Nevada town bans flying of foreign flags
posted at 7:14 pm on November 16, 2006 by Allahpundit
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Flying them beneath the American flag is okay but solo or above the stars and stripes will run you 50 clams and 30 hours of community service.
I wonder which foreign flag they have in mind.
Supporters said they passed the measure to hit back at Hispanic demonstrators who carried Mexican flags when they marched in U.S. cities earlier this year to press for rights for 10 million to 12 million illegal immigrants living in the shadows.
“All of the illegal alien protesters are waving Mexican flags, and we just got tired of it,” town board clerk Paul Willis told Reuters in a telephone interview.
“This is the United States, and the Stars and Stripes should fly supreme,” he added.
Constitutionally you have the right to burn, or refuse to pledge allegiance to, the American flag, so it’s a safe bet that you also have the right to fly the foreign flag of your choice however you like. But what about Section 7 of Title 4 of the U.S. Code?
(c) No other flag or pennant should be placed above or, if on the same level, to the right of the flag of the United States of America… No person shall display the flag of the United Nations or any other national or international flag equal, above, or in a position of superior prominence or honor to, or in place of, the flag of the United States at any place within the United States or any Territory or possession thereof…
Near as I can tell, there are no actual penalties for violating this. It’s hortatory, which explains why it’s still on the books: because it can’t be enforced, it will never be challenged. The Pahrump statute can, which means it will — unless the local prosecutor decides not to touch it.
Which is probably pretty likely.
Anyway. The only reason I posted this was to give me a peg to link to this post of the boss’s from March of this year. Quote:
I predict this stunt will be the nail in the coffin of any guest-worker/amnesty plan on the table in Washington. The image of the American flag subsumed by another and turned upside down on American soil is already spreading on Internet forums and via e-mail.
How awful is the GOP position on immigration that even a cynic like MM would underestimate them so badly? Ay dios mio!
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It’s about Time!!! How about English as the official language?
Benthoven on November 16, 2006 at 7:18 PM
Oh gawd, let’s just get this outta the way. Racist!
Editor on November 16, 2006 at 7:20 PM
Better late than never. And yes, how about English as the official language?
Zorro on November 16, 2006 at 7:21 PM
It would be great if the 30 hours of community service consisted of washing, repairing, and ironing some flags. And at the end of it all, pop quiz.
RushBaby on November 16, 2006 at 7:24 PM
They made English the official language of the town, too.
RED MEAT!
Allahpundit on November 16, 2006 at 7:41 PM
Sounds like a place to move to.
steveegg on November 16, 2006 at 7:43 PM
Aren’t passing laws like declaring English the official language a pointless waste of time? Everybody knows it is the official language. It is the global language, everybody speaks English. If you live in a non-English speaking country, English is your second language. It’s not going anywhere. This seems like another paranoid delusion.
JaHerer22 on November 16, 2006 at 7:44 PM
Seems logical to me. There’s a house in town that flies the French flag exclusively on a huge pole in their front yard…(insert punchline here).
What about sticking a Mexican flag to the back of Old Glory and flying it that way like Tito Ortiz does when he’s entering The Octagon??
NTWR on November 16, 2006 at 7:50 PM
I mean, like the Mexican dude in the parking garage said in Ferris Bueller’s day off when Ferris asked if he spoke English: “well, what country do you think this is?”
Then he joyrided Cameron’s dad’s car for a few hours…
NTWR on November 16, 2006 at 7:52 PM
This same town also passed engish as the official language.
bmac on November 16, 2006 at 8:00 PM
How much do houses cost there? Sounds like a good place to live already ;)
lorien1973 on November 16, 2006 at 8:16 PM
Lorien, I think you’re forgetting something…
Slublog on November 16, 2006 at 8:20 PM
The Brits say we speak “American”, not English. (I think they are still peeved about 1776).
SouthernGent on November 16, 2006 at 8:24 PM
IT’S ABOUT TIME FOLKS…
If I were in Mexico, I wonder if they’d let me fly an American flag, or would I be instead, facing a firing squad?
byteshredder on November 16, 2006 at 8:34 PM
Where you being facetious? Maybe you could check on just two things.
A) The problems our police and fire departments run into from immigrants that never will learn english.
B) How much it costs you & I, and real US citizens.
To teach immigrant kids, print billions of notices and papers in spanish, and many more ways than I can count, let alone list.
I’m sure many others here will help this ‘list’.
shooter on November 16, 2006 at 8:39 PM
p.s. AP, great word, hortatory
shooter on November 16, 2006 at 8:41 PM
Here we go. I was born in Camben NJ in 1952. My yard ajoined a building belonging to John Lingo and Son Co. This was the place my father was employed. This company was one of very few in the US that manufactured flagpoles. I would watch the men working and swedging the pipe. Swedging was a process where you torch a V section down the length of pipe. Place the cut end in a blast furnace. The men would then form the taper by hand using progressingly smaller steel rings swedged down the length of pipe using a mall (large sledge hammer). The last step was the welder. He would pass a bead down the pipe. I can still remember being yelled at as not to look directly at the arc of light that had power to burn the retina. Those guys were all WWII vets and at the end of each day would hoist down their own flag and fold it cerimoniously. I remember when my father would take a turn folding the flag. I was proud of him. John Lingo and Son were contracted to supply flagpoles for Independence Mall in Philadelphia for the BiCentennial. I love the American Flag.
sonnyspats1 on November 16, 2006 at 8:44 PM
Hmmm… Oh, really? How many billions do you think have already been flushed down the toilet on such things a spanish signage, spanish versions of every government form we have, spanish translators for gov’t agencies and law enforcement, English as a Second Language (ESL) curriculums in all public schools, spanish text books, on and on and on and on??? Where will it stop? Will Farsi be the next oh-so-PC language to accomodate here?
The deliberate refusal of immigrants to learn English is hardly “assimilating” into the American culture, now is it? Ask law enforcement officials or hospital ER physicians how many problems a language barrier in our own country creates. I could go on and on. But you should do your own research sir.
Benthoven on November 16, 2006 at 8:53 PM
C) Creates second class citizens who are prepared only for the most menial jobs. Kids who are neither fluent in English nor Spanish.
EF on November 16, 2006 at 9:03 PM
Howzabout let’s stem the tide first?
hillbillyjim on November 16, 2006 at 9:04 PM
YES – English Official Language. No more press one for English.
Wade on November 16, 2006 at 9:04 PM
sonnyspats1, that is a warm little slice of Americana. Little did you know that you were all being raaaaacist by loving and revering the American flag. As someone who still sometimes tears up saying the Pledge of Allegiance, I guess I’m a raaaaacist too.
ReubenJCogburn on November 16, 2006 at 9:13 PM
Let’s make the borders actually be borders instead of an imaginary line that means nothing. Then we can sort out the details; until then, the rest is symbolic and accomplishes little. I feel strongly about our flag, but unless we stop this flood of illegal immigration, it will be a symbol of a time gone by.
hillbillyjim on November 16, 2006 at 9:30 PM
If we can’t even stem the tide of immigration from folks just looking to better themselves economically, how can we hope to stop determined jihadis looking to harm us? The more traffic south-to-north, the more opportunities for our enemies to “embed” themselves amongst this flow of people. It’s just common sense.
hillbillyjim on November 16, 2006 at 9:34 PM
Let’s just get it to where I don’t have to press #1 for FRIGGIN ENGLISH thank you!
Alden Pyle on November 16, 2006 at 9:36 PM
Thank you, ReubenJ. I still get all goofy when they play or sing the National Anthem. The NASCAR fly-overs– Love ‘em. Redneck isn’t always a bad thing.
hillbillyjim on November 16, 2006 at 9:40 PM
Of course a lib. would automatically tell me that I should be ashamed of my country and doubly so for cheering a bunch of polluting, environment-killing cars that make too much noise.
Hate to disappoint, but it ain’t gonna happen.
hillbillyjim on November 16, 2006 at 9:46 PM
Here is a quick nutshell of Flag Rules and Regulations in case anyone is interested.
For lib friends, you can print them out on high bond paper and then deliver them in your gun tote’n pickup truck while you are finishing off a hamburger.
AZ_Redneck on November 16, 2006 at 10:05 PM
That is one yummy lookin’ north of the border steak.
infidel4life on November 16, 2006 at 10:41 PM
I hope none of you actually think this will last without getting ruled unconstitutional. Geez! You would think we lived in AMERICA for God’s sake!
Oh crap. I said “God.” Sorry to offend.
Gregor on November 16, 2006 at 10:42 PM
I’ll have to remind my wife to fly our Israeli flag below the stars and stripes!
forest on November 16, 2006 at 10:47 PM
Sonnyspats1, that was a great post. Thanks.
EFG on November 16, 2006 at 11:19 PM
Yeah, great, Allah. Why don’t you just cage ‘em and not feed ‘em at all? Same effect…
Jaibones on November 16, 2006 at 11:22 PM
…”racist” isn’t the right slur to shout at someone in this case. People of all races speak Spanish, the offending language in the news today, as a first language — descendents of African slaves from all over the Caribbean, whiter’n whities from Cuba and Honduras, even that Japanese guy from Peru — and many, many more come from Asia, Africa and elsewhere speaking their native tongues…with activists lined up to almost force them not to assimilate.
…but, “racist”? No.
It’s a linguistic offense. The person is being “picked on” for speaking Spanish or Russian or whatever. It’s linguistic.
*LINGUIST*!
…see…doesn’t have the same *RING*….
Puritan1648 on November 16, 2006 at 11:22 PM
Oh, really? What if I were to tell you that there are sections of the ninth-largest metro area in the U.S. where English is rarely spoken, where an American citizen (and a veteran) cannot purchase a tank of gas or a pack of smokes because he cannot communicate with the clerk at the corner store? Where half of the junk mail in his mailbox is in Spanish?
Come on down to San Antonio, Texas, and experience it for yourself.
Rusty Bill on November 16, 2006 at 11:25 PM
…you realize, don’t you, that your meat is…er…uncovered…better not travel to Australia….
I don’t know what the fuss is. I speak Redneck. I have trouble enough understandin’ some o’ you Yankees that you then have to go let in a bunch o’ Mex’cans, Chinamen, Venusians and heaven knows what…Redneck oughta be the official language…all o’ y’all get with it….
Puritan1648 on November 16, 2006 at 11:32 PM
Thats ok. I’m sure the Bush and the Democrats will allow them to fly the mexican flag over the capitol building and white house any time….
CrazyFool on November 17, 2006 at 12:01 AM
……………an’ ………………Git ‘er Done!!!!!!!!
Emmett J. on November 17, 2006 at 12:47 AM
DAT60A3 on November 17, 2006 at 12:52 AM
…ah! A native speaker….
Puritan1648 on November 17, 2006 at 1:00 AM
Thought you were from Arizona until the last line there.
AZ_Redneck on November 17, 2006 at 1:13 AM
Well, I’ve been accused of being a cunning linguist…
ReubenJCogburn on November 17, 2006 at 2:40 AM
He doesn’t have to, Mexico is already doing that.
voiceofreason on November 17, 2006 at 8:45 AM
…boy…nobody saw *THAT* coming….
…that’s my fate…to be Planet Earth’s straight man…*sigh*….
Puritan1648 on November 17, 2006 at 9:39 AM
People are idiots. So the little Italian guy in my old neighborhood who flys the Italian flag on Columbus Day or the Irish guys who fly the Irish flag on St Pats Day would be breaking the law? What kind of moron thinks this stuff up? What kind of citizens think this is what their elected officials should be concerned with?
honora on November 17, 2006 at 9:42 AM
“US town bars foreign flags” – not true
“in swipe at immigrants” – more likely as a show of respect to our own flag.
Leave it to Al-Reuters to come up with a headline like that.
Evilwhiteguy on November 17, 2006 at 9:48 AM
My uncle lives in that town. I wonder how bad it must have gotten there for them to take this action. The thing he loves best about that town is their “live and let live” approach to everything.
For people that are thinking about moving there, you should know that it is the Cat House capitol of the U.S. For some of you that might change your mind. For others, that might help you decide to move there.
JaHerer – It is far from a paranoid delusion to believe that your language can be replaced by another language. Akkadian was once the most widely spoken language in the middle east (all the way up into Turkey and parts of Greece). Over a period of a few hundred years, it was supplanted by Aramaic. Did an invading army of Aramaic speakers come through and force people to speak Aramaic? Nope. Aramaic speakers tended to be nomads that wandered through various parts of the Akkadian speaking empire. Eventually, it became easier to have the language of the empire be Aramaic because everywhere you went there were at least some Aramaic speakers. This is hardly an isolated event. Greek was supplanted by Latin. Latin, a language no one in the great Roman Empire thought would ever be less than THE language of the world morphed into various Romance languages and now the great Latin itself is nothing more than a scholarly language. Given the history of language chance, I don’t think it’s paranoid at all to assume that English can be supplanted by another language. I think it’s actually taking a very realistic look at the way languages work.
Honora – I believe there is a fundamental difference between someone flying an Italian flag on Colombus Day, and Irish flag on St. Patricks Day, a Mexican flag on Cinco de Mayo (etc…etc) and someone giving a foreign flag a regular point of prominence above the US flag. One is an annual celebration of heritage (which almost all American’s can get behind) and the other is a statement of alliegence.
Now, having said all that, I don’t believe this law is constitutional and, if it is ever enforced, it will quickly be challenged and over turn.
I also don’t believe this law is a law that people in the US should be passing. The fact that a situation exists where people would feel the need to pass these laws is evidence of a larger problem. You can’t force someone to love something. The fact that we have a large population of people living in the US that feel a loyalty to another country over loyalty to the US is, to me, an indication that we need to do a better job with our immigration (this includes fixing the illegal immigration) processes.
As for English as the national language – well, it will solve what, to me, is the larger problem of tax dollars going to print ballots and provide services in foreign languages. It will probably do nothing for the Press 2 for English problem because private businesses will still cater to their customers. If their customer base includes a large portion of non-English speakers, you’ll still have to Press 2.
JadeNYU on November 17, 2006 at 1:00 PM
10 bucks says that an ACLU judge will strike this down as unconstitutional.
NTWR on November 17, 2006 at 1:46 PM
And for the canonical moonbat take on the importance of the flag:
“No-one, and I repeat NO-ONE, has ever died for a flag. A flag is a piece of cloth. They would have died for freedom… which, by the way, if you’ve read the First Amendment, is also the freedom to burn the flag. Burning the flag doesn’t make freedom go away, okay? Because it’s, you know, freedom…”
Gospel of the Prophet Hicks, 3:16
mikeomatic on November 17, 2006 at 3:42 PM
Sure, let them fly their Mexican flag. Just don’t bitch when the OTHER GUYS WANT TO FLY THEIRS. (Punchline: Neither side is right.) DUH. We are Americans.
seejanemom on November 17, 2006 at 8:30 PM
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