Panicked Alarm for thrills. A Norwegian flag reported to the press as a Confederate flag.

I don't know what type of person Rebecca Morris is, and the headline is my interpretation of these events.

It is like an episode out of Portlandia.

Recently a resident of Seattle called a reporter that a Confederate flag was flying in her neighborhood on a flag pole. This is the story:

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/both-have-crosses-so-norwegian-flag-mistaken-for-confederate-flag/

It turned out it was a Norwegian flag.

Now before going forward lets contrast the Norwegian flag to the Confederate battle flag.

The Norwegian flag has a Latin cross, that is a + sign type cross.

The Confederate battle flag has a Greek cross, that is a X type cross.

The Norwegian flag doesn't have any decorative elements or symbols or anything besides the cross.

The Confederate battle flag has 13 stars. They are not small and a prominent element of the design.

They don't look like each other at all except a lot of red.

This was the news tip by Morris.

“Hi. Suddenly there is a Confederate flag flying in front of a house in my Greenwood neighborhood. It is at the north-east corner of 92nd and Palatine, just a block west of 92nd and Greenwood Ave N. I would love to know what this ‘means’ … but of course don’t want to knock on their door. Maybe others in the area are flying the flag? Maybe it’s a story? Thank you.”

A reporter drove to the corner and in this story an excuse is made for Morris.

There was no wind, and on a flagpole there was what obviously was the U.S. flag at the top, and below, a red flag with blue stripes. 

Simply hanging down, not spread out, you could make some assumptions that it was the star-filled “Southern cross” of the Confederacy.

It isn't clear whether there was no wind when Morris reported this flag.  However, if there wasn't any wind, I would think you would wait for some wind to make sure that it was a Confederate flag before you denounce a neighbor to the press. This is effectively a denunciation, Morris characterizes the neighbor flying the Confederate flag as someone potentially dangerous. "but of course don't want to knock on their door."

I can imagine that the neighbor flying the Norwegian flag felt intimidated.

The newspaper digs up another case of a Norwegian flag mistaken for a Confederate flag.

When it was reported back to Morris that it was a Norwegian flag she replied:

She says she had even looked up the Confederate flag online and it sure looked to her like the flag on that corner. 

But on a second look, “Well, it does look like the Norwegian flag!”

So here the no wind theory seems less creditable. Morris claims to have looked up a Confederate flag online and compared it to the flag on the corner.

Or perhaps there was no wind and that fact that the flag on the corner and a Confederate battle flag both had red and blue was enough for Morris to conclude that "it sure looked like the flag on that corner."

Morris then excuses herself by stating, "we're stressed by all things political that we see things that aren't there."

I think before you call the media about something this serious about your neighbor I think you really should make sure of your facts.

I would like to suggest some alternative possible interpretations of the events.

1. Maybe Morris is excitable and given to panicked alarms and just goes off the deep end easily. Perhaps cries often.

2. Or maybe Morris is excitable and saw a real opportunity for drama in her life. Morris could breathlessly report to her friends that she was the FIRST to report it. What dangers might be there with this neighbor she could dwell on breathlessly. The possibility for drama would be endless.

Right-wing news outlets were quick to take advantage of this opportunity to present opponents of Confederate things as addled persons.

Breitbart had this article.

http://www.breitbart.com/big-journalism/2018/02/22/seattle-author-tips-reporter-mistaking-norwegian-flag-confederate-flag/

The Daily Caller had this article.

http://dailycaller.com/2018/02/23/seattle-confederate-flag/

Red State

https://www.redstate.com/jimjamitis/2018/02/22/seattle-author-reports-neighbors-confederate-flag-gets-geography-lesson/

The article concludes with, "To be fair, the colors are practically the same, but this seems like a mystery the true crime author could have figured out without contacting the media.

The Washington Examiner really takes Morris to task in this article and shows the two flags side by side.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/how-do-you-say-bless-your-heart-in-norwegian/article/2649898

The author of the Examiner article states.

"The reason we know about any of this is because the busybody Morris narc’d on her neighbor. "

The author also points out the alarmist representation of the neighbor by Morris and Morris' decision not to talk to the neighbor with this comment.

She would've discovered her boneheaded mistake pretty quickly, and privately, had she just done the neighborly thing and asked the man about his flag. Instead, she made a great fool of herself by ratting him out him to the local newspaper

I bring this up since I am finding in Dallas a lot of people who really aren't against the Confederate built environment, but really are primarily interested in drama and self-serving moral posturing.

They are focused on extremists and really don't want to know that the Confederate built environment is actually supported by mainstream elements in their society.

For those who have a compulsion to find silver linings in everything, I should point out there there isn't. Perhaps someone might reflect that they should check twice, but people who like panicked alarm for thrills are rarely reflective.

What the activist against the Confederate built environment needs to do is to discourage this in any organizations they have. I got to meetings and some seem to be forums for this type of self-indulgence. This needs to be called out for what it is.

Also, in building an organization don't imagine that these people are really supporters. They will be on to another issue and gone with a few news cycles when they see the current issue as exhausted for opportunities for drama and some new event provides new opportunities for drama.