An excellent response to a right wing email

I have permission of the person who emailed me to write her response in full. It was a response to a photo of a pickup truck with a huge flag in the back and a sign on the tailgate: Does my American flag offend you? Call 1-800-Leave the USA that someone sent her. I want to thank Marit for giving me permission to post this excellent response to right wing email.



This is the kind of stuff I get all the time. My question to the gal who sent it to me and to the guy driving the truck: Who are they accusing of hating the American flag? Who are they accusing of hating the word "God" in our pledge of allegiance and on our money? Are these the same people that are always trying to start a war against Christmas?

I'm sorry. It's just like this war on terror. The enemy is nobody but their own paranoia. It appears that when someone speaks against George Bush or the war in Iraq, they are labeled by these people as terrorists, people who hate their country, who hate the American flag, who hate Christmas and hate the mere mention of God anywhere. Funny thing is I have never heard anyone directly attacking any of these things while I constantly hear of the criticisms or threats from these kind of emails and from Fox Noise (I mean) News. Get you up worked up about a make believe villian!

I'm amazed these people feel the necessity to circulating this nonsense around the country several times. To stand up and speak to whom? Have any of you ever personally encountered these country, flag, Christmas and God haters? Personally, I haven't seen one. I do know several atheists and none of them care about doing away with Christmas or God in our pledge of allegiance or money. Some don't practice Christmas, but all basically respect our beliefs.

Thanks for letting me rant. I just don't get these people! We all love this country. We all love our God according to our individual beliefs. What's the fuss all about?

Love the flag, maybe people don't like YOU. With an attitude like yours, it would be understandable.

It's like sex; It's not what you love, but how that sets people off.

Nothing to be sorry about when it comes to preserving, protecting and defending the First Amendment.

It wasn't there before 1954. It shouldn't be there now. I don't get all that wrapped up about it, but I don't like it (I wouldn't go so far as "hate"... hate is such a strong emotion, and our current culture of extremes have devalued the term "hate" to where if someone doesn't agree with you, they "are hating" on you... which is just silly).

The flag is great. But its OK with me if a protester wants to burn one in public... or fly it upside down. The United States of America is much more than a collection of symbols. It is (or used to be) a collection of ideas, expressed by the founding fathers, re-iterated by leaders and Presidents through the last few centuries, people like Lincoln, FDR, MLK, and Kennedy. Those ideals can withstand a flag burning or two. They may actually demand it.

As for Christmas, I certainly don't "hate it". As a pagan celebration of the winter solstice, I think its a perfectly fine tradition. The gift giving and consumerism excess are a bit out whack, but I'll take that with a nice glass of eggnog. I love "Christmas"... and I'm either agnostic or, as I get older, atheist.

As for the money... yet another symbol... I care a great deal more about what the value of the money is, rather than the printed slogans and symbols on it mean.