@OmSigDAVID,
David, you are joining email in attempting to re-write history, and in the process attempting to the wash the bloodstains of 400 years of heinous racism from that flag. Why? Do you really not know your history?
Let's examine an excerpt from the fam0us
"Cornerstone Speech", given by the V.P. of the Confederacy, Alexander Stephens, shortly after the Confederacy was born... and see if what he had to say about race, shall we? Hell, at the risk of invoking Godwin's Law; see if you can honestly separate this guy's view of black people from Hitler's view of Jews. Are all men created equal?
Alexander Stephens wrote:Our new government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner- stone rests, upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery subordination to the superior race is his natural and normal condition. This, our new government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth. This truth has been slow in the process of its development, like all other truths in the various departments of science. It has been so even amongst us. Many who hear me, perhaps, can recollect well, that this truth was not generally admitted, even within their day. The errors of the past generation still clung to many as late as twenty years ago. Those at the North, who still cling to these errors, with a zeal above knowledge, we justly denominate fanatics. All fanaticism springs from an aberration of the mind from a defect in reasoning. It is a species of insanity. One of the most striking characteristics of insanity, in many instances, is forming correct conclusions from fancied or erroneous premises; so with the anti-slavery fanatics. Their conclusions are right if their premises were. They assume that the negro is equal, and hence conclude that he is entitled to equal privileges and rights with the white man. If their premises were correct, their conclusions would be logical and just but their premise being wrong, their whole argument fails. I recollect once of having heard a gentleman from one of the northern States, of great power and ability, announce in the House of Representatives, with imposing effect, that we of the South would be compelled, ultimately, to yield upon this subject of slavery, that it was as impossible to war successfully against a principle in politics, as it was in physics or mechanics. That the principle would ultimately prevail. That we, in maintaining slavery as it exists with us, were warring against a principle, a principle founded in nature, the principle of the equality of men. The reply I made to him was, that upon his own grounds, we should, ultimately, succeed, and that he and his associates, in this crusade against our institutions, would ultimately fail. The truth announced, that it was as impossible to war successfully against a principle in politics as it was in physics and mechanics, I admitted; but told him that it was he, and those acting with him, who were warring against a principle. They were attempting to make things equal which the Creator had made unequal.
This is the mentality the battle flag was conceived and flown in defense of.
Anyone interested in learning the truth can read the stated reasons for secession for themselves here:
http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/reasons.html READ them and then come back and tell me how their whining that Northern States won't cooperate in "returning their property"(human beings) is a "State's Rights" issue, rather than a human rights issue. Do you now agree with them that the racist's right to consider blacks their property in one state superseded the right to consider people people in another? Would you have then?
Few institutions in history were more repugnant to decency and human rights than the formation of the Confederate States and the symbols for same cannot be divorced from the racist institution they were created to symbolize. There is no honor in flying the confederate battle flag, any more than there is honor in flying a Nazi flag. Both are equally representative of heinous racism and should be scorned accordingly.
Than you may as well let the Neo-Nazis in too, because the majority of Americans will never take a group displaying such willful ignorance seriously, no matter how good your ideas may be.