By FITSNews || We take anything that we read on World Net Daily with an ocean of salt, but occasionally the socially-conservative news outlet stumbles upon an interesting scoop.
Like this story about a would-be U.S. Marine who was allegedly booted from the Corps because of a Confederate flag tattoo on his arm.
The Marines have a fairly extensive tattoo policy, which was updated as recently as January of this year. Among other banned ink designs, it prohibits tattoos that are “racist” or display “anti-American content.”
That basically means that we’re back to the debate over whether the Confederate flag is racist … which the Marines have apparently answered in the affirmative.
Personally, we think any person who is willing to volunteer for the U.S Military – especially the Marines – should be allowed to wear whatever sort of tattoo they want, wherever they want to wear it.
Seriously, whether it’s a Confederate flag or a “Kill Whitey” tattoo, what’s the big deal? Red and yellow, black and white, all U.S. soldiers are ostensibly fighting for “freedom,” right?
Right?
WEB EXTRA
U.S. Marines boot recruits with Confederate tattoos (World Net Daily)
By Jay May 6, 2010 at 2:43 pm
it prohibits tattoos that are “racist” or display “anti-American content.”
Actually, you could just skip the racism debate and point solely at the anti-american portion.
By Tea Nazis May 6, 2010 at 2:49 pm
How can you have soldiers representing the country sporting terrorist tatoos?…More Ron Paul Nazis
By The Colonel May 6, 2010 at 2:54 pm
Uh well, right I guess…
Sic it has more to do with good order and discipline and the public image of the organization than what “we’re fighting for”.
As to the public image part – The Marine Officers I work with who have tats are forced to wear long sleeved shirts all the time while on duty to keep them covered. The Army is a bit more lenient but I will not send soldiers on missions to represent my units when the short sleeved class B uniform is required it they’re all “tatted up”.
As to the good order and discipline, the policy is intended to prevent discord in units that have a cross section of America in them. “I hate Dumb Crackers” would likely be rejected for the same reason the confederate flag was.
We fight to defend your right to say and do what you want, that doesn’t mean we get to express ourselves in the same way.
By Pluvlaw May 6, 2010 at 3:39 pm
I agree with Jay’s comment. Seeing as how the Confederate flag represents those who wanted to secede from the United State of America, that seems pretty anti-American to me.
By EasleyJack May 6, 2010 at 3:58 pm
Anti American.. like this country is worried about that.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/05/06/california-students-sent-home-wearing-flags-cinco-mayo/
By Toyota Kawaski May 6, 2010 at 3:58 pm
jay u need to smoke a jay
By Cooter Brown May 6, 2010 at 4:18 pm
Luckyest day ov dat boyz life, I’d say.
Fitin’ fer da empire, occupyin’ foreign lans, an’ spillin’ his precious Southern blood fer no gud reezon iz not th’ bess choice in da furst place.
Racist an’ anti-amerikan– silly talk!
By SubZeroIQ May 6, 2010 at 5:04 pm
FITS: Please let me put this comment on all your stories today.
Why did you drop the ball on the Benjamin collision?
It has now become something much bigger and the most serious in South Carolina history. Why? Because Chief of Police Carter refused to appear before the City of Columbia Council, which called him on Wednesday to report on why the investigation was so secret and taking so long.
Now Carter has forced the City Council to cancel its Friday morning meeting meant to require an outside agency to investigate this one and in the future. Carter refused and defied the Council.
One thing cannot happen in America: those armed by the people cannot refuse to answer to the civilian authority elected by the people.
If that happens, we no longer have a democracy but a military or police dictatorship.
This is not funny. Please take it seriously. Thanks and God bless.
By Just another Joe May 6, 2010 at 5:25 pm
Jee wiz I grew up down here is south katalaky and was always taught by my born-in-the-south and educated at Winthrop (or Columbia College) teachers that the confederate states succeeded from and fought against the United States. If that is not being anti-American please can some enlighted DCV or SCV tell me otherwise. The post-war government made an awful mistake when it did not outright ban the flying of this flag or any other confederate flag. This include allowing CSA units to keep their unit battle flags and decades later to encourage the return of captured flags. BTW Since the Nazi swastika flag was righfully outlawed in Germany (elsewhere?) following WWII the neo-Nazis are now using the confederate flag (like the one depicted in the tat and flies on the state house grounds) as a substitute in their marches.
Semper Fi
By 803andy May 6, 2010 at 5:26 pm
I see your point FITS, but this guy can still join the army, etc… however the Marines has a higher standard and I can understand why this is an issue. You have to come correct for the Marines.
By me May 6, 2010 at 7:42 pm
Ft. Hood, TX John Bell Hood (Confederate General)
Ft. Polk, LA General Leonidas Polk (Confederate General)
Ft. Bragg, NC Braxton Bragg (Confederate General)
Ft. Campbell, KY William Brown Campbell (Confederate general)
Ft. A.P. Hill, VA Ambrose Powell Hill (Confederate General)
Ft. Gordon, GA John Brown Gordon (Confederate General)
Ft. Benning, GA Henry L. Benning (Confederate General)
Ft. Lee, VA Robert E. Lee (All-American General)
Ft. Rucker, AL Edmund Rucker (Confederate General)
By Freedom For Me May 6, 2010 at 9:07 pm
Are you peole crazy???….
By SnakeMD May 7, 2010 at 1:09 am
No comment.
Great-grand nephew of General (CSA) Thomas J. Jackson.
“Are you people crazy???….” Affirmative
By R May 7, 2010 at 5:10 am
Do you know how many Marines sport gang tattoos? The military is full of gang members. National Geographic did one of their “Gangland” specials about this issue. So its OK to have a gang tattoo but not this one? The Federal government is light years from what the Founding Fathers intended. The Federal Government has trampled on the Constitution. There’s nothing more un-American that the Federal Government. For all those that claim the South is “un-American” for Secession I would remind you that VA, NC, SC, GA were sovereign independent entities that voluntarily joined together to form a federal form of government under strict guidelines that limited the central government’s powers. In a letter to James Madison in 1816 Jefferson reiterated his support of the right of secession by saying, “If any state in the Union will declare that it prefers separation . . . to a continuance in union . . . I have no hesitation in saying, let us separate.” I think Southerners should stop filling the ranks of the military. If the Marines are so offended by a tattoo of the Confederate flag then Southerners need to be offended enough to stop serving the empire.
By Bob May 7, 2010 at 6:01 am
This was denied to maintain good order in the ranks. The Marines take no political stand. I learned in 9 years as a Marine that one must depend on his fellow Marines more than anyone but God, and at times they will be closer even than him. Offending your brother Marine as deeply as this symbol offends some breaks Esprit de Corps.
Semper Fi.
By Rick May 7, 2010 at 7:57 am
R…that was a decision each state had to make at the time and for their own individual reason. Whether the issue was slavery or states rights, we as a nation of individuals will continue to see it as we each choose. The debate and catcalling has continued for over 140 years and will as long as each of us has “reason”. As a symbol of hate, seems I hear this from race baiters more often than from the average individual. I served with Marines from just about every state and found most willing to accept you at face value until you did or said something that caused a solidification of attitude. No matter where you hold the flag in your heart, the message it sends has been defined by the race baiters and is now seen in the light that racists have defined. While the flag may define “states rights” or I’m Southern by the grace of God” for you, its been defined by racists as a symbol meaning something else. You wouldn’t want a “Kill Whitey” tattoed Marine responsible for guarding you during a combat sleep period anymore than a black marine wants a “racist” guarding him during a combat sleep period. Trust is not automatic, its built on time and actions. Good answer Bob. Couldn’t have said it better myself. Semper Fi ya’ll
By CNSYD May 7, 2010 at 8:53 am
Why is the flag offensive? Because the media and rabble rousers aka NAACP said so. What they say is obviously not reality but a means to push their agenda. Personally I think that any tattoo shows ignorance regardless of what it says. If you have a tattoo that is purported to honor your Mom is that some kind of revelation that a person owes so much to their Mom? Why do you feel the need to tell the world and/or remind yourself? What is a man’s first thought when he sees a tattooed female. Trailer trash. Sorry ladies but that is true.
By Brett Moffatt May 9, 2010 at 9:00 pm
The United States was founded on secession. Everyone at the time knew secession was Constitutional. New England had threatened to secede more than once, and it wasn’t a problem then. At West Point they taught how to Constitutionally secede. Secession is not the problem. The desire of the Lincoln regime to keep the South in the union, even against their will and his stated position on secession while he was in Congress, was the reason for the war. The Lincoln regime had to have Southern taxes to run their federal government. If anything, the Lincoln regime, in violating the Constitution and legal traditions dating from Biblical times, were the anti-Americans. They were following revolutionary philosophy in establishing a stronger central government than the Constitution allowed.
By John A. Lejeune May 9, 2010 at 11:48 pm
Hey, “me.” What’s your point? Those are all Army bases and the story is about the Marine Corps’ tat policy.
By historylover May 10, 2010 at 9:30 pm
If more people were informed about both sides of the issues of seccession
And the Civil War they would be able to make an informed decision about the flag
rather than to follow the Northern myths about the war or the propaganda feed to us by
the media. Being uninformed is the reason this country faces so many problems today. Don’t
believe everything from the media; READ multiple sides of an issue and make your own
determination! A brain is a terrible thing to waste especially on the media!!
By CNChapin May 11, 2010 at 1:34 pm
Secession is quintessential to what is the United States of America and embodies the great rebellious and Liberty-loving spirit that made this country great.
People seem to forget that perception is in the eyes of the beholder, not the other way around. You can’t control how people perceive things. I do not see the Confederate Flag as a racist symbol, so it should not be called racist, right? Well, what if I think that a cross is bigoted? Should the Marine Corps not allow people in that have a cross tattooed on them? Hell no! The Marine Corps is a government organization and, therefore, does not have the right to censor free speech. They should never be allowed to prevent someone from participating due to their speech (a tattoo). If someone has a problem with it or thinks it means one thing, then that is THEIR problem. It would make more sense to not allow the person in the Marines that thinks that a confederate flag is racist and people with them tattooed on them should be banned from the Marines.
You could solve all of this just by using the 1st National Flag of the Confederacy instead of the Naval Jack flag, though.
Lastly, if we followed the US Constitution, we’d not need the Marine corps. The last time any of our military fought for OUR freedom was in WWII, which also happens to be the last time we actually declared war on anyone. Since then, the US military has just become the world’s police force and they’re no longer fighting for our freedom. Bring them home and drastically reduce the size of the big government military unless someone will have the balls to perform a formal and Constitutional declaration of war.
By JAMES RODNEY PLUMMER October 14, 2011 at 3:10 pm
THIS IS WHY WE HAVE DIVIDED UNITY IN AMERICA! WITHOUT THIS FLAG THE SOUTH WOULD NOT BE WHAT IT IS AND WHAT IT STANDS FOR! ABRAHAM LINCOLN….WHICH PEOPLE WORSHIP LIKE GOD HIMSELF…….WAS ONE OF THE BIGGEST RACIST IN THE HISTORY OF AMERICA AND THE WORLD! THE ONLY REASON HE SIGNED THE BILL TO STOP SLAVERY WAS FOR POLITCAL REASONS! IN FACT THE MOMENT AFTER HE FINISHED SINGING THE BILL HE TURNED TO HIS CLOSEST FREIND AND SAID….”IF IT WAS LEFT UP TO ME I WOULD HAVE NEVER SIGNED THIS BILL”…HE OWNED A NUMBER OF SLAVES WHEN HE SIGNED THE BILL! SO DON’T EVER TALK ABOUT THIS FLAG BEING RACIST! THE KKK AND THE SORRY ASS COWARD WHITE NAZI LOVING PIECES OF SHIT USE THIS FLAG WITH THE NAZI SYMBOL AND THAT IS BULLSHIT! THIS FLAG IS NO WHERE NEAR BEING ANYTHING TO DO WITH SORRY ASS NAZI PIECES OF SHIT! I LIVE IN FLATONIA TEXAS AND I HAVE DOCUMENTS TO PROVE I HAD SEVERAL KIN FOLK WHO FOUGHT FOR THE SOUTH RIGHT NEXT TO THE BLACK CONFEDERATE SOLIDERS AND NATIVE AMERICAN CONFEDERATE SOLIDERS…WHICH I AM HALF CHEROKEE AND HALF IRISH AND MY NATIVE AMERICAN BROTHERS AND SISTERS ARE THE BIGGEST NATIONALITY OF PEOPLE WHO HAS BEEN PROVEN TO BE BELOW THE MEXICANS, THE ARABICS, AND ESPECIALY THE BLACKS WHEN IT COMES TO BEING RACIALY ABUSED, PUT DOWN, RAPED, AND KILLED! SO DON’T COME CRY BABYING ABOUT THIS FLAG BEING RACIST! IT TAKES A RACIST TO PUT THIS FLAG DOWN! SHOULD WE KILL ALL THE BLACK PANTHERS BECAUSE THE BLACKS USED THEM AS THEIR SYMBOL FOR THEIR RACIST GROUP? THE ANSWER IS HELL NO! SO DON’T LET A BUNCH OF STUPID, IGNORANT, DUBASSES OR NAZI WANT TO BE’S ACTIONS BE YALL’S EXCUSE TO PUT DOWN OUR SACRED SOUTHERN FLAG THAT WHITE, AMERICAN INDIAN, AND BLACK MEN, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN DIED FOR! DON’T BE IGNORANT! THERE ARE GOOD AND BAD IN ALL RACES, RELIGIONS, SEXS, AND GROUPS BUT THAT DOSE NOT MEAN EVERYONE IS JUST LIKE THOSE IGNORANT DUMBASSES!
By JAMES RODNEY PLUMMER October 14, 2011 at 3:16 pm
I AM A US ARMY VETERAN AND BEFORE I WENT TO THE ARMY I WAS FIXING TO GO TO THE MARINES BUT THE ARMY MADE MORE SENSE WHEN I LOOKED AT BOTH….BUT PLEASE REMEMBER THAT THE MARINES ARE NOT TAUGHT TO USE THEIR BRAINS BUT INSTEAD ARE TAUGHT TO USE THEIR FORCE AND WEAPONS TO THINK WITH…….SO IT DOSEN’T SURPRISE ME THAT THE MARINES WOULD BE RACIST LIKE THIS……BUT PLEASE DON’T THINK THAT ALL MARINES ARE DUMBASSES. THEY ARE OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN ARMS AND THE SO CALLED TOP PEOPLE IN RANK MADE THIS DISCISON! DO WHAT I DO PRAY FOR THEIR IGNORANCE!
By sad December 5, 2011 at 10:36 am
well if there good enough to serve our country and put there lifes on the line for us to do the simlpe things in life that we take for granted damn straight they should be just as free as us if not MORE soo i 100% DISSAGREE with that