I agree -- we do appear to need to help in quelling terrorist fundamentalism, an obvious matter of national security. There are a lot of different ways we could go about this.
But I really don't see how breast feeding is anything to get worked up about. In your original question you ask "what is an American." Well, an American is ultimately someone who left the country they were in for some reason, or whose ancestor left the country he was in for some reason, and decided to move to a new country with much simpler rules. As far as I'm concerned, an ideal American is just someone who prefers simpler rules. Of course, we've softened after several generations and now don't seem to have the same respect for simplicity.
I personally don't care who has what religion, but I would take exception to a group of muslim men praying on an airplane.
Would a group of priests, or lamas, or rabbis, or wiccans (etc) ritualizing on a plane bother you less than a group of imams? Or have you bought into the conventional idiocy that has been promoted by the current US government and media that "all muslims are terrorists"?
Would a group of priests, or lamas, or rabbis, or wiccans (etc) ritualizing on a plane bother you less than a group of imams? Or have you bought into the conventional idiocy that has been promoted by the current US government and media that "all muslims are terrorists"?
Well, if you read my posts, you'd see I bought into no convetional idiocy- to answer your question.
Other than that i am not exactly sure how to reply to your post seeing as it doesn't really apply to what i've been saying.
Would a group of priests, or lamas, or rabbis, or wiccans (etc) ritualizing on a plane bother you less than a group of imams? Or have you bought into the conventional idiocy that has been promoted by the current US government and media that "all muslims are terrorists"?
It's not idiocy at all. When preists, lamas, rabbis, or wiccans start hijacking planes, or until westernized muslims begin to actively denounce terrorism en masse, then a fair comparison can be made. Until then, these are legimate fears. I say this because I have to admit that if I were on a plane with some heavy duty muslims, I'd be really uneasy. If you wouldn't feel uneasy, then something's wrong with your basic instincts or logical facilites.
Seriously. If you're a heavy duty muslim living in the western world, you should be walking on glass right now (metaphorically of course), not the other way around.
It's not idiocy at all. When preists, lamas, rabbis, or wiccans start hijacking planes, or until westernized muslims begin to actively denounce terrorism en masse, then a fair comparison can be made.
What do you define "terrorism" as? If you want to see some real terrorism, look at any inner city in the US... where certain districts are virtual no-go areas due to acts of terrorism like drive-by shootings, carjackings, beatings, courtesy of our own homegrown terrorist groups? 14,000 murders in LA county alone in the last 10 years, and probably not a single, solitary one for, and on behalf of Mohammed. The streetgang modus operandum conforms to any definition of terrorism, and no, a thousand times no, they are not just common criminals, as the powers that be would prefer us us all to believe.
Look at a history of hijacking and bombing of commercial planes and you will actually find that Muslims are not the only perpetrators. Yes, there have been instances where Muslim groups have hijacked and bombed airplanes, for sure.. but there also a number of instances where they have been framed as patsies.
Quote:
Until then, these are legimate fears. I say this because I have to admit that if I were on a plane with some heavy duty muslims, I'd be really uneasy.
What, exactly, is a "heavy duty Muslim", and why would you, without personally knowing him... think he may be a "suspect"? If you see a person who looks obviously "Muslim" with a long beard, wearing traditional middle eastern garb, carrying a copy of the Koran, and you see him on your flight, then rest assured that the Department of Homeland Security, the TSA, the airport police, the airline officials on the gates, the security scanning personnel, the federal marshals, the local FBI agents who troll airport concourses and every other suspicious government agent (and hordes of other suspicious travelers, perhaps many like like yourself), would have paid the gentleman an undue amount of attention. The chances are that he has been detained, frisked and searched umpteen times, questioned, and generally harrassed... and the chances that he has managed to board your flight with anything that raises more than an eyebrow would be less than zero. He would probably be the least potentially dangerous passenger on your flight!!. If he was a true fundie.. the chances are that he also wouldn't pull an "air rage stunt" due to consuming too many Jack Daniels...
Perhaps your "heavy duty muslim" would be a clean-shaven man with a blinding hangover and traces of cocaine on his nostrils from the all night party he just attended with a bunch of local strippers .. you know, someone like Mohamed Atta. I guess you probably wouldn't recognize him?
Quote:
If you wouldn't feel uneasy, then something's wrong with your basic instincts or logical facilites.
The chances of dying as a result of "Muslim terrorism" in a western nation is about the same as being hit by a meteor from outer space (or perhaps meeting an alien from there ). If you wish to live in a world of paranoia fueled by a government who wishes to demonize a certain race and religion (for reasons best known to themselves), then that is your prerogative. It is not mine.
Quote:
Seriously. If you're a heavy duty muslim living in the western world, you should be walking on glass right now (metaphorically of course), not the other way around.
Well, that comment is akin to the kind of racist trolling typical of yahoo "discussion" boards, Really.
This is not, of course, a "lets all sympathize with the poor downtrodden Muslims of the world" post. I am not denying that muslims have been involved in lots of acts of terrorism in overseas nations where that religion is the more commonplace than here in the US. But lets not get herded into the land of kneejerk paranoia, just because we need a new bogeyman to replace the now defunct "dreaded communist curse".
A fear is an irrational human mental flaw, not something that could be legitimate. Instilling fear is a good old scare tactic, and the War on Terrorism is just one of the more recent examples.
Terrorism is a legitimate problem. For everyone to be worried about it, however, is not legitimate.
What should one do if you percieve a threat? Don't ge tme wrong, I don't share a lot of Spline's sentiments, but I honestly feel I measured out some pretty common sense. Just because odds are low, doesn't mean you can't ignore some warning signs.
I agree unwarranted fear is a bad thing indeed, but you get the absolute luxury of hindsight on this. If there are more than a couple warning signs in your presence, should you chalk it up to your paranoia? It's a tricky subject for sure, especially since we weren't there... but you realize that the authorities have to check out anything reported, right? How much blame would you cast if a terrorist act occurred because the police didn't check out a tip right before something happened?
It's just not something you can judge right or wrong. It's a product of how shitty the world is right now. Planes did fly into buildings, buildings have been bombed, subways have been bombed, nightclubs... some of this in the USA, some outside of it. It doesn't mean nothing can ever happen again, because the reality is we aren't secure at all. Our borders are pretty much wide open, for one. Everyone being dilligent is a good thing, no?
It's just not something you can judge right or wrong. It's a product of how shitty the world is right now.
It's a product of what the world has always been like. This is not a recent problem, nor an increasing one. The worlds' societies have always had outcasts and rebels, and their viciousness has always been proportional to the viciousness of those perceived to be "in the right".
Right now, "we" have extremely dangerous weapons, and therefore so do "they".
You want to improve the situation? Then disarm and demobilize, and work towards improving societal conditions for those who are less well off, as well as those who are less in agreement with the policies of the majority.
The problem with AI is that every misstep reported in America gets magnified so that a whole country can be put down by people who are even smaller than the idiots they're condemning.
Every country has its share of things that go badly wrong.
In Toronto, we've had a group put up posters encouraging people who didn't know how to read to seek out help. It seemed not to occur to the well-meaning individuals that their target market wouldn't be able to read the poster.
That's not a reflection on all Canadians, just an ill-considered plan put into action.
In a country of 300 million people, I don't think a couple of not-well-thought-out actions should be cause to question a whole country.
In Toronto, we've had a group put up posters encouraging people who didn't know how to read to seek out help. It seemed not to occur to the well-meaning individuals that their target market wouldn't be able to read the poster.
Well, security in some form has to exist until the day peace and tranquility befall the land and we all eat candy together and sing a wide swath of religious songs to laugh and share.
The disarming part sure won't work for pretty obvious reasons in the case of extremists- they aren't using AK47s for their worst work.
And it will most likely be quite some time before the social issues are worked out. And once the utopia is realized, I think we could probably shit can the security like an ice-block refrigerator.
I am hoping it happens in my life time, but since it's been hundreds of years of conflicts in that region I am prepared that it won't.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chucker
It's a product of what the world has always been like. This is not a recent problem, nor an increasing one. The worlds' societies have always had outcasts and rebels, and their viciousness has always been proportional to the viciousness of those perceived to be "in the right".
Right now, "we" have extremely dangerous weapons, and therefore so do "they".
You want to improve the situation? Then disarm and demobilize, and work towards improving societal conditions for those who are less well off, as well as those who are less in agreement with the policies of the majority.
until the day peace and tranquility befall the land and we all eat candy together and sing a wide swath of religious songs to laugh and share.
A utopia. Not gonna happen.
Quote:
The disarming part sure won't work for pretty obvious reasons in the case of extremists- they aren't using AK47s for their worst work.
I wasn't trying to advocate disarming altogether, i.e. giving up the military. I was merely suggesting a halt to further developing weapon systems, because the more "we" threat "them", the more they will response.
Quote:
And it will most likely be quite some time before the social issues are worked out. And once the utopia is realized, I think we could probably shit can the security like an ice-block refrigerator.
But we can improve society right now, by taking a closer look at how and why some people keep sinking lower and lower, and by trying to help them, in ever-so-small ways.
Quote:
I am hoping it happens in my life time, but since it's been hundreds of years of conflicts in that region I am prepared that it won't.
Indeed: it won't. And that's why we should continue living on our lives together and appreciate every happy moment of them, instead of constantly being afraid of what might happen. A car accident in your family is more likely than a terrorist strike on your workplace —*and yet most people are more afraid of the latter. Makes no sense.
You see blatant ignorance presumably because muslim prayers kicked off the security alert.
I see a few other behavior patterns that make me why it could make sense that they were checked out, including:
1-Praying right before they got on the plane- and prayer time (as i said) for that day and that location was 6:23 PM CST- and the plane took off @ 6:30 PM CST. Could look like prayer and then hustle on the plane if they were on time for both.
2-Separating once on the plane into first class and different sections of coach.
3-Not sitting in their assigned seats.
And since it's unconfirmed - they were supposedly speaking down on the war- which would have removed all suspicion in my eyes but in conjunction with the above behavior, they may have put some over the edge- but it's unconfirmed so it may be irrelevant.
We weren't there, so it's easy to second guess what happened whether you believe security was needed or not. But security is supposed to prevent, not clean up disasters.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tonton
I think Muslim Studies should be a required course in all high schools. It's time for the ignorance to stop.
Almost every region (with Antartica being one of the exceptions) on earth has seen hundreds and hundreds of years of conflict. Northern Ireland has a pretty interesting history, as does Waco, Texas, to name two locales with nothing to do with the Muslim world.
How many Americans have died due to terrorist attack in the last century? Just under 3000 on 9/11, plus a couple of smaller incidents, with a total probably less than 4000.
In 2004 alone, over 16000 people were murdered in the US.
And then there is the Time Clock posted by the FBI:
I am pretty sure most rational people realize that if a plane goes down, it will be due to mechanical failure (as low as the odds already are) as opposed ot a terrorist action.
However, from a security standpoint- you have to accept it's a reality despite the odds because if you aren't dilligent, and one does occur not only will the blame get tossed around, the damage - as I said, would be beyond an airplane full of people dying.
Doesn't that make sense?
And btw- thanks everyone for not flaming and keeping a good conversation going in these slow and boring but have to be at work holiday times .
Holiday? What holiday? I never got any memo about a holiday!
What about the flag law?
There was an interesting (to put it mildly) American who passed through here in Japan who showed me a pic of his home back in the states, flag hanging off the front porch and all. He explained that the flag had been placed post 9/11, and was flown proudly every day.
Same guy, while driving around Japan on Nov 23 last year was scared by the number of Japanese flags which were flying and asked whether nationalism was on the rise again; he furthered by saying the US should reconsider its military agreements with Japan.
November 23 happens to be the day when the Emperor's birthday is celebrated: a national holiday. Flags are rarely seen any other days.
Holiday? What holiday? I never got any memo about a holiday!
What about the flag law?
There was an interesting (to put it mildly) American who passed through here in Japan who showed me a pic of his home back in the states, flag hanging off the front porch and all. He explained that the flag had been placed post 9/11, and was flown proudly every day.
Same guy, while driving around Japan on Nov 23 last year was scared by the number of Japanese flags which were flying and asked whether nationalism was on the rise again; he furthered by saying the US should reconsider its military agreements with Japan.
November 23 happens to be the day when the Emperor's birthday is celebrated: a national holiday. Flags are rarely seen any other days.
Well, that guy sounds like a jackass. I've never been in another country and questioned their culture.
Btw- you know, it's thanksgiving week, and if you work in the US financial market industry- the holiday starts on Monday despite it occuring on Thursday! So fukn slow!
That flag law has everything to do with immigration. It's a byproduct of frustration. I think it means our government should get back on solving the immigration problem.
Comments
Not for nothing- but this actually should be far more outrage producing when it comes to getting kicked off an airplane:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061121/...eding_protests
I am soooo glad I left the US a while back; it is worse than I thought.
Added this article to the original post so people can ponder it as well. The country is in dire need of help, fast.
The country is in dire need of help, fast.
I agree -- we do appear to need to help in quelling terrorist fundamentalism, an obvious matter of national security. There are a lot of different ways we could go about this.
But I really don't see how breast feeding is anything to get worked up about. In your original question you ask "what is an American." Well, an American is ultimately someone who left the country they were in for some reason, or whose ancestor left the country he was in for some reason, and decided to move to a new country with much simpler rules. As far as I'm concerned, an ideal American is just someone who prefers simpler rules. Of course, we've softened after several generations and now don't seem to have the same respect for simplicity.
I personally don't care who has what religion, but I would take exception to a group of muslim men praying on an airplane.
Would a group of priests, or lamas, or rabbis, or wiccans (etc) ritualizing on a plane bother you less than a group of imams? Or have you bought into the conventional idiocy that has been promoted by the current US government and media that "all muslims are terrorists"?
Would a group of priests, or lamas, or rabbis, or wiccans (etc) ritualizing on a plane bother you less than a group of imams? Or have you bought into the conventional idiocy that has been promoted by the current US government and media that "all muslims are terrorists"?
Well, if you read my posts, you'd see I bought into no convetional idiocy- to answer your question.
Other than that i am not exactly sure how to reply to your post seeing as it doesn't really apply to what i've been saying.
Would a group of priests, or lamas, or rabbis, or wiccans (etc) ritualizing on a plane bother you less than a group of imams? Or have you bought into the conventional idiocy that has been promoted by the current US government and media that "all muslims are terrorists"?
It's not idiocy at all. When preists, lamas, rabbis, or wiccans start hijacking planes, or until westernized muslims begin to actively denounce terrorism en masse, then a fair comparison can be made. Until then, these are legimate fears. I say this because I have to admit that if I were on a plane with some heavy duty muslims, I'd be really uneasy. If you wouldn't feel uneasy, then something's wrong with your basic instincts or logical facilites.
Seriously. If you're a heavy duty muslim living in the western world, you should be walking on glass right now (metaphorically of course), not the other way around.
It's not idiocy at all. When preists, lamas, rabbis, or wiccans start hijacking planes, or until westernized muslims begin to actively denounce terrorism en masse, then a fair comparison can be made.
What do you define "terrorism" as? If you want to see some real terrorism, look at any inner city in the US... where certain districts are virtual no-go areas due to acts of terrorism like drive-by shootings, carjackings, beatings, courtesy of our own homegrown terrorist groups? 14,000 murders in LA county alone in the last 10 years, and probably not a single, solitary one for, and on behalf of Mohammed. The streetgang modus operandum conforms to any definition of terrorism, and no, a thousand times no, they are not just common criminals, as the powers that be would prefer us us all to believe.
Look at a history of hijacking and bombing of commercial planes and you will actually find that Muslims are not the only perpetrators. Yes, there have been instances where Muslim groups have hijacked and bombed airplanes, for sure.. but there also a number of instances where they have been framed as patsies.
Until then, these are legimate fears. I say this because I have to admit that if I were on a plane with some heavy duty muslims, I'd be really uneasy.
What, exactly, is a "heavy duty Muslim", and why would you, without personally knowing him... think he may be a "suspect"? If you see a person who looks obviously "Muslim" with a long beard, wearing traditional middle eastern garb, carrying a copy of the Koran, and you see him on your flight, then rest assured that the Department of Homeland Security, the TSA, the airport police, the airline officials on the gates, the security scanning personnel, the federal marshals, the local FBI agents who troll airport concourses and every other suspicious government agent (and hordes of other suspicious travelers, perhaps many like like yourself), would have paid the gentleman an undue amount of attention. The chances are that he has been detained, frisked and searched umpteen times, questioned, and generally harrassed... and the chances that he has managed to board your flight with anything that raises more than an eyebrow would be less than zero. He would probably be the least potentially dangerous passenger on your flight!!. If he was a true fundie.. the chances are that he also wouldn't pull an "air rage stunt" due to consuming too many Jack Daniels...
Perhaps your "heavy duty muslim" would be a clean-shaven man with a blinding hangover and traces of cocaine on his nostrils from the all night party he just attended with a bunch of local strippers .. you know, someone like Mohamed Atta.
If you wouldn't feel uneasy, then something's wrong with your basic instincts or logical facilites.
The chances of dying as a result of "Muslim terrorism" in a western nation is about the same as being hit by a meteor from outer space (or perhaps meeting an alien from there
Seriously. If you're a heavy duty muslim living in the western world, you should be walking on glass right now (metaphorically of course), not the other way around.
Well, that comment is akin to the kind of racist trolling typical of yahoo "discussion" boards, Really.
This is not, of course, a "lets all sympathize with the poor downtrodden Muslims of the world" post. I am not denying that muslims have been involved in lots of acts of terrorism in overseas nations where that religion is the more commonplace than here in the US. But lets not get herded into the land of kneejerk paranoia, just because we need a new bogeyman to replace the now defunct "dreaded communist curse".
Until then, these are legimate fears.
MEEP!
Does not compute.
A fear is an irrational human mental flaw, not something that could be legitimate. Instilling fear is a good old scare tactic, and the War on Terrorism is just one of the more recent examples.
Terrorism is a legitimate problem. For everyone to be worried about it, however, is not legitimate.
What should one do if you percieve a threat? Don't ge tme wrong, I don't share a lot of Spline's sentiments, but I honestly feel I measured out some pretty common sense. Just because odds are low, doesn't mean you can't ignore some warning signs.
I agree unwarranted fear is a bad thing indeed, but you get the absolute luxury of hindsight on this. If there are more than a couple warning signs in your presence, should you chalk it up to your paranoia? It's a tricky subject for sure, especially since we weren't there... but you realize that the authorities have to check out anything reported, right? How much blame would you cast if a terrorist act occurred because the police didn't check out a tip right before something happened?
It's just not something you can judge right or wrong. It's a product of how shitty the world is right now. Planes did fly into buildings, buildings have been bombed, subways have been bombed, nightclubs... some of this in the USA, some outside of it. It doesn't mean nothing can ever happen again, because the reality is we aren't secure at all. Our borders are pretty much wide open, for one. Everyone being dilligent is a good thing, no?
It's just not something you can judge right or wrong. It's a product of how shitty the world is right now.
It's a product of what the world has always been like. This is not a recent problem, nor an increasing one. The worlds' societies have always had outcasts and rebels, and their viciousness has always been proportional to the viciousness of those perceived to be "in the right".
Right now, "we" have extremely dangerous weapons, and therefore so do "they".
You want to improve the situation? Then disarm and demobilize, and work towards improving societal conditions for those who are less well off, as well as those who are less in agreement with the policies of the majority.
Every country has its share of things that go badly wrong.
In Toronto, we've had a group put up posters encouraging people who didn't know how to read to seek out help. It seemed not to occur to the well-meaning individuals that their target market wouldn't be able to read the poster.
That's not a reflection on all Canadians, just an ill-considered plan put into action.
In a country of 300 million people, I don't think a couple of not-well-thought-out actions should be cause to question a whole country.
In Toronto, we've had a group put up posters encouraging people who didn't know how to read to seek out help. It seemed not to occur to the well-meaning individuals that their target market wouldn't be able to read the poster.
Source?
I think Muslim Studies should be a required course in all high schools. It's time for the ignorance to stop.
I agree.
The disarming part sure won't work for pretty obvious reasons in the case of extremists- they aren't using AK47s for their worst work.
And it will most likely be quite some time before the social issues are worked out. And once the utopia is realized, I think we could probably shit can the security like an ice-block refrigerator.
I am hoping it happens in my life time, but since it's been hundreds of years of conflicts in that region I am prepared that it won't.
It's a product of what the world has always been like. This is not a recent problem, nor an increasing one. The worlds' societies have always had outcasts and rebels, and their viciousness has always been proportional to the viciousness of those perceived to be "in the right".
Right now, "we" have extremely dangerous weapons, and therefore so do "they".
You want to improve the situation? Then disarm and demobilize, and work towards improving societal conditions for those who are less well off, as well as those who are less in agreement with the policies of the majority.
Well, security in some form has to exist
Of course.
until the day peace and tranquility befall the land and we all eat candy together and sing a wide swath of religious songs to laugh and share.
A utopia. Not gonna happen.
The disarming part sure won't work for pretty obvious reasons in the case of extremists- they aren't using AK47s for their worst work.
I wasn't trying to advocate disarming altogether, i.e. giving up the military. I was merely suggesting a halt to further developing weapon systems, because the more "we" threat "them", the more they will response.
And it will most likely be quite some time before the social issues are worked out. And once the utopia is realized, I think we could probably shit can the security like an ice-block refrigerator.
But we can improve society right now, by taking a closer look at how and why some people keep sinking lower and lower, and by trying to help them, in ever-so-small ways.
I am hoping it happens in my life time, but since it's been hundreds of years of conflicts in that region I am prepared that it won't.
Indeed: it won't. And that's why we should continue living on our lives together and appreciate every happy moment of them, instead of constantly being afraid of what might happen. A car accident in your family is more likely than a terrorist strike on your workplace —*and yet most people are more afraid of the latter. Makes no sense.
You see blatant ignorance presumably because muslim prayers kicked off the security alert.
I see a few other behavior patterns that make me why it could make sense that they were checked out, including:
1-Praying right before they got on the plane- and prayer time (as i said) for that day and that location was 6:23 PM CST- and the plane took off @ 6:30 PM CST. Could look like prayer and then hustle on the plane if they were on time for both.
2-Separating once on the plane into first class and different sections of coach.
3-Not sitting in their assigned seats.
And since it's unconfirmed - they were supposedly speaking down on the war- which would have removed all suspicion in my eyes
We weren't there, so it's easy to second guess what happened whether you believe security was needed or not. But security is supposed to prevent, not clean up disasters.
I think Muslim Studies should be a required course in all high schools. It's time for the ignorance to stop.
How many Americans have died due to terrorist attack in the last century? Just under 3000 on 9/11, plus a couple of smaller incidents, with a total probably less than 4000.
In 2004 alone, over 16000 people were murdered in the US.
And then there is the Time Clock posted by the FBI:
Every 23.1 seconds: One Violent Crime
Every 32.6 minutes: One Murder
Every 5.6 minutes: One Forcible Rape
Every 1.3 minutes: One Robbery
Every 36.9 seconds: One Aggravated Assault
Every 3.1 seconds: One Property Crime
Every 14.7 seconds: One Burglary
Every 4.5 seconds: One Larceny-theft
Every 25.5 seconds: One Motor Vehicle Theft
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius_04/offen...me/murder.html
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius_04/summa...ock/index.html
Hate crimes
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius_04/offen...ime/index.html
Looks to me like we have a lot more worrying to do about being hurt by our own neighbors than by a terrorist.
What kind of security do you suggest until we can all eat candy together?
41,000 die every year on US roads
3.2 million are injured (1% of the population EVERY YEAR)
http://www.car-accidents.com/pages/s...00_killed.html
Not all of these are intentional, of course.
However, from a security standpoint- you have to accept it's a reality despite the odds because if you aren't dilligent, and one does occur not only will the blame get tossed around, the damage - as I said, would be beyond an airplane full of people dying.
Doesn't that make sense?
And btw- thanks everyone for not flaming and keeping a good conversation going in these slow and boring but have to be at work holiday times
What about the flag law?
There was an interesting (to put it mildly) American who passed through here in Japan who showed me a pic of his home back in the states, flag hanging off the front porch and all. He explained that the flag had been placed post 9/11, and was flown proudly every day.
Same guy, while driving around Japan on Nov 23 last year was scared by the number of Japanese flags which were flying and asked whether nationalism was on the rise again; he furthered by saying the US should reconsider its military agreements with Japan.
November 23 happens to be the day when the Emperor's birthday is celebrated: a national holiday. Flags are rarely seen any other days.
Holiday? What holiday? I never got any memo about a holiday!
What about the flag law?
There was an interesting (to put it mildly) American who passed through here in Japan who showed me a pic of his home back in the states, flag hanging off the front porch and all. He explained that the flag had been placed post 9/11, and was flown proudly every day.
Same guy, while driving around Japan on Nov 23 last year was scared by the number of Japanese flags which were flying and asked whether nationalism was on the rise again; he furthered by saying the US should reconsider its military agreements with Japan.
November 23 happens to be the day when the Emperor's birthday is celebrated: a national holiday. Flags are rarely seen any other days.
Well, that guy sounds like a jackass. I've never been in another country and questioned their culture.
Btw- you know, it's thanksgiving week, and if you work in the US financial market industry- the holiday starts on Monday despite it occuring on Thursday! So fukn slow!
That flag law has everything to do with immigration. It's a byproduct of frustration. I think it means our government should get back on solving the immigration problem.