Maine Uni. Puts U.S. Flags on Floor as ‘Art’

April 16, 2008 | Filed Under Democrats/Leftists, Education, History, News, Patriotism, Publius Contributor, Security/Safety, Society/Culture, Warner Todd Huston |

-By Warner Todd Huston

We have another incident of empty showboating by a half-sentient college kid who imagines herself to be making “art” and a “statement” by placing American flags on the floor in hopes that people would disrespect them enough to walk upon them. One Miss Susan Crane of the University of Maine at Farmington decided that her “art” was going to be an exercise in desecration.

Unfortunately, all we have is another disrespectful kid doing the same thing that a dozen other disrespectful kids have done at anti-American campuses across the country over the last 40 years or so. There isn’t a thing “new” or even unexpected about it at this point. This makes her “statement” empty and pointless. But Crane has been fooled by her anti-American professors into imagining she is sparking a “conversation” about patriotism and the flag.

“Ninety-five to 98 percent of the people didn’t walk on the flags,” Crane said of her findings. The other reaction she was hoping for was one of thoughtful reflection on his or her individual patriotism.

“It sparked conversation and thought about how we feel about our flag, which I think is very important. It was a very hard thing for me to do, to put the flag on the floor,” she said.

Oh, we get these sort of self-loathing, anti-Americans every single time there is national turmoil of some sort or another. They imagine they are being “edgy” and “artistic” with their displays of hate for their own country. And they get congratulated by their equally vacuous teachers and professors that were trained in the Marxist work shops of the Weather Underground, the SDS, or the equally Marxist NEA. But, when all is said and done, no “conversation” is sparked. Only emotions.

No one goes away from one of these idiotic displays of hate with any newer understanding of the issues of patriotism or the actions of the government of the United States. No history is learned, no issues settled. All we have is the self-congratulatory, circle-jerking of the hatemongers in our Universities who are so proud to be sending out into the great world another American citizen indoctrinated to hate their own country.

To illustrate, I think I’ll rename this little incident. I’m am going to give this project the following title:

“Fat, ugly college girl with no boyfriend creates flag desecration to show hate for country”

There. Now, here is the question: does that title help the debate? I don’t think it does, but then again, my reaction with this project reflects about the only “conversation” that Miss Crane will get with her display of ignorance. It will be all of emotion and no substance.

Here is a perfect example of what I am talking about. UMF’s president, Theo Kalikow, issued a completely empty statement after word got out about this unpatriotic display of hate.

“Art in all its forms is important. The anger that was experienced today. Students push the boundary of what learning is. First Amendment rights, freedom of expression. We share in a state of expression.”

Kalikow’s empty moralizing shows that this display of hatred was meaningless in the end. It resulted in nothing but anger even as the unpatriotic president of UMF tries to see some good, ANY good, in it. (You can email president Kalikow with this address: kalikow@maine.edu.)

At least one fellow was incensed enough to confront the educrats at UMF. Charlie Bennett, American Legion 4th District commander, a Vietnam Vet, went on down and began to pick the flags up from the floor. Naturally, the college administrators warned him that they’d call the police for his arrest.

So, a man who put his life on the line for that flag and for the folks wandering the halls of UMF was to be arrested for his patriotism? Typical.

There is a video of Mr. Bennett confronting these anti-Americans in the hallways of UMF. Bennett was confronted by the University Provost Allen Berger who told the veteran that he “didn’t fight for a piece of cloth.” (His number is 207-778-7279, and email is aberger@maine.edu.)

In any case, what we have here is but useless ginning up of emotions by a college kid who has been misled to believe that she is actually advancing the cause of Americanism instead of defeating it. She is the recipient of another wasted exercise in what is called “education” in this country. This is why our schools are becoming the laughing stock of real education everywhere.

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Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago based freelance writer, has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 2001 and is featured on many websites such as newsbusters.org, townhall.com, New Media Journal, Men’s News Daily and the New Media Alliance among many, many others. Additionally, he has been a frequent guest on talk-radio programs to discuss his opinion editorials and current events. He has also written for several history magazines and appears in the new book “Americans on Politics, Policy and Pop Culture” which can be purchased on amazon.com. He is also the owner and operator of publiusforum.com. Feel free to contact him with any comments or questions : EMAIL Warner Todd Huston