A truck cruised through Wellesley on Saturday flying the confederate and American flags, stirring emotions, including via a bunch of comments on our Facebook page.
RELATED: Find a Walpole Confederate flag solution (figured this might be relevant to WHS athletes who have competed in Walpole in recent years)
Yes, a private citizen has the right of free speech, of course. Flying the battle flag of Northern Virginia on private property is fine. As John Oliver said on his weekly TV show, displaying that Confederate flag is a “useful
way to identify the worst people in the world.”
Walpole had numerous men who perished during the US Civil War. This beautiful history, shared with all Massachusetts towns, is scorned in Walpole. Reason? It is contrary to the legacy of John Lee and the Walpole Rebels.
Its asinine. M. E. Amaral
former chairman, Walpole Historical Commission
Freedom of expression in the Nanny states most Nanny town? What’s next, rainbow flags on Subarus?
The Battle Flag of the Army of Northern Virginia was flown by a military organization that is responsible for more military deaths of American servicemen than any other military organization. A comparable number of American servicemen fighting under the Stars and Stripes died in the Civil War as died in World War II. It is also the flag of an organization that invaded the United States (Pennsylvania), captured free black citizens, and sold them into slavery.
A number of people from Wellesley and Massachusetts fought in the Civil War to destroy the Confederacy and the treason in defense of slavery that it represents. Flying that flag in Massachusetts, a leader in the fight against slavery, tells us a lot about that person’s beliefs and none of them are positive.
Arlana, I do hope you will someday understand what that flag stood for and obviously continues to stand for and I and most compassionate, understanding, and knowledgeable people will be very disturbed and upset with those who think is’s okay to wave that flag or fly it. It is no less a negative symbol as a Nazi swastika – both are symbols of hate, death and atrocities to man kind. Neither should be accepted as “okay”
You all do realize you are wasting your time fighting over a flag right? It’s a flag… Don’t you have better things to do? Lol
I’m horribly disappointed in the state where the battle for freedom began. It was your statesmen who threw tea into the harbor over a 3% tax, now, you are one of the highest taxed states in the union. The actual shooting started in the revolution because the British were coming to take your weapons away, now you have thrown away your God given right to self defense. The man driving that truck served in the United States Army as an infantryman. He knows a thing or two about the constitution, Bill of Rights and the real reason the south seceded. I know because he and I were in the same unit at one point. Shame on you Massachusetts. Where has your disdain for unjust governance and out of control taxes gone, not to mention freedom of speech?
You’re right he has every right to speak his mind and so do I: Your friend is a ****** idiot. And so are you.
You are 100% correct, he has every right to fly that flag. But that right does not make him immune from criticism. The same rights that allow him to fly that flag allow anyone to criticize him for doing so. No apologies required or expected.
This is class A bull****. I know the man with the flag on his truck. He has every right to exercise his American Rights. You people are sick. I expect a great deal of apology come his way.