High School Kids Suspended for Wearing American Flag Shirts

[Gawdzilla Sama]

One person's "inflammatory" is another person's "pride".

[kiki5711]

Yea, everyone has the right to do whatever they want blah blah bla!

The point is in this story that kids wearing the US flag shirts were trying to make some kind of a statement as in "Fuck you Mehico" this is the US of A and go celebrate your cinko mayonaze somewhere else. It's a hot issue now days and can spark an argument very quickly especially among kids in school which affects the whole school and I think that's what the principal was trying to avoid.

So free speech has its limits, yes?

I didn't see it as free speech. I see it as taunting for a fight. If they want to do it at home or in their neighborhood with their parents consent, who cares, but this is in a school and kids that want nothing to do with either side might get hurt. I'm thinking of my son recently who witnessed two boys fighting each other to a pulp right in front of everyone in the hall. Who knows if one of them decides to pull out a weapon and innocent bystanders get hurt.

Yea, my son thought it was a cool fight to watch, but it wasn't fun for me to listen to it knowing what might happen.

Diana Dariano, whose son Matthew wore a U.S. Constitution T-shirt, acknowledged that the friends wore the clothes to make a point: They love their country and believe in legal immigration.

What's the problem here?

There's no problem there. The problem comes when a fight is started about it and innocent people get hurt. Kids, especially teenagers don't seem to know how to handle their anger too well. Maybe some do, I'm speaking from my own experience with my own kids. It doesn't take much to get them all heated up and in a fight.

[Link]

One person's "inflammatory" is another person's "pride".

But why be proud of where you happen to have been born???

What's the point? The problem with patriotism is its completely arbitrary, If the 5 kids in the US flag shirts had been born south of the US/Mexican border then their opinion would be the exact opposite on the matter, surely you can see how inherently ridiculous that is?

[Gawdzilla Sama]

One person's "inflammatory" is another person's "pride".

But why be proud of where you happen to have been born???

What's the point? The problem with patriotism is its completely arbitrary, If the 5 kids in the US flag shirts had been born south of the US/Mexican border then their opinion would be the exact opposite on the matter, surely you can see how inherently ridiculous that is?

On one level, it's not important where you were born, but if you don't care about a place it can go to shit quickly. Where do you draw the line? Ask Solomon.

[Ian]

Sheesh, some people need to grow thicker skins. Even if those kids had been wearing US flag t-shirts deliberately to annoy Mexican-American students... so what? The US is the most demographically diverse country I can think of - somebody's could potentially be "offended" by anything at any moment.

Next St. Patrick's Day, I'm going to wear a t-shirt covered by the Union Jack. Screw 'em! :twisted:
Actually no, I shouldn't do that... I'm 1/2 Irish.

[Pappa]

Sheesh, some people need to grow thicker skins. Even if those kids had been wearing US flag t-shirts deliberately to annoy Mexican-American students... so what? The US is the most demographically diverse country I can think of - somebody's could potentially be "offended" by anything at any moment.

Next St. Patrick's Day, I'm going to wear a t-shirt covered by the Union Jack. Screw 'em! :twisted:
Actually no, I shouldn't do that... I'm 1/2 Irish.

Half a Union Jack?

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Sheesh, some people need to grow thicker skins. Even if those kids had been wearing US flag t-shirts deliberately to annoy Mexican-American students... so what? The US is the most demographically diverse country I can think of - somebody's could potentially be "offended" by anything at any moment.

Next St. Patrick's Day, I'm going to wear a t-shirt covered by the Union Jack. Screw 'em! :twisted:
Actually no, I shouldn't do that... I'm 1/2 Irish.

Half a Union Jack?

Or half a loin cloth. (With pix, of course.)

[Ian]

Sheesh, some people need to grow thicker skins. Even if those kids had been wearing US flag t-shirts deliberately to annoy Mexican-American students... so what? The US is the most demographically diverse country I can think of - somebody's could potentially be "offended" by anything at any moment.

Next St. Patrick's Day, I'm going to wear a t-shirt covered by the Union Jack. Screw 'em! :twisted:
Actually no, I shouldn't do that... I'm 1/2 Irish.

Half a Union Jack?

I can do that. And the other side of the t-shirt can be a Swedish flag, since my other half is Norwegian.

[Pappa]

Sheesh, some people need to grow thicker skins. Even if those kids had been wearing US flag t-shirts deliberately to annoy Mexican-American students... so what? The US is the most demographically diverse country I can think of - somebody's could potentially be "offended" by anything at any moment.

Next St. Patrick's Day, I'm going to wear a t-shirt covered by the Union Jack. Screw 'em! :twisted:
Actually no, I shouldn't do that... I'm 1/2 Irish.

Half a Union Jack?

I can do that. And the other side of the t-shirt can be a Swedish flag, since my other half is Norwegian.

Shouldn't it be a Norwegian flag then?

[Link]

One person's "inflammatory" is another person's "pride".

But why be proud of where you happen to have been born???

What's the point? The problem with patriotism is its completely arbitrary, If the 5 kids in the US flag shirts had been born south of the US/Mexican border then their opinion would be the exact opposite on the matter, surely you can see how inherently ridiculous that is?

On one level, it's not important where you were born, but if you don't care about a place it can go to shit quickly. Where do you draw the line? Ask Solomon.

EDIT TO ADD DISCLAIMER: I'm neither implying nor assuming that anyone here holds the views outlined in my post below
EDIT AGAIN TO CORRECTLY SPELL ADD *shakes head at own inability to spell a three letter word*

But there is a difference between caring about whether or not your general living area goes to shit and thinking that anyone that wasn't born in your living area is different and therefore "bad" or "wrong" or "out to sponge of the state" and acting as if you have any more of a right to live in your arbitrary dotted line country than those people.

I mean really think about it, Why do those born in the US feel they have any more right to live there than those born in Mexico? I mean what is really the difference between someone born 1 mile south of the border and someone born 1 mile North? geographically they would share more in common with each other than with those 20 miles away in their respective countries so whats the big deal?

It's a vestigial territorial behaviour from our ancestors and it's Irrational.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Link, you are writing that in a "hot house" environment. Ideally, we'd take care of the whole planet without regard of our individual origins. In the real world, it's harder to do so. Patriotism is a motivator for people to care for their local turf. Yes, it causes problems at time as well, but there's nothing that doesn't have a yin to its yang, is there?

[Ian]

I mean what is really the difference between someone born 1 mile south of the border and someone born 1 mile North? geographically they would share more in common with each other than from those 20 miles away in their respective countries so whats the big deal?

Try making that argument to someone living in El Paso, right across the border from Juarez-Cuidad! One's a very safe city, and the other is one of the most violent places on earth. The border doesn't seem quite so trivial there.

[Bella Fortuna]

Sheesh, some people need to grow thicker skins. Even if those kids had been wearing US flag t-shirts deliberately to annoy Mexican-American students... so what? The US is the most demographically diverse country I can think of - somebody's could potentially be "offended" by anything at any moment.

Next St. Patrick's Day, I'm going to wear a t-shirt covered by the Union Jack. Screw 'em! :twisted:
Actually no, I shouldn't do that... I'm 1/2 Irish.

Half a Union Jack?

I can do that. And the other side of the t-shirt can be a Swedish flag, since my other half is Norwegian.

What's your third half?

[Link]

Link, you are writing that in a "hot house" environment. Ideally, we'd take care of the whole planet without regard of our individual origins. In the real world, it's harder to do so. Patriotism is a motivator for people to care for their local turf. Yes, it causes problems at time as well, but there's nothing that doesn't have a yin to its yang, is there?

Indeed I am and I know that it's not going to change in the foreseeable future.

A fella can dream though can't he

[Ian]

Sheesh, some people need to grow thicker skins. Even if those kids had been wearing US flag t-shirts deliberately to annoy Mexican-American students... so what? The US is the most demographically diverse country I can think of - somebody's could potentially be "offended" by anything at any moment.

Next St. Patrick's Day, I'm going to wear a t-shirt covered by the Union Jack. Screw 'em! :twisted:
Actually no, I shouldn't do that... I'm 1/2 Irish.

Half a Union Jack?

I can do that. And the other side of the t-shirt can be a Swedish flag, since my other half is Norwegian.

What's your third half?

I'm 1/2 Irish, 1/2 Norwegian. I don't have a third half... just an impressive third leg.