Anybody else find themselves rolling their eyes any time they see an American flag these days?

[Brigid]

I'm not sure when it started -- maybe it was during the Bush years -- but anymore I just find it and other symbols of ersatz patriotism really irritating. And don't even get me started on that smarmy new Almay commercial with Carrie Underwood. Now makeup is patriotic? Really?

[MohRokTah]

1. No. eom

[Desert805]

2. Nope. Not at all.

[JaneyVee]

3. Personally, I think the American flag is beautiful, but...

It is eye-rolling the way it gets exploited by some.

[Desert805]

6. +1

Well stated.

[randys1]

4. It is what it represents to practically ALL human beings OTHER than Americans

that is the problem.

I know that there was a time that most of the world saw that flag as a symbol of freedom, a symbol of the good guys who fought with other good guys to defeat Hitler and company, etc.


I know true patriots have died for that flag.

I know there was a time when rightly or wrongly the vast majority of Americans would get goose bumps when they saw the flag waving on the 4th of July with some kind of patriotic music playing.

I am not saying those are healthy things, in many cases they are not and those very attitudes and feelings is how we were brought to where we are now, people showing blind faith in someone like Reagan or W...

Teaparty and Repubs have made it very difficult for actual patriots, to be proud.

I am proud, just not of them.

[yeoman6987]

8. It is a beautiful flag.

We really should be lucky to live here warts and all. Why do we have so many immigrants coming here if we are so bad? I am proud of our country overall.

[randys1]

11. NOt as many coming in as in the past, and we need to SEVERELY criticize this country

whenever necessary because nobody else is allowed to that can make a difference.

We have tens of millions of vicious, ugly racist and homophobic assholes here.

But we also have great people and we are very generous people.

[yeoman6987]

17. Yes to all !!!!!!

[MADem]

39. Those waiting lists are, what? Fiction?

https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/report/2014/10/23/59040/the-facts-on-immigration-today-3/#population

Foreign-born population
The foreign-born population consisted of 40.7 million people in 2012. Broken down by immigration status, the foreign-born population was composed of 18.6 million naturalized U.S. citizens and 22.1 million noncitizens in 2012. Of the noncitizens, approximately 13.3 million were legal permanent residents, 11.3 million were unauthorized migrants, and 1.9 million were on temporary visas.
The past decade saw a significant increase in the foreign-born population. Between 2000 and 2012, there was a 31.2 percent increase in the foreign-born population. During this period, the immigrant population grew from 31.1 million to 40.8 million people.
The foreign-born share of the U.S. population has more than doubled since the 1960s, but it is still below its all-time high. The immigrant population was 5.4 percent of the total U.S. population in 1960. By 2012, immigrants made up 13 percent of the total U.S. population. Still, today’s share of the immigrant population as a percentage of the total U.S. population remains below its peak in 1890, when 14.8 percent of the U.S. population had immigrated to the country.
The countries of origin of today’s immigrants are more diverse than they were 50 years ago. In 1960, a full 75 percent of the foreign-born population that resided in the United States came from Europe, while in 2012, only 11.8 percent of the immigrant population emigrated from Europe. In 2012, 11.6 million foreign-born residents—28 percent of the foreign-born population—came from Mexico; 2.3 million immigrants came from China; 2 million came from India; 1.9 million came from the Philippines; 1.3 million came from both Vietnam and El Salvador; and 1.1 million came from both Cuba and Korea.
Immigrants today are putting down roots across the United States, in contrast to trends seen 50 years ago. In the 1960s, two-thirds of U.S. states had populations in which less than 5 percent of individuals were foreign born. The opposite is true today: In 2012, 61 percent of the foreign-born population lived in the West and the South—a dramatic departure from trends 50 years ago, when 70 percent of the immigrant population lived in the Northeast and Midwest.....

Much more at link.

People are waiting in line to come to America, those who are using legal methods, anyway.

[randys1]

41. I was talking about those who come here illegally

But then Obama has done such a great job sending people back, that may have more to do with it than anything else.

Our empire actions are wrong, we have much to fix here, MUCH

[upaloopa]

30. We shouldn't let them take our traditions away from us.

The right does not own the flag or the words freedom heritage patriot.
When I was a kid in the sixties this was also a problem. I remember a girl on NPR back then talking about carrying the flag up to the front of the room as a Girl Scout at a meeting and feeling that the other side had stolen the flag and it's meaning yet she felt the flag was hers too even though she disagreed with the other side's politics.

[randome]

5. I told this short story before.

My new neighbors (well, not so new now), when they moved in, had an American flag flying on their front porch every day. Still do. I assumed that meant they were right-wingers but once election day arrived, they had Democratic signs in their yard and once I got to know them, I realized how much I was mistaken.

No, the American flag doesn't make me think of all the bad things we've done, any more than hearing that someone is Christian immediately reminds me of the history of religion.

For that matter, if you hear that someone is Muslim, do you immediately think of all the atrocities committed in the name of The-Prophet-who-shall-not-be-pictured?
[hr][font color="blue"][center]No squirrels were harmed in the making of this post. Yet.[/center][/font][hr]

[Desert805]

9. My boss rolled his eyes at a small flag in my office

(I have lots of stuff on the walls)

and tried out some thinly disguised insult about lapel pins or some such shit.



I got kinda mad and told him it was exactly because of those assholes that I fly mine. They don't get to steal the flag as their own. That's horse shit.

[randome]

21. Right on!

[hr][font color="blue"][center]No squirrels were harmed in the making of this post. Yet.[/center][/font][hr]

[karadax]

7. Nope. It's a very pretty flag.

I do shrug when they all come out of the woodwork on the usual holidays. Why not do it every day if you have one and a place to raise it ?

[zappaman]

10. No.

[cherokeeprogressive]

12. Not here.

[unblock]

13. not "any time". only when it's displayed/used with that certain attitude....

[yuiyoshida]

14. Its strange, but in my neighorhood

I hardly ever see flags. (City and Fed buildings do) If you drive around a bit, you might see one or two on residential houses but in San Francisco, at least in my neighborhood, I see few.. infact, If I go to Chinatown, I will see more Taiwanese flags there than American Flags. I love shopping there..

[Brigid]

22. Those are great pics!

We really don't have ethnic neighborhoods here. That's kind of a shame.

[yuiyoshida]

23. San Francisco has many ...

And you will even of course see Japanese flags in Japantown!


across the street is the Chinese Embasy ..


I have also seen Vietnamese flags in Little Hanoi here in San Francisco. Little Italy, has lots of Italian Flags..



I have seen French flags and of course this flag...

[Mnemosyne]

15. My eyes roll and ears almost bleed when I hear, "God bless America."

I always hear 'why?' after, somehow, in my mind.

[KingCharlemagne]

27. God had better bless America, because Bush and Cheney sure

fucked it up! )

[randys1]

33. Yep...What I really hate is those damn flag lapel pins, and when Obama does it I hate it then too

I REALLY hate it when a politician says "God Bless America"

listen to Carlin about that one

[Rowdyboy]

16. Since you ask, no, not at all....

[grasswire]

18. I have to say...

....that when I hear the words "land of the free and the home of the brave..." I cringe, knowing how our freedom has diminished of late.

[annabanana]

49. also the "brave" part...

With faux ginning up fear fear fear all day...

[TwilightGardener]

19. No.

[hack89]

20. No nt

[Oklahoma_Liberal]

24. Flame bait?

[Brigid]

29. Nope.

But ersatz patriotism is extremely dangerous, and I think too many people forget that. Just ask the Wounded Warrior Project and similar organizations.

[dissentient]

25. I don't like the thinking that we are somehow deserving of ruling everyone else in the world

It is seen even in Democrats, at least, some of the more fervent ones.

It's as if they think we (the USA) deserve to dominate the world, and intervene in countries as we please, such as Libya, Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

I think there is a lot to criticize in our foreign policy, we have made things worse in the Middle East, not better.

You would think we would have learned a thing or two from the Iraq intervention, and the resulting total disaster, but it doesn't seem to have sunk in for some people.

It's as if they think our "freedom bombs" really do help the oppressed around the world, and toppling leaders, that are no doubt bad, but at least they are better than the total chaos that is left behind when we help topple those leaders.

[randys1]

34. The empire stuff is terrible. We did great in WWII, but from that we figured we had

the right to go around and tell anybody and their uncle what to do.

[dissentient]

35. I agree, and we have been doing this for decades now

I don't get it. I really want to ask these people who believe in this kind of thing, do you really think Americans are somehow superior human beings to everyone else? And then ask them, Are you really that arrogant?

[PasadenaTrudy]

26. I do...

Every other house on my street has a flag for some reason. I know these people aren't veterans either.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

42. I'm curious

What does being a veteran have to do with flying the American flag?

And to answer the OP, no.

[greatauntoftriplets]

28. No.

[easychoice]

31. I had this Government figured out by the age of 10

I stopped saying the pledge of allegiance in the 5th. grade.If you were a history teacher you did not want me in your class.Because I would beat them with the truth like a rented mule.They hated me.

[great white snark]

32. No, not at all.

[Takket]

36. No I love the flag but....

If saddens me that it is the symbol of what we believe in but that symbol is all we have left. The GOP is dismantling everything the flag stands for.

[msanthrope]

37. No. nt

[countryjake]

38. Truly...

[Jesus Malverde]

40. No..nt

[ileus]

43. Nope...unless it's not properly taken care of.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

44. "Patriotism is the most foolish of passions and the passion of fools." Schopenhauer

[Blue_In_AK]

45. The American flag is okay

but I prefer Alaska's eight stars of gold on a field of blue. (A lot of people don't think Alaska is part of the US anyway.).

[Maedhros]

46. Yes.

I was sanctioned at work back in 2003 or so. The company wanted us to put little U.S. flags on our workstations, and I refused on the grounds that "I don't want any symbol on my desk that is also on the side of a helicopter than just gunned up a wedding in Afghanistan."

That didn't sit well with my boss, but today I see the U.S. flag as a symbol of hegemony and oppression, and not one of freedom.

[peace13]

47. If someone is wearing a flag....

....I prepare for a screwing. I used to display the flag at home and flew it every day when my step brothers and sisters were in Desert Storm but since the * era I can no longer look at it. Until we have freedom and justice at home the flag mocks us. The flag didn't mar itself. That was done by selfish, greedy, politicians, clergy and the ignorant folks who followed blindly.

[Brother Buzz]

48. No, but I still roll my eyes when I see faded yellow ribbons on gas guzzling SUVs

[tularetom]

50. The flag, like the Jesus fish has been appropriated by cheesy opportunists to sell shit

The flag itself is beautiful and I still love what it is supposed to symbolize.

What I hate to see is some sleazy used car salesman standing under a one acre flag giving his sales pitch.

[dissentient]

52. Great point, the flag has basically been turned into an advertising gimmick, or way to sell things

at this point.

Whether that truly is an appropriate symbol for America these days, I think it might be.

[Brigid]

63. It's like that stupid Almay ad I mentioned.

Patriotism gets conflated with things that are completely unrelated, like makeup.

[gladium et scutum]

51. No n/t

[displacedtexan]

53. No.

I noticed right after 9 11 that all of the people who had to rush to the hardware store to buy flags were shit kickers and confederate flag decal loonies.

Those of us who grew up in and honored the "Ask not what your country can do for you" era already owned and flew the flag.

[Desert805]

65. +1

[Throd]

54. No. I fly one from my house on most days.

[rock]

55. Maybe I let the flag get a pass on this one

But I do roll my eyes at just about anything that's symbolic only and has no substance.

[JHB]

56. No. A lot of things that wrap themselves in it, yes.

The flag itself, no. It's mine, it's ours. It's not their toy.

[Bobbie Jo]

57. No. nt

[tammywammy]

58. No. n/t

[Arugula Latte]

59. If by "these days" you mean the past 14 years then yes, yes I do.

[alarimer]

60. I always have

It's would be one thing if people only waved the flag on special occasions, but it is a near constant thing.

"American F Yeah!" is all I ever hear.

I get so tired of "America is the best country on the face of the earth" nonsense. It's is embarrassing to be an American, especially in my interactions with people from other countries. I always feel I have to apologize for their behavior.

[Kaleva]

61. No.

[Jamaal510]

62. Not at the flag itself, but

at the wingnuts who exploit it and label those of us who disagree with them as "unAmerican" or "unpatriotic." And this is not really related to the flag, but I also roll my eyes when people bring up the "founding fathers". How could Washington, Lincoln, et al. truly be "founding fathers" when there were already indigenous people here centuries before any of them were president?

[840high]

64. NO.

[R B Garr]

66. No! Watch some John Wayne war movies and they'll straighten you out.

Seriously. I kind of get where you're coming from, but the past couple of days we've gotten on a John Wayne war movie kick -- so far, In Harm's Way and They Were Expendable, and we've been looking up some of the battles around that era as we're watching. It brings you back to the sacrifices so many made for that Flag. I know that may sound corny, but we've really gotten a lot out of it. But he's ex-Navy, and I'm a Navy brat, so those memories kind of help with the bigger picture instead of the phony pablum you're referring to.

There's also a National Geographic special about the Battle of Midway that we've started watching. It really makes you realize what was at stake and how much personal sacrifice was involved.

I know what you mean, though. It's hard to watch the GOP'ers usurp a national symbol for their rah-rah political gain and other commercialism, etc.