I really like this week's editorial cartoon.
If you want to show your "rebel spirit" try flying the American flag instead of the Confederate flag.
Facebook as been abuzz with folks trying to explain the difference between the National Flag of the Confederacy and the Battle Flag of the Army of Northern Virginia.
It really doesn't make much difference to me. Either way, the flags belong in a museum. It's part of our national history, good or bad. But for me, flying the Confederate flag over a state's capitol is nonsense and I applaud Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina for asking the Legislature to remove it from the capitol grounds.
The Confederate flag should also be taken down from monuments on government property, such as the monument in front of the South Carolina capitol. The capitol grounds are common property of all citizens, and should be a place were all people are welcome -- thus the argument for not placing the Ten Commandments or symbols of the holiday season unless more than just the Nativity is represented, such as Passover, the Jewish holiday that occurs during the Christmas season.
But things can get tricky. How far do we go in removing monuments and symbols of the Confederacy or other rebellions. We must use caution when we start demanding the removal of other symbols, such as statues and memorials.
How far do we want to go as a nation? We can let the pendulum swing too far and have very few symbols of our past on display anywhere. For an example of cleansing going haywire, we only have to look at the efforts of the Taliban and ISIS: Do you think their efforts to eliminate all the imagery they disagree with is correct?
Let's take the Pea Ridge National Military Park, for a more-local example. Last week, the vendor announced that it will stop selling Confederate items in the gift shop. I think it would be appropriate to sell those items at the park; it's part of history. You could take it too far and tell re-enactors that they can no longer carry the Confederate flags. Maybe they can no longer wear the gray uniforms during those re-enactments.
That all seems excessive.
However, stores, such as Walmart, that decide not to carry Confederate items any longer are making not only a business decision but also those items are not germane to the historical setting, such as at Pea Ridge.
I still remember when, in 1963, coming home to the U.S. after three years in Germany, where my father was stationed. We moved to San Antonio, Texas, for a year.
We were at a large shopping center when I asked my dad what a colored restroom was. I had never encountered that before. After explaining what it meant, I told him I thought that was wrong.
Then I got to junior high and students were divided into A, B, C, D groups with the smartest students in the A and B groups. I was in the A group that was mostly white with a few Hispanic and no blacks, who could be found in the C and D groups. The only time the different groups came together were for physical education. The courts later ruled that Texas' system was unconstitutional.
Nor can the racial undertones of having a black president be ignored. Do I think he's been a great president? Probably not. But then again, I didn't think George W. Bush or Jimmy Carter were any great shakes, either.
It's been 150 years since the Civil War. At some point, we as a nation have to starting coming together. Some symbols have to go away, and the Confederate flag being flown over state capitols is a first step.
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Now for a little more humor.
When I was in college, we had steak night once a month. It was something we really anticipated because as far as we were concerned it was the best meal of the month.
We had a friend who liked taking naps before dinner. And by naps I mean deep sleep.
So on steak night, Mike has fallen asleep and we decided to play a prank. We darkened the windows. Got our night clothes on and started playing our nightly card game, a tradition after dinner.
Then as Mike was slowly waking up, the conversation turned to how great the steak was that night and how sorry we were that Mike slept through it.
Our gag was going along pretty well until two guys at the end of the hall opened their doors. Mike spotted the light and the gig was up. We all hightailed to our rooms to wait for him to cool off because he was much bigger than most of us.
Which brings me to last week.
Our office manager, Barb, who is retired next week, called me up at 8:45 to tell me on my cellphone about how sorry she was that she overslept. She'd be to work as soon as she got ready, which would be really quick.
I was having a tough time comprehending what was going on. So I asked her what she was talking about. Well, it's 8:45 and she was going to be late for work. I told her she'd be late in 12 hours. It was 8:45 in the evening.
Evidently, she had fallen asleep after dinner and woke up thinking she had spent the night in her recliner. She was so apologetic.
I assured her she wasn't late, I'd see her in the morning. And I told her I had a good story to tell her about my friend Mike, who liked deep sleep, too.
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Throne is managing editor of The Weekly Vista.
Editorial on 07/01/2015