Stupid, Unpatriotic, Wrong and Stupid (NOT?) (YES?)
SEE THE UPDATE BELOW: It is now claimed that the story below resulted from a some dirty tricks and the flags were destined for other events, but stolen.
UPDATE AGAIN: Sources from Fox News (Yes… I know) are disputing the claims in the update and say that the flags were definitely found “stored” in Hefty Bags “near a dumpster.” Odd storage if true, but apparently the game is afoot on this one.
Here is a picture from the Denver Post (with a hat tip to Hot Air) which I missed earlier today but seriously got my blood boiling. It was taken at Invesco Field, the site of the Democrats’ big party for Barack Obama’s speech, after the lights went down and everyone left. You can click through the links for the entire story, but it seems that this was the fate of hundreds of flags used at the field for the speech.
We have flags at my home and at our camp and other places among our family. I was raised by an honest-to-God WW2 war hero, (make of that what you like) but we learned that one has respect for the flag, and this is not it. I’m not alone in this, and you’ll find plenty of people across red and blue America who feel the same way. This is simply not done.
Am I saying that you don’t have the right to treat a flag this way? Not at all. The protection of your rights to free speech are clear in my book. You can actually burn a flag in the streets if that’s your choice to express your opinion about the government. You can also put a white sheet over your head, cut a couple of holes in it for your eyes, and march down the street chanting about how evil the “darkies” are. I’ll defend your right to do it, but I’ll also call you a hateful, ignorant ass.
Let me be very clear that I am not personally blaming Illinois Senator Barack Obama or Delaware Senator Joe Biden for this. But there was somebody in charge of the planning and logistics for this event who should have known better and done better. This is completely unacceptable to me, and they should find that person and hold them accountable. It’s not just stupid, unpatriotic, wrong and stupid, but it’s a political disaster as well. They should have at least realized that much if they didn’t actually care about their country’s flag.
UPDATE: The Democrats in charge of the event claim that the flags were STOLEN and were heading for another site. They probably could have been stored better, but if this is the case, then there was at least one GOP operative playing a VERY VERY VERY dirty trick.
YET ANOTHER UPDATE: See the top of the article. This article disputes the dispute, if you will, and claims that the Democrats’ claims are inaccurate and the flags were found in Hefty Bags near a dumpster, which would be odd storage indeed if true. We’ll keep digging on this one.
AND ANOTHER: This source from Colorado contines providing two sides to the story with the DNC saying the flags were “stored and stolen” and the GOP saying they were “rescued” after being found in trashbags near a dumpster. Nothing definitive yet that I can see.
JUST KEEP CHECKING FOR UPDATES AS THEY DON’T SEEM TO END: Courtesy of both people in comments and Ed at Hot Air, the original author has updated his story with even more information which is making the DNC defense look more thin.
I just spoke with the person at Invesco who found the flags and he thinks both sides are exaggerating a bit. The person claims the majority of the bags with flags in them were near the trash, on a dock, and would have been thrown away. The person thinks it was probably an “oversight” by the Democrats rather than any nefarious plot against the flag. But the person doesn’t believe anyone was coming to get them: “The flags were there for a week and a day and no one came looking for them.”
Having spoken to the person who found the bags, it’s difficult to believe that anyone was coming to get them a week after the convention. If so, who was it? I’ve sent a query asking that question.
It seems like some poor intern or volunteer probably made a mistake and McCain campaign used it to pull a gotcha.
This keeps on rolling out, but it’s looking more and more like somebody at the DNC screwed up and put the flags out with the trash. Did some McCain supporters try to capitalize on this? Not out of the question at this point.
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If this is what the USA has become, then GOD. MAY. DAMN. THE. U. S. A.
All of you turned topsy turvey by this BS, SHAME ON YOU. I hate you. Each and every one of you. Because you care more about a piece of CLOTH than the patriots that shed their blood for it. SO SPARE ME. Your fake outrage does NOT impress. It is BS, and everyone, including yourself, knows it. It is only to to score political points. And you are lying, in effective, to make those points true. So may God Damn All Republicans Forever. This is my deepest wish and my most sacred prayer.
The real issues are the economy, education, war, etc. I think we need to continue to focus on these. But our flag is America's most sacred symbol and it needs to be treated with respect. Like Jazz, I agree that if someone wants to burn the flag as part of a protest, then that is their right. Though I would hope that anyone who wants to burn the flag in a protest will only do so after much consideration.
I read the update where the person says that flags have been there for over a week and would have been thrown away. The question I have is why wasn't the trash picked up sooner? Don't they pick up trash more often than every week or two? Or was the trash picked up within the last week and the flags remained? I find it hard to believe that convention officials would actually leave trash sitting in dumpsters for over a week in the hot summer sun without having it picked up.
At any rate I think the Republicans are throwing our stories to raise the ire against Democrats and throw up a smokescreen around their own failings. The GOP so desperately needs to make this campaign about why the Dems can't lead the country.
What disturbs me is the low standard of proof we hold for the Democrat Party.
Their statement imparts two claims:
1. Yes, we threw the flags in trash bags and set them at the garbage pickup.
2. We had good intentions.
I'm willing to take them at their word, because let's face it, a man can't read the intentions of another man with any certainty.
But please, on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is a pretty transparent “I got caught but you can't prove it” and 10 is “Here's your proof, now apologize,” this Democrat Party reply is a 1.
Does this limp denial logically justify the headline: “SHOCK: BOGUS REPUBLICAN FLAG STORY EXPOSED?” Of course not. But it's good to see the clandestine Democrat-MSM relationship being forced out of the closet, out into the bright light of scrutiny.
Well, now. I guess no one has bothered to consider a couple of points. First, it's illegal to burn trash in Denver. I think perhaps the “proper flag disposal” thing is a bit out of date. We actually don't need the air pollution, however patriotic. I'm not saying that the flags were going to be disposed of, just pointing out that burning 125,000 flags to show respect for their symbolism isn't really that great an idea. Which brings me to point two. Do you want to wave a recycled flag? Not refurbished or sanitized in any way; just picked up from the seat at a convention and given to boy scouts (or whatever). I don't think that's an especially great idea either.
Well? Want to get practical here? Or are we too enamored of these paper and cloth objects to think about trivial matters like public health?