To be serious, I?d agree with sacreblue, that flying a flag is quite often a very provocative act. It?s something that English people don?t understand and something they find charming in foreigners in the muddled spirit of inclusiveness.
In some cases that is mistaken. There is a very sinister amount of flag-waving in all parts of the world, middle and eastern Europe included, and I don?t want to see it in Britain.
For all I know, your neighbour is lovely and he?s probably quite justifiably annoyed at xenophobes. But I don?t welcome blatant displays of nationalism from wherever they come. He is wrong. For me, flag flying isn?t the British way whether you?re born here or not.
I became politically aware in the late ?70s when the National Front were draping themselves in the Union Flag and anti-racists were ashamed of it, because it had been hijacked. Now English racists in the BNP and EDL are using the Cross of St George in the same way but there isn?t that same late ?70s shame and horror towards the symbol.
I don?t know how old you are, but in 1978 I would be scared and angry at an English pub that had a union flag outside and I?m white. Now if I saw a pub with the Cross of St George outside I would just think they were showing anything from football to darts on Sky.
Things have changed in this country and that?s how it should be. You don?t show anti-racism by being nationalist. People who live here should understand that wherever they started out.