Discussion: South Carolina's Confederate Flag Is Gone, But Others Remain

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Discussion for article #238340

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Baby steps.

But the issue is not just in South Carolina. The entire Bible Belt – and their socially-regressive conservative politico backers – strive to rewrite American history so that the South is regarded as the maligned victim of Northern aggression in the years before, during, and after the Civil War, and slavery is merely a footnote.

Case in point – the concerted effort in Texas to transform public school textbooks into a medium for pro-Confederacy propaganda.
U.S. History, as taught in Texas public schools, will have as much authenticity as a comic book wherein the Confederate flag represents “truth, justice, and the American way”.

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“Maybe people will change their hearts.”

Possible – But only if one HAS the heart to change-- The sad fact is that behavior, as of late, has proven that many of our elected representatives are bereft of this vital organ –

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Large numbers of flag supporters, who say it symbolizes Southern heritage and history, remain.

If they really want to honor Southern heritage, they are free to create a flag that bears the image of a pecan pie.

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Let me fix this for you AP writers:

In South Carolina, Republican Gov. Nikki Haley made it a priority for predominantly Republican lawmakers to pass legislation to take the flag down, reversing course from her 2014 campaign trail dismissal of Democratic challenger Vincent Sheheen’s call for its removal as a campaign stunt.

Gov. Nikki Haley hasn’t reversed anything, in light of Vincent Sheheen (D) statements a few hours after 9 people were killed by a lunatic thug, she was spot on:

“I think there is a divide about people’s perceptions and understanding of what a Confederate battle flag is,” Sheheen told HuffPost. “To some people, it truly is about heritage. To others, it is about racial oppression. To me, regardless of which understanding you have about it, it’s still something that divides us.”

He said “there are good people on both sides of the issue,” adding that the debate about the flag should not be about declaring a right and wrong side but rather about finding a way to unify a state with a "raw history of racism."

"I don’t say ‘get rid of [the flag],’ because it is a part of our history. But do you want to fly a symbol that’s divisive on our front steps of the state house?" Sheheen said. “Let’s put it in a place where we can tell its story, and thousands of people can see it in a more appropriate place.”

Sorry Mr. Sheheen (D), to black people the Confederate flag is nothing about heritage and a lot about history of racism and oppression. Political stunt it was, Gov. Nikki Haley ÂŽ was right on the money.

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It’s strange that this article doesn’t include Arkansas State flag…yet it’s composition kind of reminds of other controversial flags. Then one digs a little and finds things like this:

In 1987, Bill Clinton signed Act 116 that stated “The blue star above the word “ARKANSAS” is to commemorate the Confederate States of America.”

Holy cow…!!!

Recognize the signature?

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HP had a good article on that last month.


Arkansas actually still celebrates Confederate Flag Day. The day before Easter. How “Christian”.

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I’m willing to chip in money for any campaign in any Southern state to remove Confederate memorabilia that is currently located on public property that is not a museum. If you know of any, let me know.

I especially would like to help support a campaign in Louisiana to alter the “Colfax Riot” plaque that was erected by the state in the 1950’s. It is factually inaccurate.

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“It’s like they’re trying to take one bad thing from us, slavery, and they ignore the progress that was made before the war.”

Yeah, it’s the little things, the ones that don’t really matter.

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“We need a kind of mental cleansing down here,” Potok said. “It’s 150 years overdue.”

It’s certainly been overdue since the 60’s.

But despite best efforts by people who want this to win elections in southern states, the tide has turned.

Dylann Roof is the biggest reason why the internet “teachers” he read have been sent scurrying.

The kid couldn’t finish high school, but he certainly could learn if it made him feel better. And those racists he read preyed on him. They should join him on his journey, because they certainly were accessories.

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Imagine if for the past 50 plus years the Hammer and Sickle was flown at state capitals. Or highways and streets were named and monuments were placed in town squares honoring Stalin, Alger Hiss and Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. This stuff would have been purged the minute the Cold War ended.

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…Alger Hiss and Julius and Ethel Rosenberg

Whatever he was claimed to have done, she was innocent.

On January 25, 1950, Judge Goddard sentenced Hiss to five years’ imprisonment on each of the two counts, to run concurrently.

At a subsequent press conference, Secretary of State Dean Acheson reacted emotionally, affirming, “I do not intend to turn my back on Alger Hiss.” Acheson quoted Jesus in the Bible: “I was a Stranger and ye took me in; Naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick and ye visited me; I was in prison and ye came unto me.” Acheson’s remarks enraged Nixon, who accused him of blasphemy.[50] The verdict was upheld by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (case citation 185 F.2d 822), and the Supreme Court of the United States denied a writ of certiorari (340 U.S. 948).

The case heightened public concern about Soviet espionage penetration of the U.S. government in the 1930s and 1940s. As a well-educated and highly connected government official from an old American family, Alger Hiss did not fit the profile of a typical spy.

Publicity surrounding the case thrust Richard M. Nixon into the public spotlight, helping him move from the U.S. House of Representatives to the U.S. Senate in 1950, to the Vice Presidency of the United States in 1952, and finally to President of the United States in 1968.

Senator Joseph McCarthy made his famous speech at Wheeling, West Virginia, two weeks after the Hiss verdict, launching his career as the nation’s most visible anti-communist.

Witch trials. We just can’t seem to get past the Puritans or their hypocrisy.

Or people from Wisconsin.

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They can only think in terms of hatred. Who should I hate? Who hates me? Don’t Southerners read the bible?

Save your souls.

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“We need a kind of mental cleansing down here,” Potok said. “It’s 150 years overdue.”

Well said, so true!

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“They try to make us the villain. I’ve got a question: Is it just a hatred of Southerners?”

I wasn’t ready for “hate” either. But since he took us there…

No, sir, it’s not"just" hatred. More like “not yet.” Carry on as you do, though, sir, and we might yet catch up. Which would be a shame; there is too much hate in this story already.

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I was slightly surprised when I first saw the memorial to fallen confederate soldiers many years ago in Raleigh, NC. And searching the google a bit it’s interesting to read about some of the controversy about when it went up and some cries for it to come down a few years back. Seems like all these flags and statues ought to be put in some area designated for confederate stuff just for history’s sake, and more to show as something we’d like not to repeat, but not in the center of the capital as if we were proud of it.

http://www.newraleigh.com/articles/archive/tear-down-this-monument/

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Living in Mississippi, I can say there is a lot of dialogue going on about the flag and other symbols right now. If you take quick peak on social media down here, there is a huge battle going on. At least we have the conversation started.

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You know when you are going to maliciously misrepresent some ones quotes it helps if you don’t leave in the parts of the quote that show you are maliciously misrepresenting them.

As you’re first quote shows it was Sheheen’s calling for the flag’s removal a year ago, she dismissed as a stunt back on the campaign trail. Further the second quote shows he was still advocating it’s removal after the Charleston shooting, maintaining the consistent “remove the flag” position that he had before the shooting, while Nikki all of a sudden found religion and turned against the flag she had previously defended.

So what you are trying to claim is that Sheheen’s consistently calling for the flags removal before and after a tragedy is a political stunt to be derided, while Nikki’s dismissal of efforts to remove the flag before the tragedy as political gamesmanship only to flip and demand the flags removal after the tragedy is a display of political principle to be applauded and you expect the readers here to be to stupid to notice the disconnect? You need to find a new schtick, you really aren’t very good at this amateur GOP PR gig.

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Please “talk to me” when you can decipher political double talking.