oft repeated official tactic of some group rather than something a few people no one knows did in the midst of a rather heightened protest, one of many against a Police Department so corrupt that it will soon go under Federal control. I'd say most people 'dislike' seeing flags incinerated, and that many who are gnashing teeth in this case are doing so in part due to their dislike of Occupy in general. They are using the flag in their protest as well. "I respect the flag, and that is why I am pointing at a handful of people to define millions world wide" is an excuse, a rationale, it is using the flag as a rhetorical tool, it is in fact just as disrespectful of the flag as incinerating it is. To claim that the way some Americans use the flag is offending you, who then use the flag as part of your own agenda mongering is a rich, rich irony that I see all around DU. Set it on fire or wrap yourself up in it, either way you are not respecting it and allowing it to stand apart from politics as part of our mutual culture.
So the thing is, any group you look at has some people doing things most of the group would not do. It is extremely dishonest to take a look as say, Fred Phelps and start in on the Christians next door. The President hired surrogates who said awful things against gay people, surrogates. Yet if I were to suggest that all of his supporters were into hate preaching, that would not hold water.
If a person is upset that some folks in Oakland torched a flag, fine. If that person wants to use that as some way to define or judge others or a group of people then that is really fucked up agenda money territory.
Who 'endorsed' this? How is a single event promoted to 'the practice' as if it were the High Mass of Occupy? And why is that done? Some Oakland hard cores torched a flag. 'If you endorse the practice..." Just a heck of a leap.
What most here are not endorsing is the wailing display of faked up reactions and giant rhetorical leaps taken in the name of the flag. I do not endorse the frothing at the mouth. I do not endorse those who continuously criticize Occupy repeatedly announcing that they no longer will support them again and again.
It is simply not sane to look at a handful of people at one protest and say 'Look, they ARE Occupy'. That is done with intention, and it is not doe for some patriotic sentiment toward the flag. Can I look at some anti gay preacher and say 'Look, they ARE the Christians'? I sure will if that's the New Rule. If one does it, all did it, endorsed it and it is a 'practice'.
I was flag officer at a uniformed Prep School for more than one semester. So I do not take lightly any use of the flag. Not physical, not rhetorical, and I take particular issue with anyone from any school of opinion who claims that THEY own the flag while 'The OTHER' is showing they hate the flag. It is a crock of shit when they do so. Always, no matter who they are. The second someone tries to claim the flag is more theirs than some other groups, they lose all standing in terms of flag etiquette, which is far more complex than disposal and display regulations, there are also many flag 'rules' regarding how we speak of the flag. Yep, it is all made up crap, yet it is what we do. The thing is, 'not setting fire to it in protest' is a lesser point than 'not using it to draw lines dividing Americans'. It should always stand for unity, not for differences and not as the standard of one set of Americans against another, not so much as in argument.
The worst thing one can do in terms of respecting the flag is to ask people to rally 'round it or come support the flag when what you mean is 'rally 'round me, come support my opinion'. That is worse than using it for toilet tissue. So don't try to tell me that Grand Standing with Old Glory is some act of patriotism, it is an exploitation and misuse of the flag.
To me, the folks in Oakland were MORE respectful of the flag in the fire destruction of that one flag than are the people here holding up the flag as if it was owned in one quarter of the country, as if it was the property of one point of view.
In closing, anytime anyone looks at a few people from a large group and tries to use a few to define the many, decent people should tell them to take a flying fuck at a rolling doughnut, to take a flying fuck at the moooooon!
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