by Mary Fahnestock-Thomas, Hamilton
Thank you for responding to my letter about flags. You may have made my point better than I did: No one wants to be compared to a Nazi.
But the Nazis thought they were patriots, and flags and uniforms and guns were a big part of how they demonstrated that belief.
History has shown them to have been, in fact, genocidal white supremacists reacting to ungenerous treatment of Germany after the First World War and to the apparent threat of Communism after the Russian Revolution at about the same time.
Yes, the First Amendment to the Constitution does defend the right to free speech, but surely no kind and caring person believes that that includes threats and intimidation or incitement to riot, which, again, were signatures of Hitler and the Nazis.
And yet loud pick-ups driving aggressively and flying the American flag – sometimes right alongside the Confederate flag – are not unusual here in the Bitterroot, and most of the folks here I know who are not Republicans are actually afraid to indicate that in any way because they have too often been made to feel unwelcome here.
That’s authoritarianism, not democracy. People say our country is a republic, not a democracy, but for over 200 years it has valiantly tried to be both – to quote Lincoln, “government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
I respect and care about our veterans and just wish our government took better care of them when they come home. My husband is a veteran; his father and mine were both in World War II, and I lost a very young uncle then as well. Our son attended ROTC and graduated proudly from Marine Boot Camp before health issues caused him to change direction.
I don’t question the American flags flying above businesses and from front porches. We fly an American flag on our front porch, but instead of just red and white stripes, it has stripes of many colors, because I believe that a lot of the strength and wealth of this country are a result of its diversity and openness to growth, creativity, and ideas from elsewhere.
I’m glad you enjoyed and learned from your trip to our nation’s capital, though I’m sorry it was at that particular time, when, as our government’s departments and committees are discovering in vast detail, our former president was clearly inciting to UNpeaceful assembly. Well over 100 Capitol police officers were injured by people who say they were there for the same reasons you were.
I won’t argue about Nancy Pelosi or what you call “the lamestream media.” Both you and I have brains that allow us to read widely and weigh the merits of different causes, and it’s important that we do that instead of just picking up and spreading soundbites and catchy phrases, even from friends and family.
I am once again grateful that the Bitterroot Star offers this forum for us to express our thoughts and respond to each other without constantly interrupting each other and probably ending up in anger and miscommunication. Please note that I, too, have written against labels, hyperbole, and generalizations beyond what are inevitable in under 600 words. As for “political talking points,” I believe that the political is personal and vice versa, because we all live in community, whether we particularly want to or not.
Kindness is pretty easy to recognize if our hearts and minds are open. Thank you again for helping me encourage that.