To be devasted the roundabout in my town has a crappy 'flag' painted on?

[Liesmorelies]

I nearly threw up when I saw it this morning - what a horrible shock.

It's a very small town in the Midlands near a city. Yes it's ex-mining but does reasonable ok now, not deprived eg no contextual offers for my dc for uni, but not massively desirable or trendy. Has a Labour MP now but hasn't always in recent years. Voted for Brexit but only just. In 2019 more people voted against Tories AND Brexit than for them - split the vote so we still got a Tory, but still.

In other words, I did not expect this. It's horrible - looks ugly and badly done even before you get started on the thinking behind it. AIBU to ring the council on Tuesday and ask when they are going to deal with this vandalism?

I did a four hour round-trip on the motorway today too and the amount of flags on bridges was shocking - just make it stop.

No one should take down flags that are covering safety features on our roads?

More like dickheads shouldn't purposely try and set up a situation where it will be taken down to rally the gullible online.

Oh I know why, they are quite openly telling us. If you listen.

You can fly flags in places that are not a danger - if you cover safety features they are then taken down. they are taken down to ensure safety not because they are flags or that they are being flown, they can be taken down and moved to a safer place but that isn't what you want is it?

How is that stopping someone telling them not to create a hazard. You would be one who would cover your windscreen and then say oh the police told me I couldn't drive with an opaque windscreen - look they are banning the flag!

Telling people to fly it safely is not banning the flag sweetheart. It is just common sense which appears to be not so common in your head.

And the fact that you have openly admitted they are now doing this on purpose in dangerous and unsafe, inappropriate places in order that they get removed is kind of piss funny.

So why isn’t it - but other people putting them up recently are?

I'm trying to figure out what defines a flag with racist intent and what doesn’t?

More went up in my town recently for VJ Day.
Terrible racists we all are 😂

You’ll have to find the comment yourself or pick from the many that say it’s racist to fly the flag.

So care to answer the question, who told you that before today to make you not fly it and why did you not defy them before?

You’ve slight rephrased the same question I’ve answer twice now. Last time, nobody has told me not to fly it before today …just today, which has made me inclined to fly it. You can keep reviewing my answers rather than asking the same question.

All the best 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Try reading that Raising The Colours post on the previous page.
If you have and don't care, then fair enough. At least be open about it and just come out and say instead of faux eyed innocence.

What flags are covering safety features? High up on a lamp post is a hazard? Really?

You're just being ridiculous now.

Cool. A perfect representation of our multicultural society. btw dragons aren't native to Wales, do you want to burst that bubble too?

I haven’t read it, and TBH I’m not really sure I care. I will never find flying a flag of a nation within that nation racist, no matter how many “progressives” try and claim it is

We never used to need flags.

We had a confidence in our identity, culture and values that made these symbols unnecessary.

Over the last 30 years there’s been a deliberate change to the nation. It was a multicultural experiment that hasn’t worked - as we can see. This is the evidence. We’re just different groups living alongside one another, with little in common and few shared values, so were descending into sectarianism, each group flying their own flags. Why would the flag of Pakistan need to be flown in Birmingham if people had integrated into the nation?

We’re a post revolutionary society at this point. Whether we can reverse it is another matter. 1000 years of history have been thrown on the rubbish tip in pursuing this failed experiment. It takes thousands of years to build a society, but it can be destroyed in a day.

Nah just asking you a question you cannot answer as no one has said this to you. You think that someone saying there is a racist background to this happening now means nope you cannot do it.

You have not been told you cannot, you were doing a little toddler tantrum about being told what the reasons behind most of it is.

I can ask different questions or the same one you keep dodging - freedom of speech, innit?

Just trying to define what makes a racist flag and what doesn’t. I don’t think that’s a massive ask?

Being devastated won't help, as you know. If it's vandalism, it could be one random arsehole - but local councils are also quite capable of making shite decisions about public displays, like the "inclusive" multicolour zebra crossings that undermine the practical and necessary purpose of the crossing itself (and some of which use the racist "progress flag"). Either way, though, why would it be "unreasonable" of you to ring the council and ask/complain about it?

I haven’t read it, and TBH I’m not really sure I care

Lol, well that says it all then. Suppose it's comfier in your little ignorance bubble.

Thought you just said you didn't care? Make your mind up.

Imagine you are a decent, non-racist, unbigoted person displaying the flag for non-offensive reasons, at your home perhaps.

Someone also flying the flag for different reasons, assumes you share the same values, and co-opts you into conversation about various perceived issues around certain groups of people.

Imagine you politely explain your values do not align. Imagine this person claims because of that you are a traitor to the flag, and issues various insults or even threats to you, your property, or your family. They demand you remove it or face consequences.

Just one potential rabbit hole, and a potential recipe for civil war in general.

Certain values are attached to certain symbols and assumptions are made. It's an easy visual shorthand, a nod and a wink of solidarity.

Reclaiming such symbols to eradicate bad associations is a long uphill battle.

Speed cameras, safety features such a bollards, traffic lights, cones, roadworks.

Those safety features designed to keep drivers safe and which need to be seen.

Not sure you should be driving if you think there are no safety features on the roads. How did you pass your test if you cannot identify the safety features on the road?

I literally said a speed camera, but its fine if speed cameras (this one was outside a school) are covered especially next week with kids going back to school. What could possibly go wrong if people knew it was covered so could go at any speed they liked?

Imagine?

I didn't say I idealised it ffs went are so many so many on this site so hard of thinking and unable to comprehend a sentence. I was saying what I feel proud of, I absolutely don't feel proud now especially when we are run so terribly. And the Good Samaritan had nothing to say about naively letting in unchecked men to your society from misogynist countries who could hate us (see Manchester bomber, Reading attacker etc.). The people in charge couldn't give a shit about the safety of the most vulnerable in society (that's women and children not a bunch of fit young men as you lefties seem to think).

"you lefties" why is being against racism seen as a left issue? It's just such a stupid insult.
Plus kind of implies that all the people with right leaning values are racist. Which is also stupid to assume.

What I said - I can't understand how a nation's flag can be seen as racist. You then said you would feel threatened and intimidated by a saltire. Why would you be?

I don't think it is overly dramatic. Perhaps the poster is an ethnic minority?

It can feel very overwhelming for those from minority groups to be faced with these flags as they seemed to be used as a cover for extremism. The flags are politically motivated, not raised for a sporting event.

You aren't anti racist, you're plain anti English

Many of us feel it’s been hijacked by far right yobs and no longer represents anything to be proud of.

Yep. It was pretty obvious from the off.