plus one point for evil foreigners

[smileyeagle1021]

Or: Wherein Smiley learns something new.

A couple of months ago all the hotels out by the airport stopped flying American flags and I never knew why. Last night while talking to the manager at the hotel I learned why.
A group of "patriots" would go around to all the hotels and check the flags and file complaints with the respective corporate offices if there was so much as a single loose thread or fray (while I understand and support the need to keep flags in good shape, I understand the reality that flags that are flown outdoors will never be perfect). As a result every hotel was having to replace their flags at least once a month due to the complaints. My manager said that it was costing them over $1000 a year because a few flag enthusiasts wanted all the hotels to have pristine flags, the same quality as what the state flies over the capital... of course the state gets a new flag every day and that would be even more prohibitively expensive.

So, of course, our hotel talked to the other hotels, and we all agreed that it was not worth the expense to fly the stars and stripes and stopped flying flags altogether. So, points to the "evil foreigners" who own the hotel for giving the "patriots" exactly what they want, making sure that there are no flags in less than pristine condition

[flyingember]

one hotel should have offered the opportunity for this group to provide an american flag to the hotel of the expected caliber and replace it when needed.

if it worked they would get free flags and could let this fact out to all the other hotels in the area.

suddenly other businesses than hotels would want new ones. the group then learns the cost of being picky

[smileyeagle1021]

True, but then again, that would let them win
The travel industry is very out of step with the mainstream in Utah (you see, we don't hate foreigners, gays, or democrats) so, pissing off the locals is something of a hobby

[mircea12345]

I had the same issue as you. I was at the Front Desk, when a woman came in, making a complaint about the Flag outside. I looked at her like she was crazy and she continued to complain that we were disrespectful of our country and the like. I was more amused than anything, and after her rant, the guest who we were actually helping looked at the staff and said " I guess its happy hour down the street because she must have gotten and early start".

[bhskittykatt]

I feel strongly about flag etiquette and there are a couple specific places around town I wouldn't mind complaining to...
But I don't expect every flag to be perfect. If it's a little frayed or faded, that's to be expected. If it's been neglected to the condition of being frayed to shreds or otherwise badly damaged, that's just lazy and disrespectful.

[Andara Bledin]

There is only one outdoor flag I've ever complained about, and that was the huge one that was in tatters over some local building. It was pathetic and should have been replaced months before it got to that point.

I actually watched the thing degrade over the course of nearly half a year before they finally bothered to replace it.

^-.-^

[XCashier]

I feel strongly about flag etiquette and there are a couple specific places around town I wouldn't mind complaining to...
But I don't expect every flag to be perfect. If it's a little frayed or faded, that's to be expected. If it's been neglected to the condition of being frayed to shreds or otherwise badly damaged, that's just lazy and disrespectful.

Exactly. It's a piece of fabric*, flying outdoors in all sorts of weather. Naturally, it's going to get a little frayed. I'm not going to nitpick over a loose thread or two. But if it's totally, utterly ratty, it needs replacing.

*Yes, I know what it stands for, I'm talking about what it's made of.

[bainsidhe]

I know the hearts of the complainers were in the right place, but if this bunch donated flags, they'd find something else to complain about and the nitpicking would never end. Suddenly the complainers would expect discounts/freebies because they "donated" to the business and were therefore "owed" something. It's sad, but it happens. I agree with just taking away the temptation.

[mikoyan29]

Something tells me that a slight frayed flag is okay. I only get upset when I see a flag that frayed to the point of being unrecognizable. I remember after 9/11 when flags were fashionable again and I would see flags worn down to the union. At that point it's no longer patriotic but I think Mr. SUV Jackass wouldn't realize that because he has four of the things.

[Jay Fear]

I can safely say if anyone came to my place of work to complain about something so tangential and pointless I'd gladly risk censure in asking them to put up or shut up.

I've never quite understood the obsession with flags. What relevance does it really have? No contemporary citizens created it, the symbolism is obtuse and the object itself has no material value, it's like a boring old vase you only keep because your great-grandmother owned it.

I feel the same for my own country's flag as I do about any others, and I feel it's sorta cheap to cling to an esoteric symbol. If you like your country, that's groovy, but treating a symbol of it as if its a holy relic is a great reminder of why people seem so willing to resort to violence and oppression in its name.

[Peppergirl]

Hey guys -

Just a friendly reminder to keep the patriotism talk out of the equation. Lets focus on the irony of the SC's causing the flags to be removed by being so nitpicky.

Thanks!

[PepperElf]

Yeah, fabric in the air can take quite a beating.

For extended usage - especially if the flag pole is one of those really tall ones - I'd personally recommend a heavier duty flag that's individually sewn. That's what we used onboard my ships in the Navy - instead of just printing the flag image to a single rectangle of fabric, each stripe and star was individually sewn. That type of flag tends to fray a lot less.

[C. Cecil Ivanish]

There is a building I drive by (here in Scotland) that proudly displays on three flagposts of equal heights an EU flag, a UK flag and an US flag, being it the European headquarters of an American company. In February this year, after a lengthy spell of awful weather 24-7, the three flags were so ruined that it was not easy to tell them from each other (my wife and I were kinda sure about the EU one because it is the only one that doesn't contain any red). They remained there for weeks until somebody decided to remove them and, after some days, replace them with new ones.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Yeah, I understand the sewn fabric ones stood up better than the printed ones. I was constantly replacing the ones out front of the building I used to work at. We had a US flag, a state flag, and our company flag, which I designed and had to have printed special. The problem was that those stitched flags are pretty costly, and for the company flag at least, I'm not sure it would have been worth the extra expense because of the materials the vendors were using. We wanted to keep the flags uniform, so they were all made of the same materials.

So I replaced a contant stream of flags.

Heck, part of the ongoing saga of my last job was the search for a vendor that used a material that held up to UV better. That quest remained fruitless.

[chainedbarista]

i'm wondering if these self same geniuses actually know the correct way to dispose of the stars and stripes, while they're busy bitching about its status. would they have screamed for it to be repaced during wartime, when it really took a beating? dumbasses...