Confederate flag, hate or heritage?

[Cat slave]

On the local news this evening there was a story of a guy in a town not too
far out of Nashville. He had put up a flagpole in his front yard and was flying
a Confederate flag. Another guy had an American flag on the top and then
a Confederate flag below. He also had a Con. flag painted in his rear window
of his truck. He stated to the interviewer that it was his heritage and he
wanted to remember the sacrifices of the soldiers who fought.

Two black neighbors were interviewed (repeatedly) and they of course were
offended and said it meant hate and slavery.

The person who erected the front yard flag pole contacted codes before he
ever put it up and is in compliance with all laws.

Which taxpayer should be favored? Both! It is our heritage and we are
entitled to honor it. The "offended" can certainly voice their feelings and
look the other way.

[Frankg]

Hey catslave ....thought you might like this

[paulm]

"hate or Heritage"... interesting question. IMO it all depends on the context in which the flag is displayed. The majority of Confederates did not own slaves. They were fighting because they viewed the Federal forces as invaders... they believed they were defending their homes.

Back on topic...
IMO the context determines the meaning... a KKK rally... more likely than not you've got the hate aspect of it. At a Confederate cemetery... memorial. At one's home... more likely than not it is pride in one's heritage, either family or community.

Since the owner is in compliance with all laws regarding the display of the flag... there is no problem... or there shouldn't be.

[Yirmeyahu]

The war was not about slavery. That later became the issue grasped upon in order to grant some sort of moral legitimacy to the war. Lincoln stated several times that he neither had the authority nor the intention to free the slaves. The Emancipation Proclamation is widely misinterpreted (because it's taught to us incorrectly). It stated that the South could keep their slaves if they gave up the war.

The war wasn't about slavery.

As paulm noted, southerners were defending their homes. Those who fought for principle fought for the principle of state sovereignty. The north fought to reduce the states from sovereign entities joined in union to subservient entitities submissive to the will of the federal government.

THAT is what the war was about.

So good for people for honoring the memory of the war and what it was about by flying the confederate flag.

[CarolinaHound]

On the local news this evening there was a story of a guy in a town not too
far out of Nashville. He had put up a flagpole in his front yard and was flying
a Confederate flag. Another guy had an American flag on the top and then
a Confederate flag below. He also had a Con. flag painted in his rear window
of his truck. He stated to the interviewer that it was his heritage and he
wanted to remember the sacrifices of the soldiers who fought.

Two black neighbors were interviewed (repeatedly) and they of course were
offended and said it meant hate and slavery.

The person who erected the front yard flag pole contacted codes before he
ever put it up and is in compliance with all laws.

Which taxpayer should be favored? Both! It is our heritage and we are
entitled to honor it. The "offended" can certainly voice their feelings and
look the other way.

I agree, if it offends some, they should check codes and put flag pole up with something that celebrates their heritage.

[Jesse Hemingway]

On the local news this evening there was a story of a guy in a town not too
far out of Nashville. He had put up a flagpole in his front yard and was flying
a Confederate flag. Another guy had an American flag on the top and then
a Confederate flag below. He also had a Con. flag painted in his rear window
of his truck. He stated to the interviewer that it was his heritage and he
wanted to remember the sacrifices of the soldiers who fought.

Two black neighbors were interviewed (repeatedly) and they of course were
offended and said it meant hate and slavery.

The person who erected the front yard flag pole contacted codes before he
ever put it up and is in compliance with all laws.

Which taxpayer should be favored? Both! It is our heritage and we are
entitled to honor it. The "offended" can certainly voice their feelings and
look the other way.

The same thing about the WWII German flag that might offend some people but it is just a flag

[Cat slave]

Hey catslave ....thought you might like this

Yes, I love it. Thanks. I think its a Serval(sp?) isnt it??:)

[Cat slave]

"hate or Heritage"... interesting question. IMO it all depends on the context in which the flag is displayed. The majority of Confederates did not own slaves. They were fighting because they viewed the Federal forces as invaders... they believed they were defending their homes.

Back on topic...
IMO the context determines the meaning... a KKK rally... more likely than not you've got the hate aspect of it. At a Confederate cemetery... memorial. At one's home... more likely than not it is pride in one's heritage, either family or community.

Since the owner is in compliance with all laws regarding the display of the flag... there is no problem... or there shouldn't be.

My feelings exactly!

[Yirmeyahu]

The same thing about the WWII German flag that might offend some people but it is just a flag

I fail to see how the confederate flag can be compared with the Nazi flag with regard to offense it may cause as a result of what each flag represents.

Honoring the memory of the confederacy is in no way, shape, or form comparable to honoring the memory of the Nazi regime under Hitler.

[disrupter]

the one thing i am pretty sure it still is is political dynamite.

DYE-NO-MITE!

LOL

Cheney steps in it for another hunting trip.
Where are this guy's handlers? fire those suckers & turn him into another GWB meat puppet.

[Jesse Hemingway]

I fail to see how the confederate flag can be compared with the Nazi flag with regard to offense it may cause as a result of what each flag represents.

Honoring the memory of the confederacy is in no way, shape, or form comparable to honoring the memory of the Nazi regime under Hitler.

Sorry their both just sheets of cloth with some type of symbol on them that is all they both really are. Now what do the symbols represent to each person that is what the underlining intentions of the original post was really about and getting at. Let’s throw the crucifix into the mix and call it the trifecta another meaningless symbol, which cause similar emotions in people as the two flags do. :lmao2: :lmao2: :lmao2:

[disrupter]

Pieces of cloth with emotion hooks.

The neocrooks have played this flaggery game with a vengance.

Sweet delicious balance of the universe comes one's way if one can last long enough.

Sweet drops of neocrook blood dripping into a parched throat, sliced on their own psychopolitics of flaggery. LOL

I will suck you dry Cheney till you are a whithered husk. You will be begging for a Wraith instead. Twisting the knife inside that stuck pig will be so sweet. Delicate translucent thin slices of Cheney Bush meat.

The neocrooks are teachers. One is educated to the sweet, satisfaction of vengance. When they impale themselves though, that is almost too sweet to touch. I guess i will only watch as they are torn to shreds by hysterical rioting crowds of their own creation. The sweet taste without the satisfying bite.

The universe finds its own centers of balance, or perishes.

I really don't like these people.

Rail launch them into infinity.

[Yirmeyahu]

Sorry their both just sheets of cloth with some type of symbol on them that is all they both really are. Now what do the symbols represent to each person that is what the underlining intentions of the original post was really about and getting at. Let’s throw the crucifix into the mix and call it the trifecta another meaningless symbol, which cause similar emotions in people as the two flags do.

Yes, they are both sheets of cloth, but not "just" sheets of cloth. They are pieces of cloth that are symbols that have meaning, and it is that meaning which we are, as you say, principally concerned with here. And I would argue that the symbolism of the confederate flag is not nefarious, as I think we all could agree the symbolism inherent in the Nazi flag is.

Yes, there are emotional responses to such symbols, but, like you, I'm not interested in that. What I'm interested in is the "why" and the question of understanding a) why people have such emotional responses and b) the true and actual meaning behind such symbolic icons.

[disrupter]

because cryptic/iconic symbols with emotional attachments is more energy efficient than actually thinking.

The thought process demands a good deal of overhead. Shortcuts or cheating where someone else does the thinking for you gets you a free ride.

But like all free rides, if you ride them long enough, they invariably lead to hell.

Maybe the truth is heaven takes work.
When you quit working you[things] go to hell?
Shit in, shit out.

[Cat slave]

Actually the flag was patterned after a Scottish flag which was the home land
of much of the south. We are rich in Scottish ancestry. Because it was used
in a conflict doesnt make it evil. And many of us want to embrace our heritage
because others have tried to hard to wipe it from the face of the earth. It
doesnt mean anything negative to us, just something was ours and too many
have rewritten history to make their own points for their own agendas.

However, it should never be flown above the US flag, which the second
flag flyer in that neighborhood was right to do. He professed his loyalty to
our country first, then under that what represented his heritage.

[LadyMod at scam.com]

Actually the flag was patterned after a Scottish flag which was the home land
of much of the south. We are rich in Scottish ancestry. Because it was used
in a conflict doesnt make it evil. And many of us want to embrace our heritage
because others have tried to hard to wipe it from the face of the earth. It
doesnt mean anything negative to us, just something was ours and too many
have rewritten history to make their own points for their own agendas.

However, it should never be flown above the US flag, which the second
flag flyer in that neighborhood was right to do. He professed his loyalty to
our country first, then under that what represented his heritage.


That was interesting.

You know the Swastika isn't an evil emblem either?

The Oldest Known Symbol (http://history1900s.about.com/cs/swastika/a/swastikahistory.htm)

The swastika is an ancient symbol that has been used for over 3,000 years. (That even predates the ancient Egyptian symbol, the Ankh!) Artifacts such as pottery and coins from ancient Troy show that the swastika was a commonly used symbol as far back as 1000 BCE.

During the following thousand years, the image of the swastika was used by many cultures around the world, including in China, Japan, India, and southern Europe. By the Middle Ages, the swastika was a well known, if not commonly used, symbol but was called by many different names:

China - wan
England - fylfot
Germany - Hakenkreuz
Greece - tetraskelion and gammadion
India - swastika

Though it is not known for exactly how long, Native Americans also have long used the symbol of the swastika.

The Original Meaning

The word "swastika" comes from the Sanskrit svastika - "su" meaning "good," "asti" meaning "to be," and "ka" as a suffix.

Until the Nazis used this symbol, the swastika was used by many cultures throughout the past 3,000 years to represent life, sun, power, strength, and good luck.


.

[Cat slave]

Yes, cupcake, dumb as I am I do know all about that.:p

[LadyMod at scam.com]

Yes, cupcake, dumb as I am I do know all about that.:p

Oh, girls can't be Cupcakes. Pumpkins, ya. But not Cupcakes.


:winkwink:

[playboydojo]

Considering we were a Union before and after the war...shouldn't the Confederate flag represent treason? Or at the very least, anti-Union sympathies?

I mean, free speech to all and a flag is a relatively harmless form of it, but still, I fail to see exactly what heritage it represents besides the largest group of traitors this nation has ever known.

[LadyMod at scam.com]

Considering we were a Union before and after the war...shouldn't the Confederate flag represent treason? Or at the very least, anti-Union sympathies?

I mean, free speech to all and a flag is a relatively harmless form of it, but still, I fail to see exactly what heritage it represents besides the largest group of traitors this nation has ever known.

The South wasn't traitors. The Union wasn't in charge when the South walked out. There was no treason.

A major difference of opinion. Really major.


Lady Mod

[playboydojo]

So...the secession was mutual, then? Good to know.

[LadyMod at scam.com]

So...the secession was mutual, then? Good to know.

Just because they seceeded, did not make them traitors. Many states, retain the right to seceed from central governance.

Just because they don't doesn't make them loyal either.


Lady Mod

[Little Red Dog]

The Confederate flag may represent "heritage" to white southerners, but it represents "cruelty and subjugation" to black southerners.

Sure, it's just a piece of cloth. But what would happen, I wonder, if a black homeowner decided to voice his opinion of his "heritage" re the Confederate flag by flying that flag, in accordance with local codes, but upside down? Or burning it on his front lawn?

After, it would be his right to do so, under the First Amendment.

Somehow, I don't think that would be well received.

[LadyMod at scam.com]

The Confederate flag may represent "heritage" to white southerners, but it represents "cruelty and subjugation" to black southerners.

Sure, it's just a piece of cloth. But what would happen, I wonder, if a black homeowner decided to voice his opinion of his "heritage" re the Confederate flag by flying that flag, in accordance with local codes, but upside down? Or burning it on his front lawn?

After, it would be his right to do so, under the First Amendment.

Somehow, I don't think that would be well received.


I know a lot of black southerners who don't have a problem with it. In fact, I know some who own their own Confederate flags.

LOL

[Moby]

It's a tough call.

The south lost and in so doing so should they still be allowed to fly their flag?

The flag is often used as a symbol of hate. I've known hundreds through living in Virginia and South Carolina that may claim that it's a historical image but also seem to have the hate.

I do know a few people that don't have the hate and want to fly the flag but they don't seem to be the majority that I've met.

Personally I won't fly one even though I had relatives fighting for the cause. That's my free choice and I'm glad that I don't have to make the call about the legal issues.

[LadyMod at scam.com]

It's a tough call.

The south lost and in so doing so should they still be allowed to fly their flag?

The flag is often used as a symbol of hate. I've known hundreds through living in Virginia and South Carolina that may claim that it's a historical image but also seem to have the hate.

I do know a few people that don't have the hate and want to fly the flag but they don't seem to be the majority that I've met.

Personally I won't fly one even though I had relatives fighting for the cause. That's my free choice and I'm glad that I don't have to make the call about the legal issues.

I have a kid who wears it as a charm on a belly ring as well as a bikini that looked like it was made from one.

The younger generation see it more like a fashion asset. Kind of like wearing the Stars and Stripes on t-shirts, socks and picnic tables has become.


Lady Mod

[disrupter]

The vestibule of hell is full of people chasing banners through knee deep shit, stung by bees, i believe according to Dante.

Meanings matter, banners don't. But we're stupid so we think they do.

[Yirmeyahu]

That hateful men might fly the confederate flag does not make it a hateful symbol.

[Cat slave]

The Confederate flag may represent "heritage" to white southerners, but it represents "cruelty and subjugation" to black southerners.

Sure, it's just a piece of cloth. But what would happen, I wonder, if a black homeowner decided to voice his opinion of his "heritage" re the Confederate flag by flying that flag, in accordance with local codes, but upside down? Or burning it on his front lawn?

After, it would be his right to do so, under the First Amendment.

Somehow, I don't think that would be well received.

All that would happen would be that the neighbors who see their flag as
their heritage would never look upon the fire starter as a neighbor or anyone
they wanted to get to know. The fire starter would just harm himself.
He would become invisible and overlooked after that.

[Cat slave]

It's a tough call.

The south lost and in so doing so should they still be allowed to fly their flag?

The flag is often used as a symbol of hate. I've known hundreds through living in Virginia and South Carolina that may claim that it's a historical image but also seem to have the hate.

I do know a few people that don't have the hate and want to fly the flag but they don't seem to be the majority that I've met.

Personally I won't fly one even though I had relatives fighting for the cause. That's my free choice and I'm glad that I don't have to make the call about the legal issues.

"Allowed to fly the flag"? Is freedom only for the offended? Where does
the freedom to remember with a flag ones ancestors and how they died
stop and all the freedom be given to a few with a distorted view of it.
And of course it is very useful to race baiters to keep long past issues
alive!

[Cat slave]

Yes, they are both sheets of cloth, but not "just" sheets of cloth. They are pieces of cloth that are symbols that have meaning, and it is that meaning which we are, as you say, principally concerned with here. And I would argue that the symbolism of the confederate flag is not nefarious, as I think we all could agree the symbolism inherent in the Nazi flag is.

Yes, there are emotional responses to such symbols, but, like you, I'm not interested in that. What I'm interested in is the "why" and the question of understanding a) why people have such emotional responses and b) the true and actual meaning behind such symbolic icons.

I think the "why" often falls to the fact that the south as a whole has been
so demonized since the CW and the facts behind the CW have been so distorted
by those who could profit from it.

Its no different from a state flag, it just honors the soldliers who fought and
gave it all for something they believed in and not all of the south was wrong!

I also think that we (southerners) have become weary of our heritage being
attacked, suppressed, branded as slave holders (eventhough non of my family
or any of anyones family I know had slaves) yet political correctness and
"sensitivity" to over compensate for past deeds of strangers has painted
with a wide brush the south and history.

[Little Red Dog]

All that would happen would be that the neighbors who see their flag as
their heritage would never look upon the fire starter as a neighbor or anyone
they wanted to get to know. The fire starter would just harm himself.
He would become invisible and overlooked after that.


That's rather a double standard, no? After all, if you're a black southerner, the Confederate flag may have a totally different meaning of "heritage" than it does for a white southerner. That's not about "race-baiting"; that's just a historical fact.

Wouldn't it make more sense for them to actually get to know their black neighbor, before making him "invisible and overlooked"?

Plus, I doubt that in many parts of the South, yes, even today, the reaction would be so passive.

People want to deny that racism exists still, but it is certainly alive and well - and not just in the South. And the fact is that for many American blacks, that flag represents a painful part of their history.

[Cat slave]

That's rather a double standard, no? After all, if you're a black southerner, the Confederate flag may have a totally different meaning of "heritage" than it does for a white southerner. That's not about "race-baiting"; that's just a historical fact.

Wouldn't it make more sense for them to actually get to know their black neighbor, before making him "invisible and overlooked"?

Plus, I doubt that in many parts of the South, yes, even today, the reaction would be so passive.

People want to deny that racism exists still, but it is certainly alive and well - and not just in the South. And the fact is that for many American blacks, that flag represents a painful part of their history.

Well, if someone came into my yard, took down my flag and burned it I would
feel a little pissed and that person would not be a person I would care to
get to know further as I was not shown the same consideration.

And racism, its all over the world at different levels and for different reasons.
There are all kinds of predjugdices in this world. We did not envent it.

Is someone elses history more important or significant than anothers?
Is ones feelings more important than anothers? It requires each side to
learn where they are coming from and if they are rooted in fact or some
idea that has been pandered by others to promote discord.

[Cat slave]

I have to get busy....Ill check back later.

[Little Red Dog]

Well, if someone came into my yard, took down my flag and burned it I would
feel a little pissed and that person would not be a person I would care to
get to know further as I was not shown the same consideration.

And racism, its all over the world at different levels and for different reasons.
There are all kinds of predjugdices in this world. We did not envent it.

Is someone elses history more important or significant than anothers?
Is ones feelings more important than anothers? It requires each side to
learn where they are coming from and if they are rooted in fact or some
idea that has been pandered by others to promote discord.

I didn't say anything about someone coming into someone else's yard and taking down anything. I'm talking about a black neighbor hanging his own Confederate flag upside down or burning his own flag.

That slavery existed in the South is a fact. The Confederate flag is a reminder of the history of slavery in this country. Why you should feel that's something to be proud of is beyond me.

I'm not saying one person's feelings or history is more important than another's. I'm simply pointing out that if a black person was to express their antipathy for that history in a graphic way, it would not be well received.

That too, is a fact.

[CarolinaHound]

I didn't say anything about someone coming into someone else's yard and taking down anything. I'm talking about a black neighbor hanging his own Confederate flag upside down or burning his own flag.

That slavery existed in the South is a fact. The Confederate flag is a reminder of the history of slavery in this country. Why you should feel that's something to be proud of is beyond me.

I'm not saying one person's feelings or history is more important than another's. I'm simply pointing out that if a black person was to express their antipathy for that history in a graphic way, it would not be well received.

That too, is a fact.

Hang the confederate flag upside down??!! Go ahead. hehehe.. :D

[Cat slave]

I didn't say anything about someone coming into someone else's yard and taking down anything. I'm talking about a black neighbor hanging his own Confederate flag upside down or burning his own flag.

That slavery existed in the South is a fact. The Confederate flag is a reminder of the history of slavery in this country. Why you should feel that's something to be proud of is beyond me.

I'm not saying one person's feelings or history is more important than another's. I'm simply pointing out that if a black person was to express their antipathy for that history in a graphic way, it would not be well received.

That too, is a fact.


OK, I invisioned someone tearing down the flag of the person on the news.
Sorry! Missed that.

However, WE did not invent slavery, servitude or anything.

I look at it in the same way I view the womens movement. Yes, its not that
long ago that we were treated like farm animals...could not vote for sure but
could not own property, were subjugated to men under the patriarchal
guise of religion and numerous other unpleasant things but you get my point.

OK, weve made gains. We vote, we have careers, our own money, we marry
or not, own property and our wage scale is within sight of our counterparts.
This will come and its time to get over it and get on with it and stop
whining about past ill treatment.

The same goes for AA, minorities or whatever they want to be called. Im
just a bit over the whole thing being drug out and paraded at the drop of
a hat.

The time comes to do your best and progress. This goes for everyone,
whatever color, ethnicity, religion or whatever. Get over it and get on
with it.:mad:

[Cat slave]

Hang the confederate flag upside down??!! Go ahead. hehehe.. :D

Excellent point CD! Wish Id thought of it.:thumbsup: Just dont come in
my yard and do it.;)

[Cat slave]

Oops, I meant CH, sorry, Im the typo queen!!

:D

[paulm]

That slavery existed in the South is a fact. The Confederate flag is a reminder of the history of slavery in this country. Why you should feel that's something to be proud of is beyond me.

The pride one takes in flying a Confederate flag (when using it to represent one's heritage) is in no way associated with slavery or as a rememberance of slavery. The rememberance is one of brave men who fought and died for what they believed in... which was not slavery. The vast, overwhelming majority of Confederate soldiers were not slave owners. They fought because they believed they were defending their homes.
That's almost as bad as saying the majority of Union soldiers enlisted to fight to free the slaves... it just isn't true.



I'm not saying one person's feelings or history is more important than another's. I'm simply pointing out that if a black person was to express their antipathy for that history in a graphic way, it would not be well received.
That too, is a fact.
Commemoration of that era's black struggles are located everywhere. What first comes to mind are Underground Railroad 'stops'. Photographic commemoration is in every history book in every school in the country. Emphasis is placed on the slavery issue as the sole cause of the war... The racial issues of the era are very well represented in our culture and schools. Graphic commemoration is received all too well.

[CarolinaHound]

Oops, I meant CH, sorry, Im the typo queen!!

:D

:D CD... CH... dawg-hound, it's all good. lol

I found this awhile ago..now if you really wanna insult a white southern boy...

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff319/thedon1969/starsandbars.gif

hehehehe..:lmao2:

[Yirmeyahu]

And the fact is that for many American blacks, that flag represents a painful part of their history.

Sure, but I think the point being made here is that there is nothing inherently racist about the confederate flag, any more than there is anything racist about the Stars and Stripes. People may associate racism with those symbols, if they choose, but the further point is that if someone wants to fly a flag, good for them. And if anyone else doesn't like it, tough.

[opinionator]

Sure, but I think the point being made here is that there is nothing inherently racist about the confederate flag, any more than there is anything racist about the Stars and Stripes. People may associate racism with those symbols, if they choose, but the further point is that if someone wants to fly a flag, good for them. And if anyone else doesn't like it, tough.


Absolutely right. This is just a liberal 'cause', made to order for the black race-victim industry. Once thriving, it will continue to diminish in effectiveness, as will liberals themselves. When blacks clean up their own house, who the hell will vote for democrats?

[Moby]

Sure, but I think the point being made here is that there is nothing inherently racist about the confederate flag, any more than there is anything racist about the Stars and Stripes. People may associate racism with those symbols, if they choose, but the further point is that if someone wants to fly a flag, good for them. And if anyone else doesn't like it, tough.
Couldn't you make a similar argument about the swastika? The symbol was not created for the purpose of genocide but it is a painful reminder of that genocide.

I know many people that cherish the flag as part of their heritage. However, I know many that also believe that hating black people is part of their heritage. I think you always have to question why that flag is being flown. Some fly it as part of their own hate and to ignore that is ignorant.

In this case it doesn't sound like this guy is flying for hate.

[Little Red Dog]

Sure, but I think the point being made here is that there is nothing inherently racist about the confederate flag, any more than there is anything racist about the Stars and Stripes. People may associate racism with those symbols, if they choose, but the further point is that if someone wants to fly a flag, good for them. And if anyone else doesn't like it, tough.


And the point I'm trying to make is that the same symbol may have different meanings for different people. So what's good for one is good for the other.

To many American blacks, the Confederate flag is an unpleasant reminder of a system that, had the civil war not been won by the North, would have them enslaved to this day. Therefore, if a black person wanted to fly the Confederate flag upside down, burn it, or otherwise desecrate it, there should be no problem. They would merely be expressing their feelings about THEIR heritage.

But there would be a problem. It is completely fallacious to suggest otherwise.

The same thing could potentially apply the Stars and Stripes if you were Native American.

People can associate anything with anything, with or without cause. And context is important. However, to suggest that there should be no negative historical association with a particular symbol, when the facts of that negative history are indisputable, is completely unrealistic.

For example, if a skinhead gangmember tattoos a swastika on his forehead, is that symbol likely to be viewed as an ancient religous symbol, or a symbol of his white supremacist belief. Obviously, the latter.

In this case, you cannot detach the Confederacy from the history of slavery. History is history, and facts are facts. And the facts are that the Confederate flag has been, and is, used by some as a way of expressing their racist beliefs. Therefore, anyone who chooses to display it should not be surprised that others would question their motives for doing so.

[Little Red Dog]

...The time comes to do your best and progress. This goes for everyone,
whatever color, ethnicity, religion or whatever. Get over it and get on
with it.:mad:


I completely agree with you on this. However, part of "get over it and get on with it" comes with honestly acknowledging the past. That also means acknowledging the other person's perspective on that past.

That goes for blacks as well as whites in my book. I have no patience with blacks who make racist assumptions towards whites, either.

And the key word here is "assumptions". Because people assume all kinds of things about another. Blacks assume a Confederate flag is an inherently racist symbol of hate; whites assume blacks are whining about "ancient history" so they can play the "victim card". Neither assumption is completely true.

Being ethnic in America is no walk in the park. And you can whine about it, or you can get over it and get on with it. But you can't pretend that it doesn't exist. I say, "Acknowledge it and deal with it."

[Yirmeyahu]

Couldn't you make a similar argument about the swastika? The symbol was not created for the purpose of genocide but it is a painful reminder of that genocide.

Sure. The swastika is an ancient Buddhist symbol. There's nothing negative about it.

If we're talking about the Nazi flag, though, that's a different story. The Nazi flag represents the Nazi party and its policies and hence very much symbolizes hate and racism.

However, to suggest that there should be no negative historical association with a particular symbol, when the facts of that negative history are indisputable, is completely unrealistic.

It's unrealistic to expect people not to make such negative associations, sure. The question is whether it is reasonable or not to do so.

My point about the Confederate flag was that the Civil War was not about slavery, it was about states' rights versus the power of the federal government. It's a part of not just the heritage of the southern states, but of the entire union.

The point is that the Confederate Flag no more represents racism than the Stars and Stripes or the US Constitution.

The Constitution is inherently racist. Blacks are two-thirds a person in the Constitution.

That doesn't mean that every patriot who would fight to defend and uphold the Constitution is a racist.

And the facts are that the Confederate flag has been, and is, used by some as a way of expressing their racist beliefs. Therefore, anyone who chooses to display it should not be surprised that others would question their motives for doing so.

Sure. But like I said before, just because hateful people fly a flag doesn't make the flag a hateful symbol.

Yes, people might question others' motives. But it would be wrong of those people to form a judgment about the others and accuse them of racism just for flying the Confederate flag.