I don't understand why some people still respect the confederate flag

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Argo

Lifer
Apr 8, 2000
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I live in Connecticut and one of the houses on my way to work has a confederate flag. Go figure.
 

Vic

Elite Member
Jun 12, 2001
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Originally posted by: mobobuff
Originally posted by: jagec
To a southerner, the Confederate flag doesn't mean racism so much as "southern pride" or 'southern unity".
You'll notice the OP is in Michigan. As am I. And his question plagues me too. So allow me to permutate it... "Why do Northerners with no Southern affiliation love the 'Confederate flag' so much? Ignoring the fact that the flag they fly is actually not the official Confederacy flag, but one that belonged to a ship."

My conclusion is that they're both racist and ignorant (which hasn't failed to be correct, seeing as how I've known most of the people who've displayed the flag... it's a small town).
First, the Stars and Bars is not a symbol of racism. IMO, that's ignorant. The Stars and Bars is a symbol of open organized rebellion against the US government.

Now, to answer your question, the rural rednecks in the north and west frequently consider themselves to be southern descent. They'll speak with a Midland South twang to their accent, etc.
 

JulesMaximus

No Lifer
Jul 3, 2003
74,534
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Originally posted by: Fausto
Originally posted by: K1052
Originally posted by: Fausto
Originally posted by: K1052
Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: JulesMaximus


How do they spell Nazi in Georgia? Notsee?
:p

l-i-b-e-r-a-l

;)

Get out of my head.:D
Will you two get a room already? Sheesh. Your little courtship ritual is making me somewhat nauseated. :p

Someone is cranky today. Out of your favorite color thong this morning?

:p
I had to break out the fleece one this morning. It was about 30F when I rode in to work. :Q

You have a fleece thong?!! :Q

Where can I get one! :p
 

OutHouse

Lifer
Jun 5, 2000
36,410
616
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Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: Citrix

The stars & Bars means many different things to all people. I for one see it as a foreign flag from a hostile country that tried to take over the United States.

WTF? The Confederacy did not try to "take over" any part of the rest of the US. They were a part of the US that tried to secede. Big difference.

ummm Lee invaded the North twice. What do you think would have happened if he was not pushed back?
 

GasX

Lifer
Feb 8, 2001
29,033
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Originally posted by: Citrix
ummm Lee invaded the North twice. What do you think would have happened if he was not pushed back?
The USA would have sued for peace and allowed the succession...
 

K1052

Elite Member
Aug 21, 2003
47,997
37,167
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Originally posted by: Citrix
Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: Citrix

The stars & Bars means many different things to all people. I for one see it as a foreign flag from a hostile country that tried to take over the United States.

WTF? The Confederacy did not try to "take over" any part of the rest of the US. They were a part of the US that tried to secede. Big difference.

ummm Lee invaded the North twice. What do you think would have happened if he was not pushed back?

Lee invaded to get the Union to sue for peace. Smashing the Union military completely was never a realistic option for the CSA.
 

Amused

Elite Member
Apr 14, 2001
56,515
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Originally posted by: Mwilding
Originally posted by: Citrix
ummm Lee invaded the North twice. What do you think would have happened if he was not pushed back?
The USA would have sued for peace and allowed the succession...

BINGO! No war has a static battle line. You push back the enemy until you destroy him, or he surrenders.

Saying the South was trying to take over the US is like saying the US was trying to take over Germany.
 

Vic

Elite Member
Jun 12, 2001
50,422
14,333
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The Civil War was not over slavery. Nor was it really about States Rights. It was really an economic war. The North and the South had diametrically-opposed economies. For example, the North wanted tariffs to protect its fledgling industries, while the agricultural South was opposed to tariffs because it imported so many manufactured goods.
If you could pick just about any single economic issue of the time, the North and the South likely disagreed on it. Slavery was (unfortnately) just one more economic issue that they fought over.

edit: Well, Amused, that's because the South had no hope of truly defeating the North. Still calling it the "War of Northern Aggression"? :) Remember who attacked who first, eh? ;)
 

OutHouse

Lifer
Jun 5, 2000
36,410
616
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Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: Mwilding
Originally posted by: Citrix
ummm Lee invaded the North twice. What do you think would have happened if he was not pushed back?
The USA would have sued for peace and allowed the succession...

BINGO! No war has a static battle line. You push back the enemy until you destroy him, or he surrenders.

Saying the South was trying to take over the US is like saying the US was trying to take over Germany.

ummm we did take over Germany, and Japan. We eventually gave it back but only after we ruled the countrys under a military governement until the countries were rebuilt and were able function on their own.
 

Fausto

Elite Member
Nov 29, 2000
26,521
2
0
Originally posted by: Citrix
Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: Mwilding
Originally posted by: Citrix
ummm Lee invaded the North twice. What do you think would have happened if he was not pushed back?
The USA would have sued for peace and allowed the succession...

BINGO! No war has a static battle line. You push back the enemy until you destroy him, or he surrenders.

Saying the South was trying to take over the US is like saying the US was trying to take over Germany.

ummm we did take over Germany, and Japan.
Then where's my cheap BMW 540i? :(

 

K1052

Elite Member
Aug 21, 2003
47,997
37,167
136
Originally posted by: Citrix
Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: Mwilding
Originally posted by: Citrix
ummm Lee invaded the North twice. What do you think would have happened if he was not pushed back?
The USA would have sued for peace and allowed the succession...

BINGO! No war has a static battle line. You push back the enemy until you destroy him, or he surrenders.

Saying the South was trying to take over the US is like saying the US was trying to take over Germany.

ummm we did take over Germany, and Japan.

As that was part of our requirements for their surrender.
 

tokamak

Golden Member
Nov 26, 1999
1,072
0
0
Originally posted by: JeffreyLebowski
Ah, but the buddist swastika goes the other way.

Buddhist typically goes opposite the one used by the Nazis. Native American, Hindu, and certain other Asian cultures, however, used them facing both ways with almost equal frequency.

As for the guys that live in Texas and claim to never see Confederate flags, I've lived here for the entire 20 years of my life (first in the Metroplex, now in Austin) and see them fairly regularly. I'd bet you guys just aren't paying close attention.

Even though I am a southerner and have an appropriate amount of pride in my home, I don't personally condone the display of the Confederate flag, because it does, in fact, mean something rather terrible to certain people. However, a lot of respect remains for it in the south precisely for the reasons that have been mentioned here. The vast majority of Confederate soldiers were dirt poor and owned no slaves at all, and fought simply because they did not want the north to impose its will upon them. Many contemporary southerners are proud of this particular aspect of their heritage and prefer for it not to be swept under the rug. I seriously doubt that any significant percentage of people who display it to this day have racism in mind. That is something that I can at least understand, even if I don't necessarily approve.
 

mobobuff

Lifer
Apr 5, 2004
11,099
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The Confederate battle flag has a whole different meaning up here. From all of my experience living in Michigan, Stars & Bars = racism + ignorance. I couldn't give 2 shits about what it means anywhere else. Its presence up here is dismal, its original meaning has been lost. I don't think I'd be wrong to estimate that, among everyone in the US who displays this flag, if the majority doesn't swing towards the racism side. Or, they surely do not display it for the bleeding heart, innocent-southern-wanting-unity mentality that many speak of in this thread.

The OP is not an idiot. He lives in an area where the meaning of the flag has been bastardized and manipulated by people not unlike those on the TightRope.cc forums (remember them?).
 

Orsorum

Lifer
Dec 26, 2001
27,631
5
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Originally posted by: Vic
The Civil War was not over slavery. Nor was it really about States Rights. It was really an economic war. The North and the South had diametrically-opposed economies. For example, the North wanted tariffs to protect its fledgling industries, while the agricultural South was opposed to tariffs because it imported so many manufactured goods.
If you could pick just about any single economic issue of the time, the North and the South likely disagreed on it. Slavery was (unfortnately) just one more economic issue that they fought over.

edit: Well, Amused, that's because the South had no hope of truly defeating the North. Still calling it the "War of Northern Aggression"? :) Remember who attacked who first, eh? ;)

:)
 

TallBill

Lifer
Apr 29, 2001
46,017
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I didn't read ANY of the posts above but I used to think what the OP thought until I met a guy with who was definitely not racist who hung the flag in his apartment, and had a tattoo on his back. He was just proud to be a redneck.
 

IGBT

Lifer
Jul 16, 2001
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..don't you know??....that's the flag of the Dixie Democrats..........;)
 

Excelsior

Lifer
May 30, 2002
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Originally posted by: FoBoT
i don't really agree with that

i know that most people from outside the South think that is the way it is, but it really depends on individuals

lumping everyone from the South together into a "they are still all racists if they 'like' the Stars and Bars" group is wrong

Yes, thank you. This is the point of view that I am tired of. Why does everyone feel the need to group everyone together? There are many types of people living in the south; the same goes for the north. There is simply too much dislike/hate for one another. :frown:
 

Excelsior

Lifer
May 30, 2002
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18
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Originally posted by: Citrix
Originally posted by: SynthDude2001
Meh....I live in Texas and I don't think I've ever seen a Confederate flag displayed.

you need to get out in the country. My sister lives in Brenahm and i see lots of Stars & Bars flying on flag poles, it is the ONLY flag on that flagpole.

The stars & Bars means many different things to all people. I for one see it as a foreign flag from a hostile country that tried to take over the United States.

Where the hell did you go to school? I knew the public school system had issues..but is it really this bad in some parts of the country? :confused:
 

Hav0k99

Platinum Member
May 10, 2002
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Originally posted by: Amused
I lived in the South for just over 10 years (GA, SC and NC). From my experience the vast majority of people who display the flag do so in a show of cultural unity and heritage, not racism.

Most will also display a sticker, shirt or sign with the slogan, "Heritage, Not Hate."

The South has a very different culture than the North. The North has a rather twisted view of the South. It is only natural that the South would hold on to their cultural identity.

So, in my opinion, people who say displaying the flag is "racist" are being simplistic and ignorant. That is not why the vast majority of Southerners display the flag.

In fact, the whole idea that the flag is inherently "racist" is a rather new one. Just 25 years or so ago one of the most popular TV shows in the nation had a car driven by the stars with the flag painted on the roof and hood. No one complained then, because no one thought the flag was inherently racist.

Weird what 25 years of PC bullsh!t can do, huh? Do you think that car and show would air today without complaint?

Good farken point
 

AndrewR

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
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The biggest issue is that there is no such thing as a "Northern culture" which is why people from the northern states have no idea how the Confederate battle flag can represent a cultural identity. Ignorance is rampant on this issue (as is apparent from many of the posts here).
 

mobobuff

Lifer
Apr 5, 2004
11,099
1
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Originally posted by: AndrewR
The biggest issue is that there is no such thing as a "Northern culture" which is why people from the northern states have no idea how the Confederate battle flag can represent a cultural identity. Ignorance is rampant on this issue (as is apparent from many of the posts here).

The North apologizes for being diverse...? :confused: Mine and the OPs anger and confusion is about Northerners obsessing with the flag and relating it to a racist pride. I'm not sure why so many Southern evangelists are getting so uptight about this simple concept. Are you normally so cranky? What happened to Southern hospitality?