Replies

"The flags are divisive and several students and faculty have pointed this out."

If the flag is divisive, it may be more of a cultural issue (as in decline of) than anything else. Republicans and Democrats have died for the ideals our flag supposedly represents, yet it is most common today that it is those on the left that villify the flag.

"What I do see is people who are sick of being pushed around by what they perceive as a radical right-wing coup that took over the government and is pushing revolutionary policies through at a furious pace, destroying everything they love about America -- tolerance, the rule of law, justice, truth, compassion, civil discourse, etc."

Please cite examples of each of the above. I was not aware of any right-wing coup or any revolutionary policies of said coup.

My views may or may not be supportable in your definition since you use the caveat of "reasoned arguments". I feel that I am not emotional about the issue, but I find it amusing when people get offended about our national symbol.

If your students want exposure to different political philosophies than those that are on the current approved list within academia, why not mention Freerepublic as a place for them to do some research?

I don't see the flag as divisive, and I have no problem with flags in general. I don't think it's wise or ethical or just to force flags on people who don't want them. I don't think it's healthy for a university to have flags in classrooms. Anywhere else on campus is fine. High school classrooms, fine. My point is that the university classroom is (or at least should be) a place for open dialogue about core American values, beliefs and behaviors, and as such should be as free of nationalistic symbols as possible.

I take the term "coup" from Paul Krugman's new book, The Great Unraveling. He uses that word to describe the neo-conservatives' takeover of governmental and non-governmental institutions. Examples are too numerous to list here (and I have a deadline for something I have to finish this afternoon), but I recommend you read the introduction to his book. I would be interested to hear your comments.

Once again, I am not offended by our national symbol, only when it is used in a divisive way.

As far as my teaching materials go, I get heat from all political stripes because I teach a range of materials including left, right, Nazi, Communist, you name it. Somebody is bound to get offended, but we can handle it because the classroom environment, with a good teacher leading the discussion, is able to make it a safe experience. I fear that permanent flags will detract from my ability to guarantee a safe place for discussion.

Barry