Proud To Be British

[stwat]

And I am not afraid to shout it out loud.

I am disgusted by how the Union Jack(or flag if you are not at sea)has become associated with right wing racists scum over the years. I absolutely love our national flag and I feel strongly that we should grab it back with both hands and begin to love it again.

This years games have really helped to bring our flag back to how it was once respected. Not only here in the UK but all around the world. The UK is a fanbloodytastic place which has been talked down upon for many a year now. We are a bloody fantastic nation that brought the world into the modern age via utter amazing feats of engineering and genius feats of design over the last 200 years.

But we also gave you this years Olympic Games on a plate

Oooo and not forgetting all the Gold Silver and Bronze medals we have won at these games.
Massive respect to all our medal winners

 

[@MARK]

I am disgusted by how the Union Jack(or flag if you are not at sea)has become associated with right wing racists scum over the years.

Has it?

I am aware of the St Georges flag being used in this way but the Union Flag

 

[trapperjohn]

We might even have a chance to win "Eurovision" next year.

Both the Cross of St George and the Union Flag get abused by racists. We have been getting it back for a while - to mean the right thing. The Olympics are more positive proof of what they really stand for.

 

[d w124]

Although I`m not British I just wanted to say well said stwat

 

[brucemillar]

Stella Macartney also like a fair bit of Union Flag abuse, judging by our Olympic outfits.

 

[MercFanUk]

We have done well in the Olympics and whatnot, and yes, this can be a great country

But - I really don't see the England flag or Union Jack as being adopted as a symbol of racism etc. I'm pretty sure you could stick either of those flags on a pole outside your house, and that's the last thing people would think. My parents for example have a Union Jack spray painted (properly) on the bonnet of their camper van, nice and proudly - no one ever gives them funny looks.

If you were to use a swastika, or shave your head and start stomping everywhere - then you might have a problem

 

[C240Sport97]

Go Team GB!

Despite the rubbish weather, this is God's own country

 

[Bosco]

At the risk of starting a riot I have to ask a question that has been bugging me for a long time.
Why do you abuse your flag by printing it on trivial inappropriate objects such as Union Jack underpants, disposable packaging for sweets and crisps and god only knows how many other crass tatty objects that are churned out just for commercial gain. By all means wear a proper flag sewn onto an appropriate sports garment or wear a classy embroidered tie or enamel pin. The flag should be treated and worn with dignity. I just don't understand the disrespect shown. This is not just a British thing, the Yanks do it too and it makes no sense to me. Can anybody explain why this disrespect of your greatest national symbol is tolerated?

 

[MercFanUk]

At the risk of starting a riot I have to ask a question that has been bugging me for a long time.
Why do you abuse your flag by printing it on trivial inappropriate objects such as Union Jack underpants, disposable packaging for sweets and crisps and god only knows how many other crass tatty objects that are churned out just for commercial gain. By all means wear a proper flag sewn onto an appropriate sports garment or wear a classy embroidered tie or enamel pin. The flag should be treated and worn with dignity. I just don't understand the disrespect shown. This is not just a British thing, the Yanks do it too and it makes no sense to me. Can anybody explain why this disrespect of your greates national symbol is tolerated?

Because to us it isn't disrespectful. If we have a food item that was wholly produced in Britain for example, a Union Jack on the packaging is probably quite appropriate. It's part of being proud of ourselves as a country.

 

[eihtur]

At the risk of starting a riot I have to ask a question that has been bugging me for a long time.
Why do you abuse your flag by printing it on trivial inappropriate objects such as Union Jack underpants, disposable packaging for sweets and crisps and god only knows how many other crass tatty objects that are churned out just for commercial gain. By all means wear a proper flag sewn onto an appropriate sports garment or wear a classy embroidered tie or enamel pin. The flag should be treated and worn with dignity. I just don't understand the disrespect shown. This is not just a British thing, the Yanks do it too and it makes no sense to me. Can anybody explain why this disrespect of your greates national symbol is tolerated?

Dunno...could be an expression of freedom. There are countries where you'd be executed for some of the above.

 

[Dryce]

But - I really don't see the England flag or Union Jack as being adopted as a symbol of racism etc.

But the hand wringers got it into their heads that it had been ....

I rather thought that England in particular had got over this hand wringer phobia about the cross of St george a few years back.

 

[Dryce]

Can anybody explain why this disrespect of your greatest national symbol is tolerated?

It's not done for reasons of disrespect - it shows the strength of the branding that people take it for granted.

The Union Flag also works quite well as a whole or in part to stick on almost anything because it's not just some parallel stripes or a simple shape.

 

[C240Sport97]

Can anybody explain why this disrespect of your greatest national symbol is tolerated?

it's because we can laugh at ourselves, because we can separate fact from fun or fiction, and because we know we are a great country

 

[Mr E]

We have done well in the Olympics and whatnot, and yes, this can be a great country

But - I really don't see the England flag or Union Jack as being adopted as a symbol of racism etc. I'm pretty sure you could stick either of those flags on a pole outside your house, and that's the last thing people would think. My parents for example have a Union Jack spray painted (properly) on the bonnet of their camper van, nice and proudly - no one ever gives them funny looks.

If you were to use a swastika, or shave your head and start stomping everywhere - then you might have a problem

I noticed something quite odd recently when visiting a client. It was a fairly well known "multicultural" area but one house stood out. It had a Union Flag painted on the front door, and others flying / painted elsewhere. It was surrounded by other houses prominently displaying flags from other countries. It's impossible to say just by driving through what was behind any of this, but there did seem to be a flavour of antagonism between all parties when I mentioned this to a member of the client team that lived locally. No-one remembers how it started, but there seems to now be an on-going game of oneupmanship going on. I wouldn't like to impute a racist element to it, but certainly some strong nationalistic feelings going on.

 

[MOCAŠ]

I noticed something quite odd recently when visiting a client. It was a fairly well known "multicultural" area but one house stood out. It had a Union Flag painted on the front door, and others flying / painted elsewhere. It was surrounded by other houses prominently displaying flags from other countries. It's impossible to say just by driving through what was behind any of this, but there did seem to be a flavour of antagonism between all parties when I mentioned this to a member of the client team that lived locally. No-one remembers how it started, but there seems to now be an on-going game of oneupmanship going on. I wouldn't like to impute a racist element to it, but certainly some strong nationalistic feelings going on.

As others have suggested, it's unusual to hear fo the Union Jack/Flag being used in this way - those with a point to prove normally alight on the St George's Cross. While there ought to be no shame in flying the flag of one's country or nation, it all comes down to the context in which it is done. If the intention is to antagonise one's neighbours, or to stir up cultural division, what does that say about the mentality of the person doing so? This is what denotes an abuse of the flag, rather than its use on packaging to indicate where produce comes from.

 

[MercFanUk]

I noticed something quite odd recently when visiting a client. It was a fairly well known "multicultural" area but one house stood out. It had a Union Flag painted on the front door, and others flying / painted elsewhere. It was surrounded by other houses prominently displaying flags from other countries. It's impossible to say just by driving through what was behind any of this, but there did seem to be a flavour of antagonism between all parties when I mentioned this to a member of the client team that lived locally. No-one remembers how it started, but there seems to now be an on-going game of oneupmanship going on. I wouldn't like to impute a racist element to it, but certainly some strong nationalistic feelings going on.

I see where you're coming from with this. It's odd though - I live in a very multicultural area myself, but instead of foreign flags people from other cultures seem more interested in fitting in and will often put union Jacks and St George flag stickers on their cars and things.

 

[MOCAŠ]

I see where you're coming from with this. It's odd though - I live in a very multicultural area myself, but instead of foreign flags people from other cultures seem more interested in fitting in and will often put union Jacks and St George flag stickers on their cars and things.

Which is how it should be. Beat the Little Englanders at their own game.

 

[Mr E]

As others have suggested, it's unusual to hear fo the Union Jack/Flag being used in this way - those with a point to prove normally alight on the St George's Cross. While there ought to be no shame in flying the flag of one's country or nation, it all comes down to the context in which it is done. If the intention is to antagonise one's neighbours, or to stir up cultural division, what does that say about the mentality of the person doing so? This is what denotes an abuse of the flag, rather than its use on packaging to indicate where produce comes from.

And the nub of the problem is that it's very easy to fall into assumptions - there was nothing to imply that any of the flags were being used in an antagonistic way. I fell into the assumption - and it would appear that you may have too - that it was the household with the Union Jack that was at fault. It may have been a neighbourhood where everyone celebrates their nationality - but my prejudices immediately eyed the "little englander" as a protaganist. It was more interesting to hear that, although it's not all fluffy and cuddly, no-one seemed to know too much about the when, why or how it came about.

I come from a multicultural household and have unfortunately found (as has my wife) that there seems to be far more prejudice from "her community" than there has ever been from "mine". Most people seem to assume that, living in a white middle-class village, she encounters difficulties in being in a mixed race relationship, whereas the issues arise more in the community where she was raised.

Mrs E is very much like me and views herself as a citizen of the world - we happen through chance to live a particular location but treat everyone as we would like to be treated. She can't understand why, to take one example, people who have never set foot in the country of their grandparents (and probably wouldn't want to apart from a 2 week holiday) take on that national identity (and even accent). She's proud of her ancestory and national history - even presenting about it in schools - but she, like me, holds the realm of human endevour and achievement in higher esteem than any national boundary.

 

[brucemillar]

Some would see the Union Jack underpants as effectively wiping your butt on your national flag. Others would see it a pair of pants with a flag on them.

I did hear a fellow golfer being berated for using a Union Jack towel to clean his clubs. Some saw that as being disrespectful.

Some will get upset if they see the flag flown upside down but ignore it being displayed in incorrect colours.

 

[Scott_F]

Some would see the Union Jack underpants as effectively wiping your butt on your national flag. Others would see it a pair of pants with a flag on them.

I did hear a fellow golfer being berated for using a Union Jack towel to clean his clubs. Some saw that as being disrespectful.

Some will get upset if they see the flag flown upside down but ignore it being displayed in incorrect colours.

Do you wipe your butt with your pants ?? Andrex is a much more comfortable solution.