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the G-man said:
I think I've mentioned it before, but here is my take on the confederate flag:

At some point, whether you want it to or not, certain symbols, words or actions take on a meaning of their own.

For example, prior to 1930s Germany, the Roman salute was just that, a military salute. We even used to use it here in the US when we said the pledge.

However, at some point, Hitler co-opted it into the Heil Hitler salute and we realized it now meant something different. No one tries to salute the flag like that anymore.

The confederate flag is the same thing. At one point, to a lot of people, it meant simply being "a rebel" or "southern heritage." And maybe it could still be.

However, watch the KKK or some other white supremicist group march or appear on TV and they have that flag. They have co-opted it to their own racist message. And its too hard to separate that.

So, even though there are a lot of people out there who honestly believe it means one-innoculous-thing, I think we need to realize that it now means another.



The German people themselves rejected those symbols (the swastika being speffically brought in by Hilter to represent his Third Riech). They did it to seperate themselves from a genocidal nutbag.

People in the South who still fly the Stars and Bars mostly come from a line of people who never accepted the idea that it was associated with slavery or racism (which it wasn't until the KKK began flying it in the 30's). They instead have the view of it that their parents and grandparents did: That it represented people who stood up for themselves. Just as anyone who may look at the Stars and Stripes or any Revolutionary War memorial might think about those. Is it better for them to just give up and let the pressure of an ignorant or stubborn sect of society tell them how to think? Or should they have the right to express their beliefs and educate people one their view of the flag? Since I have to leave for an eight hour drive in just a bit, I think I'll finish off with one of Bobo's best quotes: "People don't want freedom of speech. They want freedom of their speech." (It might not be exact since I'm going off the top of my head. And the capital letters are mine.)

whomod said: I generally don't like it when people decide to play by the rules against people who don't play by the rules.
It tends to put you immediately at a disadvantage and IMO is a sign of true weakness.
This is true both in politics and on the internet."

Our Friendly Neighborhood Ray-man said: "no, the doctor's right. besides, he has seniority."