#kmanicsez I’ve had this on my mind for a long while now, and I dunno if anybody else feels this, but I always feel wary about anyone who has the US 🇺🇸 or England (St. George) 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 flags in their bio. *Specifically* those flags. - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

kmanicart.bsky.social • 6 days ago

#kmanicsez
I’ve had this on my mind for a long while now, and I dunno if anybody else feels this, but I always feel wary about anyone who has the US 🇺🇸 or England (St. George) 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 flags in their bio.
*Specifically* those flags.

Comments

erunroe.bsky.social•6 days ago

oh is it the same vibe when you see certain places (like a fast food restaurant) always have flag flying? like they don't need to have a flag pole and flag flying but they choose to.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

That's a thing? I've not seen that here, unless it's something like an Italian restaurant, but that's more to advertise the nature of the business.
That does sound weird to go out of their way to put up a US flag on a fast food place though.

erunroe.bsky.social•6 days ago

as far as i'm aware, all chic- fil A's have a pole and flag.

kmanicart.bsky.social•5 days ago

Ah, somehow that checks out, assuming what I understand about Chick-fil-A as a company is correct.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

Any other flags are just fine, but when it comes to those two, it tends to carry a vibe of excessive nationalism. I don’t get that vibe from the Union Jack 🇬🇧, but if I see someone flying the St. George flag outside of football games I get concerned. Too much “patriotism” there, if you get me.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

And seeing the US flag carries far too much American Exceptionalism, leaning heavily towards some of the worst aspects of nationalism. I don’t feel it quite so much seeing the flag outside of homes, but it still gives me pause. On social media though? Yeah, now I’m wary of their intent behind it.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

I don’t get this feeling from any other flags, be they national or personal indicators. Those just exist as they are. I don’t even get it from US state flags for the most part. But those with the US and England nation flags in their bio regularly prove the caution warranted.

Anyone else get this?

unusualunity.bsky.social•6 days ago

You're not wrong, especially as of late

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yeah. I've felt this way for years, but it's gotten really bad recently.

joey-poey.bsky.social•6 days ago

It has for me for a while now (at least the US one). It’s sad that it’s essentially become co-opted by really fucking awful people. While I’ve never been in love with the design or colors, like you said, it now gives me pause and I don’t even feel comfortable using it

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

I actually quite liked the US flag, but the... obsession and blind reverence that some people have for it is just bizarre to me. It's not as bad with the St. George flag, but the type of people who fly it frequently tend not to be the best kinds of people, to put it politely.

joey-poey.bsky.social•6 days ago

Being raised religious, I always said growing up that it felt like we were being encouraged to worship the flag based on all the rituals and rules around it. I had major reservations about it all. And now those who are still religious are the ones making it blatant worship of it

clipper.craves.pizza•6 days ago

I feel the same way. I’m from the USA but I feel icky seeing my own country’s flag in a bio, especially in a display name. I dislike seeing the flags of England and Israel too. 🥴

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

Ah, I hadn't even thought about the Israeli flag, but that's become a contentious one as well, yeah...

emoti.bsky.social•6 days ago

I majorly get it. These days odds are if you're flying the U.S. flag, you're a prick. Or any other U.S. flag for that matter (most of which just signify they are an extremist nationalist fascist) So yea, do not trust.

emoti.bsky.social•6 days ago

Sry, any other *stars and stripes* flag. Mostly the black ones. Quite frankly to me they mean that person is a truly awful scummy human being.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

I wasn't aware of the black version of it until now. Assuming I'm reading about the right thing, I can see the original intent behind using it as a symbol for resistance against oppression, but I can certainly see how it would have been co-opted for some of the worst intents as well, for sure.

remwithpen.bsky.social•6 days ago

As an American, I honestly don't get the flag obsession we have. Like, it's everywhere.

But yeah, I know what you mean. Especially the part about other flags not setting that off. I think online we tend to expect Americans as default. So stating you are from elsewhere is communicative.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

I guess that must be a large part of it, yeah. It being almost redundant to fly a flag for the majority group, in a way. I get the idea of having national pride, of course, but some people take it to weird extremes with their reverence for a piece of patterned cloth.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

Maybe "a piece of patterned cloth" is a bit too reductive for something that acts as a symbol for the nation, but I'm hoping I got the point across nonetheless.

remwithpen.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yeah, other flags also can help communicate many things, including language.

I used to get the idea of national pride. I used to have it when I was a kid, but I grew out of it as I learned more about the world. I was raised to think we were so advanced, so fair. My pride was just propaganda.

katfeathers.bsky.social•6 days ago

Hadn't been paying attention to it, but looking back at how things have gone since 2016, it disappointingly unsurprising.

kmanicart.bsky.social•5 days ago

It really is.

redwinterwolf.bsky.social•6 days ago

I remember someone writing about it/describing it once that 'patriotism' as a concept is fine - being supportive of your country, but also wanting it to be better and BE a good place.

Nationalism is 'my country, right or wrong', and not only lacks introspection but is a red flag itself IMO...

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

I was actually going to follow up with this very point in another post, so good to see it brought up here :)

remwithpen.bsky.social•6 days ago

Sadly, in my experience, Americans don't understand this. Like... They justify the healthcare system by saying that "It's how America does it, and therefore it's better." They demand a lack of questioning under the idea that it's patriotic to just accept as it is.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

Meanwhile in England, for the most part we'll criticise the hell out of the government and how they're running things here. We know full well everything's screwed up, though I think the dissociation this nation has is a problem unto itself.
I guess it's better than blind acceptance though.

redwinterwolf.bsky.social•6 days ago

The biggest problem is apathy, I think; it took 14 damn years for people to vote the damn Toriea out, and there's a lot of "Oh, it won't change anything, so why bother?" when it comes to action, voting, etc.

Now the new lot are speedrunning being bad as well, and just... Ugh.

redwinterwolf.bsky.social•6 days ago

(I can't spell *Tories, bah!)

redwinterwolf.bsky.social•6 days ago

There's the apathy middleground, the 'Not perfect = not good enough' protester types (which the US suffers from too) and on the opposite end the Nationalists, who are... well, British Fash, lets be honest.

stewyad.bsky.social•6 days ago

That's 'cuz normal English patriots just use the Union Jack, on account of none of the rest of the UK wanting to use it.
Everyone knows when non-Brits say "Britain" they mean "England" anyways.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yeah, which is kind of a whole thing in its own right, but not much we can do about that one. The Union Jack is still a way better option in most cases though.

sonicsean34.bsky.social•6 days ago

Especially the second one as it’s almost been totally tainted by “those” types of ppl.

It feels very un-British to be THAT bothered and obsessed with a flag. Most of us aren’t performative like that.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

I see it just about enough times to make me wonder, but typically speaking most people only break out the flags for international events when it makes sense, thankfully. Any other time gets them the side-eye.

midnitetease.bsky.social•6 days ago

When I was still on the other site, I had reached the point where I immediately blocked anyone I came across with the American flag as part of their display name. I wasn't looking for the S.G at the time, but likely blocked that frequently due to its associations with various ideas.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

There's just something about the way people use both flags that has bothered me for years, and of course, now there's a lot more to that overall feeling. I've just largely avoided interaction with those accounts.

clipper.craves.pizza•6 days ago

What’s S.G.? 😅

midnitetease.bsky.social•6 days ago

St. George's Cross flag. It's a lot to type out in a limited space. I always look for contractions.

kathrosetail.bsky.social•6 days ago

hello i am english patriot with flag in my name and a footballer pfp and i am about to say the worst things and not get banned for it somehow

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

99 times out of 100, that's *exactly* what it's like, yeah

redwinterwolf.bsky.social•6 days ago

I chuckled... but, also where's the lie? Because EXACTLY.

hyenabeans.bsky.social•6 days ago

I just have it so peeps know what languages I speak. But fair point, mebbe I should update it.

kmanicart.bsky.social•6 days ago

In your case, you have two other nations flags in there, so it doesn't give off the same negative connotations - at least, not to me. It's more informational than about national allegiances, so personally I'd say it's fine, but I can only speak for myself.

hyenabeans.bsky.social•6 days ago

There we go

hyenabeans.bsky.social•6 days ago

Well thank you for clarifying. I could still update it. Gimme a mo