Thursday, May 28, 2009
The American Flag In Texas
I was feeling proud of myself this past weekend. I was up early and attended a couple of Memorial Day ceremonies at a World War II and Korean War memorial and then went to the parade in Weymouth. I even stayed for the ceremony afterwards at the Ralph Talbot Amphitheater adjacent to the Weymouth Town Hall. The weather was perfect and although I thought the turnout was weak for such a beautiful day there were plenty of people in attendence. Afterwards, I visited my grandparents graves and noticed quite a few other people attending to grave sites and some just sitting and remembering. It felt good to see that so many Americans realize the importance of Memorial Day.
Today unfortunately, is a new day and as I scanned through my usual news sites I came across the story of a woman down in Texas that had put up the U. S. Flag, presumably on the wall in her office cubicle. I'll let you read the story, but she was asked to remove the flag. Now, unlike some of my Wahey friends, I actually believe there is a place for using our country's flag as a form of protest. U. S. Representative Jo An Emerson (a Republican of course) from Missouri is presently proposing a constitutional amendment to prevent desecration of the American flag. I know what you’re thinking; haven’t we been down this road before? Yes, we have many times and if you’re feeling a tinge of American pride, you better watch what you wish for. You see that’s the First Amendment Ms. Emerson is toying with and last time I checked, that was about free speech, and free speech is why I get to write this blog, and some get to put those stupid Confederate flags in their rear windows, and others get to burn the flag. Ms. Emerson's latest attempt at circumventing what America stands for is nothing new and the sell-point is always the same, appealing to American symbolism by USING those that fought for this country.
Getting back to the woman in Texas though, is a much different situation. In this case, someone I'm assuming was not a citizen, or at least not a citizen for very long, complained about the flag being displayed and the company removed it. Putting aside our indignation for a moment (no wonder they still have the death penalty down there), one has to ask what kind of people are in charge. Doesn't anyone have any balls anymore. Are we so afraid of losing our job or upsetting the apple cart that we can't stand up for what's right. I would think it worthwhile to actually lose the job because I questioned the foreigner's right to remove the flag. It shouldn't have taken even 5 minutes for someone with authority to say, "the flag stays".
POSTED BY STAN at May 28, 2009
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