Flags Of Somebody Else's Fathers

Flags Don't Kill People...


The issue of flags has just gone berserk in the media. Mr Iemma looked really hot under the collar on TV. It's quite strange.

Prime Minister John Howard has called the move stupid and offensive, while Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd says it is "political correctness gone mad".

But Democrats Senator Andrew Bartlett says the Big Day Out organisers have made a sensible decision because some people misuse the flag in a racist way.

"There are people that seek to excuse extremely objectionable and dangerous sentiments simply by wrapping it in the flag," he said.

"If people love the flag genuinely and are proud of their country as we should be, then we should be concerned about misuse of the flag and should be supporting efforts to prevent the misuse of it."

Senator Bartlett says Australians need to accept that there have been times when the flag has been abused.

"We've seen it abused and people that refuse to acknowledge that, I think, are frankly doing the flag a disservice," he said.

"People can and have misused it and the Big Day Out organisers have recognised that."

Yes, well, the notion that's now being raised by the idiot pollies is that it's not flags that kill people; it's people who kill people. So most flags are just ornaments then?
The flag above is of course the Eureka stockade flag which kind of got co-opted by the Republican Movement in the 1990s or so. But once aupon a time it was a flag that also stood for kicking out the Chinese from the gold fields, so it could be seen to be an offensive flags by some parties.
While I'm not particularly fond of it, I don't really mind it.


The Jolly Roger used to be a scary flag, and rightfully so. All it is now is a cipher for piracy and a bygone era. If you draped yourself in one of these at the Big Day Out, I think people would think you're just hot for Johnny Depp.
On the other hand, below is a flag that many (including me) find offensive:

And rightfully so, because to the best of our knowledge it stands for racism, slavery, intolerance and all things Southern USA. How red is your neck if you like this flag? Leathery, Beet, or just plain blood red? Predictably ratbag rednecks and bikie gangs are often seen sporting this flag.

My favorite flag is this one:


It is the Imperial Japanese Navy Flag. I quite like it, but I'm sure if I wore it down the street in Australia, I'd get accosted and may be even assaulted. So I guess you could say I exercise a bit of 'social diplomacy' and would never wear it. But you know, it doesn't take a lot of will-power not to do so. The kinds of people who would wear it in Japan as a fashion statement are a little loopy; or historical revisionists. But you do see defaced versions of it worn by white boys in Sydney who think it's kind of manga-anime-chic. Nobody's angry about those assholes.

Which is all to say, a preoccupation with the flag of any cause is probably a bit daft.