Flags: Good or Bad?

[Abi]

Every year, whenever Wimbledon comes around, whenever the Euro cup happens, and whenever the World Cup happens, they always have this age old arguement....

Should people fly the flags of the nation they're supporting?

At the minute, London for one, is completly covered with St. Georges Flags. In the windows of houses, shops, cars, Black Cabs... everywhere.

But still, theres stories of cabs being told to take them down. And a mother being told to turn her babies England shirt in-side-out, so it didn't show as an England Strip.

So where do you stand? Is it such a bad thing to fly flags, not just for the World Cup, but any event, sporting or non-sporting (Like the jubilee, Olympics, World Cup, Euro, Wimbledon, Queens, etc)? Discuss :D

[.:SpIcYsPy:.]

Again I think this should be in the Sports forum lol sorry..

Ermwell one of my mate brought in a HUGE England flag. He got told of from our head because apparently the flags are racist..

No one questioned it but everyone is really confused and dosen't understand how it's racist.. Neither do I whatever the points are.. We are only supporting our country/team!!

[shannisrules]

of course we should be allowed why not!

sory but i get really peed of about this i was watching the news and it said peopel were told to take them down because it offended people from countries such as iran iraq and pakistan etc. well f**k them if they dont like it they know what they can do! why come into this country if they dont like our rules? they are even trying to change them! if we want to fly our flag and be proud of what country we are in then so be it! if you go to france you can see the french flag flying high on every important building such as the primisters house or whatever basically they fligh their flag because they are proud of their nationality , where do you see it in england when things liek the world cup wimbledon etc are not on?...you dont

my point.... its these immigrants who come into our country them demand what they want! if our flag offends tehm then they can go somewhere else! you cant change british history

[.:SpIcYsPy:.]

Or they can put their own flag up!! It won't be offending us because we are supporting England!! Nothing we can do about it and besides.. this is ENGLAND!!

[shannisrules]

ye thats just what gets me! they can go around all dressed in black so we can only see their eyes but i dont see many complaints about that but when we fly our flag in our own country they strongly disagree with it?

[Abi]

Again I think this should be in the Sports forum lol sorry..

Ermwell one of my mate brought in a HUGE England flag. He got told of from our head because apparently the flags are racist..

No one questioned it but everyone is really confused and dosen't understand how it's racist.. Neither do I whatever the points are.. We are only supporting our country/team!!

I dont just mean for sporting things, but for all things where people become Patriotic. Like the Jubilee, Eurovision, all those type of things. What i mean is, is it right to show yourself to support your country and be patriotic. Or is it wrong. Thats why i didn't put this in the sports forum, because i think it goes further then just sports events. But hey, i'm open for corrections.

I think anyone and everyone should show what country they support- be that England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, or whatever. I think its great people show, through flags, that they're supporting whatever country. People always say it discriminates against minorities, and can be seen as racist. Well, i dont think it is really. I think anyone and everyone should put up flags, or whatever, to support ANY country (not just England or other British flags). I think its great to see some foreign flags, like France. Its just because you mainly see British flags for these things, so they stand out more then anything.

[alan45]

I am proud of my country and of its flag. However it should be treated with respect and anyone flying it should be aware of the responsiblities that come with it. So many times I have seen it flying upside down

[Cornishbabe]

I think that people should be able to show their support for whatever country they want and it really shouldnt matter to anyone else unless they start getting violent. In cornwall almost everyone I know have cornish flags on their cars then you have people with the england ones aswell!

[.:SpIcYsPy:.]

Oh ok sorry Abi!! :) But I think whatever flag you're putting up it should be allowed.. it's all about SUPPORT!!

I seriously can't understand how it's racist.. Hope someone brings in an England flag and questions him.. politely of course!! Just clearly to see what his reasons are because there are mixed nationalties in out school.. not many but a few but still I see no racism in a FLAG!!

[shannisrules]

I seriously can't understand how it's racist..

im not sure either but i did hear that muslims get offended by the english flag because its also a sign for a beliver in their country or something? well not a believer but like take hitler for an example i heared that the english flag meant a sign for hitler...its not actually hiteler i just dont know the fuill details

[.:SpIcYsPy:.]

I don't understand Nicole :rotfl: But either way it's our flag and we are supporting whatever we are supporting so it's their problem.. it's only a FLAG!! :|

[Katy]

I think its a great way of showing your nationality. In Ireland each county has there own colours and its kind of tradition to have you colours flying. Its weird when there isnt a flag. I think its letting people know where your from. There was one house who painted the bottom half green and the top half red, but they were a little excentric.

I remember driving down the m6 to my aunties in Birmingham on the day of the Manchester City Versus Gillingham playoff final (as we did not have sky tv) and nearly all the cars on the road had there city flags and scarfs flying out the windows saying they were pround fans. so it doesnt even have to be about country. if people are proud of something let it be shown. We always put up an Ireland Rugby flag for Rugby events in the window, no one takes any offence.

[Meh]

of course we should be allowed why not!

sory but i get really peed of about this i was watching the news and it said peopel were told to take them down because it offended people from countries such as iran iraq and pakistan etc. well f**k them if they dont like it they know what they can do! why come into this country if they dont like our rules? they are even trying to change them! if we want to fly our flag and be proud of what country we are in then so be it! if you go to france you can see the french flag flying high on every important building such as the primisters house or whatever basically they fligh their flag because they are proud of their nationality , where do you see it in england when things liek the world cup wimbledon etc are not on?...you dont

my point.... its these immigrants who come into our country them demand what they want! if our flag offends tehm then they can go somewhere else! you cant change british history

Firstly, don't mask your swearing. Let the autocensor do the masking.

Why are you blaming immigrants? I've seen people of all colours proudly flying the British flag with pride.

As you would naturally know (being an expert on British culture and all that), that the argument is due to two facts:

1. The british flag is a representation of colonialism
2. St Georges flag has connotations with religious bloodshed in the past

I want people of all colours to fly both flags. Do you know why? So its stops bigots fom using flags as a racial divide.

[Tori]

what annoys me at the moment is the flags on cars. what will happen once it's over? they'll all go in the landfill. it's totally unnecessary and it's also polluting the environment. i have no problem with flags on buildings, i don't mind if its the union flag or St George's... it's showing your support which counts

[shannisrules]

Firstly, don't mask your swearing. Let the autocensor do the masking.

well sorry didnt know it would mask it so i didnt bother is that a problem after all i stil masked it plus didnt want to get a warning incase it didnt mask it


As you would naturally know (being an expert on British culture and all that), that the argument is due to two facts:

why are you being so sarcy its only my opinion and yes i have seen people differenet colours flying the flag which is good but as im aware of the only reason they are being asked to be taken down is for people from different countries

[lollymay]

i donr see a problem with flying the flags. in my area there are england flags and also some other countries flags too.

[Meh]

why are you being so sarcy its only my opinion and yes i have seen people differenet colours flying the flag which is good but as im aware of the only reason they are being asked to be taken down is for people from different countries

And who is doing the asking? Immigrants or the left?

[Kim]

I think it's personal choice. People support who they support, you can't change that, and there should be nothing racist about it. As long as people don't use flags to go against the feelings of someone else, it is fine.

[shannisrules]

i think its the government thats asking isnt it anyway the governmenet (if it is) are asking because they have had complaints from muslims who get offended by our flag

[Meh]

i think its the government thats asking isnt it anyway the governmenet (if it is) are asking because they have had complaints from muslims who get offended by our flag

err, I don;t think its muslims. Probably the PC brigade that are using them as excuses.

http://www.thisishertfordshire.co.uk/news/roundup/display.var.788258.0.st_georges_flag_slays_pc_drag on.php

[shannisrules]

i did say i wasnt sure on that bit and why would the "pc brigade" be using them as excuses

[Meh]

i did say i wasnt sure on that bit and why would the "pc brigade" be using them as excuses

To push forward their own agenda? Divide and conquer maybe? your guess is as good as mine.

[di marco]

i think everyone should be able to have whichever countries flag they want up, it shows support for your country which i dont see any harm in. all these local councils and companies that are banning flags are being stupid, i too read in the newspaper about the little boy who had to have his england shirt turned insideout while he was eating, thats just ridiculous. the reason for banning flags seems to be its cos it offends muslims, well i think thats just an excuse, and like i read in the sun newspaper a few weeks ago a cloumn written by one of their muslim female writers (she wears one of those scarf things round her head, im not being ignorant by calling them that i just dont know what theyre called, and im making the point about her wearing that cos that shows she is a muslim that does actually believe in her religion), anyway she said that she has no problem with england flags being flown and loads of muslim families she knows are buying england footie shirts for their kids, muslim businesses have the england flag in their window and that even some mosques were praying for the healing of wayne rooneys foot. this just goes to show that the large majority of muslims in this country are not offended by the flag and wouldnt mind people having them up seeing as a lot of them have one up as well. there may be a small group of extremist muslims that are against it, but that isnt the muslim religion as a whole

[Trinity]

The PC brigade is a derogatory term for people who take politcal correctness to such an extreme that it actually causes more harm than good.

E.g. the people who tried to ban 'baa baa black sheep' in nursery schools. The people who want Christmas cards to say 'Seasons Greetings' and the ones who want to ban nativity plays.

These people are generally not black, muslim or indeed any other minority.
Thses people are in the main white, middle class and to the left of the political spectrum. They are trying so hard to make everyone comfortable that in the end, everyone cringes. You know the kind of person I mean.

With regard to flags. I am proud of the Saltire. The Union flag and the EU flag look great. The St Georges flag means a lot to English people. I think that they all have there place. Live and let live.

[Siobhan]

That is mental! I haven't heard anything like that in Ireland (mind you I think over here you are an outcast if you dont fly a flag). I think you should show your support for what you believe in and show be allow to do this with any flag you so wish. I am sitting here at work and the place is covered in flags of every team in the world cup now... Nobody has any problem with it

[Trinity]

That is mental! I haven't heard anything like that in Ireland (mind you I think over here you are an outcast if you dont fly a flag). I think you should show your support for what you believe in and show be allow to do this with any flag you so wish. I am sitting here at work and the place is covered in flags of every team in the world cup now... Nobody has any problem with it

You are lucky.

In some parts of the world (Glasgow for instance) you can get killed for wearing the wrong football top in the wrong pub.

The flag thing is an extension of that. There is a kind of 'if you are not with me then you must be against me' kind of mentality where anyone different is your enemy.

[Siobhan]

You are lucky.

In some parts of the world (Glasgow for instance) you can get killed for wearing the wrong football top in the wrong pub.

The flag thing is an extension of that. There is a kind of 'if you are not with me then you must be against me' kind of mentality where anyone different is your enemy.

I see that in Glasgow but the sign on the pub door just said "No colours" and I thought it was a racist remark until I read underneath "on match day"

[Kim]

You are lucky.

In some parts of the world (Glasgow for instance) you can get killed for wearing the wrong football top in the wrong pub.

The flag thing is an extension of that. There is a kind of 'if you are not with me then you must be against me' kind of mentality where anyone different is your enemy.

There was something about this on the radio. It's an absolute disgrace.

[emma_strange]

personally hate the flags, for the soul reaso that if any other flag other thn the England one wwas about people would get riddiculed for it, and most probably told to take it down.

[pookie1968uk]

of course we should be able to fly our countries flag and feel proud! if we live in england we should be able to feel free to fly the english flag.
its the PC brigade gone mad as usual and we shouldnt pander to them!

[alkalinetrio]

i have 3 massive flags i fly union jack, st georges and scotish flag!

people should be able to fly whatever flag they want and if anyone has a problem with it and think its racist or wotever they stuff them they can think what they want! i like it how it aint just english flags ive seen spanish, brazilian, italy, ghana, ivory coast, portugal and even a german flag lol