This reminds me of every instance that someone jumps on the bandwagon just for the sake of compliance, without reflection and common sense. Maybe that is what I'm doing by speaking up on an obscure blog that no one will read to speak my mind...
...and what blog would that be? AppleInsider? As though NO ONE reads AI?
Many posters on this thread are misinformed. There are plenty of Confederate flags in the iTunes store which you could verify for yourself if you bothered to type the word Confederate into the search. Only the apps with the Confederate Flag used in an offensive or mean-spirited way were removed.
A lot of posters are also misunderstanding where this recent ban or deprecation of the flag comes from. It's got nothing to do with political correctness, just as Germany's ban on the swastika in published form has nothing to do with PC. Germany's case is more extreme, but it illustrates the point.
What the removal of the symbol is meant to achieve is to marginalize a dangerous, deviant group's Pavlovian talisman. If the symbol were a flaming cross or a pointy white hood or a lynching noose, the meaning would be clearer. The flag used to mean Southern pride more generally, but recently in the age of white supremacist backlash—Internet enabled—against diversity, it's become a symbol of white race war. Look at Dylann Roof's poses with the flag and try to tell us otherwise.
To try to frame this as a liberal issue is also misguided. It's a human relations issure in the era of mass audio-visual communications—a Global Village issue in Marshall McLuhan's terms. As such, Apple is going to be ahead of its customers (again) for a while. Tim Cook, with his Alabama background, may have approved this new policy quickly, maybe too quickly, with a phone call. So Apple may have to back up and explain, even backtrack, to get its customers up to speed. But the main point, as a white guy myself, I have to say most of you guys are living in the past. The world changed under your feet about twenty years ago.
Poor, pitiful Apple. The company yanks a Civil War game merely because it contains the flags of both belligerents. Yet it continues to sell a film that glories slavery. Even worse, the iTunes Store doesn't have the decency to include a trigger warning. It calls this lavishly done pro-slavery propaganda, a film that "defines the classic Old Hollywood epic. Classic racism would be more accurate.
You see this over and over again with corporate executives. They're so obsessed with sales and profits, that they lack sense in any other area. Even something as obvious as these rank inconsistencies is beyond them. All they can think about is avoiding a brief spat of hysteria-driven bad publicity.
Apple needs to either restore these harmless games or yank the genuinely bad "Gone with the Wind."
Which illustrates the problem of censorship in general, correctly, same with eliminating games with guns and violence.
But I think the reason for the flag ban should be kept front and center. The kid who convinced himself or was convinced to kill nine black people wrapped himself mentally in that flag, and that flag was on license plates and at state houses throughout the south. It became a symbol like the lynching noose.
Apple's business has become more and more clearly about connecting all people together. Way before Tim Cook took over, they were mixing people, particularly young people, ethnically and racially in their advertising. Diversity is one of their resources and products. So naturally Tim Cook is going to comment on Twitter in support of taking down the S. Carolina Confederate flag. And if he does that, he has to pull offensive use of the flag from the App Store, for consistency.
It may end up that they're just testing the policy, however.
Longtime Apple fan here. This move by Apple is incredibly short sighted and embarrassing. Yes, the flag is a treasonous and racist symbol. Yes, it is also a part of our history. If the flag is used in a historical context then I see no problem with it. I do, however, have a problem with it flying over ANY state capital in this country. Really poor move Apple.
ETA: The challenge is between Lee's Army of Northern Virginia's battle flag and today sits the Ku Klux Klan and their use of that flag for their campaigns of bigotry, hatred and murder.
Again, more propaganda about the "history" of the US "civil war." The conflict 1861-1865 is properly called by all knowing historians as "the War of Northern Aggression."
Winners write the history and, well, not the losers.
Businesses have the right to remove or sell flags whatever they want. I am glad Apple is removing the flag, just like Walmart, Sears, Target, eBay, Etsy, and so on.
What you gonna do? Force them to stock the flag again?
Longtime Apple fan here. This move by Apple is incredibly short sighted and embarrassing. Yes, the flag is a treasonous and racist symbol. Yes, it is also a part of our history. If the flag is used in a historical context then I see no problem with it. I do, however, have a problem with it flying over ANY state capital in this country. Really poor move Apple.
mstone's point is that the flag isn't used in a historical context in the games in question. True or not true?
Sorry but the flag is more than just Klan history. Do some research please.
The point is that it has recently become triple-tainted by white supremacists. No research necessary beyond looking at those pictures Dylann Roof got of himself with his flag and his .45.
I completely support the removal of the Confederate battle flag from State offices and the like and I also completely support retailers stopping the sale of products that use the flag as a logo or design. IMO, the flag represents those who committed treason and fought to support slavery. It was co-opted, beginning around 1948 and especially after the 1954 Brown vs. Bd of Education Supreme Court decision by those who wanted to enforce and keep legal segregation. It's continued use as a point of pride would be no different than Germans displaying the flag of the Third Reich.
But removing it from media when its purpose in that media is to portray history is absolutely absurd. I wouldn't want to see any Government, anywhere in the world, display the swastika, but it would be ridiculous and insulting to remove it from a movie or a book about Hitler and WWII.
If the game portrays Civil War battles, the flag should absolutely be kept. However, if this were a race car game and one of the options was to decorate the car with the Confederate battle flag, I could understand Apple not accepting such a game, although even in that case there are some issues. I don't play games on the computer, so I'm not very familiar with the content of what's sold on the Apple store, but there are some extremely violent video games out there that I personally find far more objectionable (and racist) than the use of the Confederate flag in a game. But to start eliminating them would bring us down a very slippery slope. Maybe the game rating system needs to add ratings for racism, sexism and intolerance.
When did Apple get so stupid? I thought very smart people worked there who understood context.
So now Apple made a statement and said they're only removing apps where the flag was used in an offensive or mean-spirited way. From the ones we know about that were removed I don't see what was offensive or mean-spirited.
If some gay rights activist shut up a Christian church while waving the rainbow flag with Tim Cook call for the rainbow flag to be banished? That's how freaking ridiculous this is.
The point is that it has recently become triple-tainted by white supremacists.
People with Confederate flags on their license plates are probably not a very large market for Apple, whereas the number of people who are offended by the bigotry and racism the flag represents is huge.
I guess we shouldn't be surprised based on this tweet from Tim Cook.
Tim Cook ?@tim_cook Jun 21
My thoughts are with the victim's families in SC.Let us honor their lives by eradicating racism & removing the symbols & words that feed it.
People with Confederate flags on their license plates are probably not a very large market for Apple, whereas the number of people who are offended by the bigotry and racism the flag represents is huge.
Hmm...
Tim Cook ?@tim_cook Mar 27 Apple is open for everyone. We are deeply disappointed in Indiana's new law and calling on Arkansas Gov. to veto the similar #HB1228.
Tim Cook ?@tim_cook Mar 27
Around the world, we strive to treat every customer the same — regardless of where they come from, how they worship or who they love.
Comments
This reminds me of every instance that someone jumps on the bandwagon just for the sake of compliance, without reflection and common sense. Maybe that is what I'm doing by speaking up on an obscure blog that no one will read to speak my mind...
...and what blog would that be? AppleInsider? As though NO ONE reads AI?
A lot of posters are also misunderstanding where this recent ban or deprecation of the flag comes from. It's got nothing to do with political correctness, just as Germany's ban on the swastika in published form has nothing to do with PC. Germany's case is more extreme, but it illustrates the point.
What the removal of the symbol is meant to achieve is to marginalize a dangerous, deviant group's Pavlovian talisman. If the symbol were a flaming cross or a pointy white hood or a lynching noose, the meaning would be clearer. The flag used to mean Southern pride more generally, but recently in the age of white supremacist backlash—Internet enabled—against diversity, it's become a symbol of white race war. Look at Dylann Roof's poses with the flag and try to tell us otherwise.
To try to frame this as a liberal issue is also misguided. It's a human relations issure in the era of mass audio-visual communications—a Global Village issue in Marshall McLuhan's terms. As such, Apple is going to be ahead of its customers (again) for a while. Tim Cook, with his Alabama background, may have approved this new policy quickly, maybe too quickly, with a phone call. So Apple may have to back up and explain, even backtrack, to get its customers up to speed. But the main point, as a white guy myself, I have to say most of you guys are living in the past. The world changed under your feet about twenty years ago.
So I wonder when Apple remove references to the US flag. Some people are offended by that too.
Have you noticed that those complaining most about the Confederate flag show their displeasure by burning it the US flag?
I'll take "Things that make you go Hmmmmm…" for $1000, Alex.
Which illustrates the problem of censorship in general, correctly, same with eliminating games with guns and violence.
But I think the reason for the flag ban should be kept front and center. The kid who convinced himself or was convinced to kill nine black people wrapped himself mentally in that flag, and that flag was on license plates and at state houses throughout the south. It became a symbol like the lynching noose.
Apple's business has become more and more clearly about connecting all people together. Way before Tim Cook took over, they were mixing people, particularly young people, ethnically and racially in their advertising. Diversity is one of their resources and products. So naturally Tim Cook is going to comment on Twitter in support of taking down the S. Carolina Confederate flag. And if he does that, he has to pull offensive use of the flag from the App Store, for consistency.
It may end up that they're just testing the policy, however.
So a Apple has a problem with HISTORY NOW?
What?
Just Klan history.
And I'm okay with that.
ETA: The challenge is between Lee's Army of Northern Virginia's battle flag and today sits the Ku Klux Klan and their use of that flag for their campaigns of bigotry, hatred and murder.
Any person who has evolved sufficiently beyond his origins will seem insane to those he leaves behind.
In other words, there are probably more than a few people in Alabama who would agree with you.
At least there are a lot of people in California who would agree with Tim Cook, leaving aside Orange County, Simi Valley, and places like that.
Again, more propaganda about the "history" of the US "civil war." The conflict 1861-1865 is properly called by all knowing historians as "the War of Northern Aggression."
Winners write the history and, well, not the losers.
Those "Northern Aggressors"? WON.
all knowing historians know that at least.
Just Klan history.
And I'm okay with that.
Sorry but the flag is more than just Klan history. Do some research please.
mstone's point is that the flag isn't used in a historical context in the games in question. True or not true?
Sorry but the flag is more than just Klan history. Do some research please.
"more than" does not remove the Klan does it?
The point is that it has recently become triple-tainted by white supremacists. No research necessary beyond looking at those pictures Dylann Roof got of himself with his flag and his .45.
But removing it from media when its purpose in that media is to portray history is absolutely absurd. I wouldn't want to see any Government, anywhere in the world, display the swastika, but it would be ridiculous and insulting to remove it from a movie or a book about Hitler and WWII.
If the game portrays Civil War battles, the flag should absolutely be kept. However, if this were a race car game and one of the options was to decorate the car with the Confederate battle flag, I could understand Apple not accepting such a game, although even in that case there are some issues. I don't play games on the computer, so I'm not very familiar with the content of what's sold on the Apple store, but there are some extremely violent video games out there that I personally find far more objectionable (and racist) than the use of the Confederate flag in a game. But to start eliminating them would bring us down a very slippery slope. Maybe the game rating system needs to add ratings for racism, sexism and intolerance.
When did Apple get so stupid? I thought very smart people worked there who understood context.
If some gay rights activist shut up a Christian church while waving the rainbow flag with Tim Cook call for the rainbow flag to be banished? That's how freaking ridiculous this is.
The point is that it has recently become triple-tainted by white supremacists.
People with Confederate flags on their license plates are probably not a very large market for Apple, whereas the number of people who are offended by the bigotry and racism the flag represents is huge.
I guess we shouldn't be surprised based on this tweet from Tim Cook.
Tim Cook ?@tim_cook Jun 21
My thoughts are with the victim's families in SC.Let us honor their lives by eradicating racism & removing the symbols & words that feed it.
Hmm...
Tim Cook ?@tim_cook Mar 27
Apple is open for everyone. We are deeply disappointed in Indiana's new law and calling on Arkansas Gov. to veto the similar #HB1228.
Tim Cook ?@tim_cook Mar 27
Around the world, we strive to treat every customer the same — regardless of where they come from, how they worship or who they love.