic and to honor veterans, like his own grandfather, Robert. He has had the flag on his bike for two months but on Monday he was asked told to take it down. Superintendent Edward Parraz said that by asking Cody Alicea to hide the U.S. flag he was trying his best to dismiss the racial tensions that Cody Alicia’s act was evoking in the school campus.Edward Parraz further added that of late students have been coming to him reporting of this incident of the flag and that the flag was no longer allowed on the school property. It is pretty evident that Cody Alicea’s simple act of showing his respect towards the veterans in his family has not been quite simply.

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/wor ... 59308.html

Well, they claimed later on that it was a \"safety issue only\". Someone is butt covering then.

I hate C.Y.A. maneuvers. Friggin cowardly. Man up and take responsibility.