Posted on 05/26/2009 4:58:15 PM PDT by Michael Eden
We've got a little movie for you today. There's a hero and a villain. And your job is to decide which is which, boys and girls.
So here's the plot. A business in Reno is flying a Mexican flag above the American flag which, among other things, is a violation of the law in the United States. As the local media begins to report on the story from the scene, a large bearded man (that would be Jim Brossard) walks up to the flag pole, pulls down both flags, and cuts the American flag off the pole (with what he wants to make sure everyone knows is an American Army knife).
Brossard says - and I'd very much like to quote him:
"That is what happened. Right there. I'm Jim Brossard. And I took this flag down in honor of my country. With a knife from the United States Army. I'm a veteran. I'm not going to see this done to my country. If they're going to fight us, then they need to be men. And they need to come and fight us. But I want someone to FIGHT me for this flag. They're not going to get it back."And with that Jim Brossard, turns and walks away from the camera - and right past the Mexican (let's just agree to assume that he's a Mexican due to the whole, 'I think I'll fly the Mexican flag above the American flag today' thing) business owner and his amigo.
The reporter approaches the business owner - who is still watching Jim Brossard walking away with his flag - and asks, "So what do you think of that?" The Mexican business owner walks over to the flag pole and retrieves his Mexican flag - which big bearded guy had tossed on the ground - and picks it up as the reporter asks, "No comment? What do you think of that? What are you trying to accomplish, at least? Anything?"
And the Mexican business owner wordlessly goes into his place of business with his remaining flag and shuts the door, which features a sign bearing the words, "No persons under 21 allowed."
I've reported. You decide. Who's the Real American? Big bearded guy or Mexican business owner, with his interesting choice in flag-order?
Who is the hero and who is the villain?
I didn't have to ponder this one for very long: Jim Brossard, big bearded guy, I salute you!
I would offer to buy you a drink, Mr. Brossard, but I see you've already got that big can of whoop-ass in your hand.
MARKETING TIP: SOMEBODY FROM HARLEY-DAVIDSON SERIOUSLY NEEDS TO GIVE THIS MAN A ROAD KING AND SIGN HIM AS THEIR CORPORATE SPOKESMAN.
Now, all of this said, this story is also part of a larger debate: which group of politically-active people is one the side of big bearded guy, and which group of politically-active people is on the side of Mexican business owner?
Let me just take a wild guess and suggest that he AINT on Nancy Pelosi's side of the argument.
You can almost hear the cries of metropolitan liberals:
"That great big mean bully! He's got a knife. He's got a knife! HE'S GOT A KNIFE!!! Somebody call the police and have that terrible man arrested!Conservatives are routinely told that they're losing Hispanics. But if Hispanics are going to support one of their own proudly flying his Mexican flag over the American flag on American soil over Jim Brossard's righteous outrage, I frankly don't give a damn.That awful man is a racist, and he's bitter, and he hates immigrants just like President Obama said! He's probably got guns, too! What's that? He's a veteran? See? HE'S ONE OF THOSE RIGHTWING EXTREMISTS just like the DHS said!
He's why we need sanctuary cities! To protect poor immigrants from hateful men like THAT!"
I'll take Jim's side any day.
I sure get the sense he'd take mine.
Hopefully it wasn’t a hard question to answer.
But realize, liberals come up with wrong answers to ridiculously easy questions all the time.
No.
Did you ever pull your head out of your rear end?
That’s all you have to say???? You’ve got to be shitting me!
wow. what does he think he is? Texan or something?
Waiting for something interesting to read.
This happened in Oct of 2007.
Some more info from WIKI:
A veterans’ group, the U.S.S. Intrepid Association Inc., in November 2007 presented Brossard with a U.S. flag that had been raised over the Intrepid July 12, 2007.
Although Cavuto, Gallagher, and other reporters stated that flying the U.S. flag in this manner is illegal, the Reno Police Department and the Nevada chapter of the ACLU issued separate press releases stating that while both U.S. code and Nevada statutes contain protocols relating to the display of the American flag, the protocols are advisory only and carry no sanctions for violation.
The owner of the bar did not press charges against Brossard.
Ka-Bar, the manufacturer of the knife Brossard used, made a Jim Broussard commemorative edition of the military knife
“djf” stands for “dumbass jabbering fool.”
There are a few turds like him trolling around, and every single one of them should write their own articles rather than pissing on other peoples’.
That way we’d all be able to aspire to his astounding level of composition.
God. Second post and someone is already whining about your style. Couldn’t have FreepMailed you on it .....
That’s interesting background.
Someone sent me the vid, and it was new to me. But I got the sense it had been around for awhile when I tried to find a couple of related info.
I noticed that Jim Brossard had started a site to take advantage of his fame. Wish him well.
Discovered after your comment that each state makes their own laws regarding flag laws. I suppose as a federalist I’ve got to be happy with that.
great, let me shove the blood back into my eyeballs. Thx.
Nah. He would have been just as big of a loser if he had...
I’ve had blood squirting out of my eyes since November 4, 2008.
I need to drink a lot of fluids these days to keep my strength up.
From “The Lion In Winter”:
Prince John: He’s got a knife!
Queen Eleanor: Of course he’s got a knife.
You’ve got a knife.
I’ve got a knife.
We’ve ~all~ got knives.
It’s 1183 and we’re barbarians.
“A veterans’ group, the U.S.S. Intrepid Association Inc., in November 2007 presented Brossard with a U.S. flag that had been raised over the Intrepid July 12, 2007.”
“Ka-Bar, the manufacturer of the knife Brossard used, made a Jim Broussard commemorative edition of the military knife”
Totally freakin’ bitchin’!
It was “new” to me as well-LOL. Thanks for posting-otherwise I would not have known about it.
That was pretty good. I read it hearing the voices of Cleese and the rest of the Monty Python cast.
This guy Brossard has gained himself some fame - and God bless him for it.
He came across an outrage, and he took responsibility to deal with it.
I don’t care how old the story is, it deserves a retelling.
This is the first time I have seen it. Thank you for posting.
..not only did the owner have enough cash to buy two flags, he had enough sense to know the brewing storm might get very very expensive
The story behind the story has to do with Mexicans, Mexican-Americans, and Americans who are ethnically Mexican.
1) Mexicans are Mexican nationals. How they live in the US, legally or illegally is based on a few things that can make all the difference in the world.
The first is where they live. The worst situation for them is to be around other Mexicans of any variety. Immersion in the American culture and language is by far the fastest and best way to become American. Living in “little Mexico” close to guarantees they will die a Mexican. Ties to Mexico slow them down, as the fastest leave Mexico behind forever.
2) Mexican-Americans are truly fish out of water. Second generation immigrants, they may be legal or illegal, or live in a mixed family. They are no longer truly Mexican, but they have not integrated into America. They are the most problematic, as are all 2nd generation immigrants; most likely to form gangs, and get into trouble with the law.
3) Americans who are ethnically Mexican are fully integrated and citizens, but the rule still applies that the further they are from other Mexicans, the better they will integrate and succeed. They know little or nothing about Mexico, or even the Spanish language, though may retain some bad Mexican cultural habits that take a long time to purge.
Unlike other immigrants, who arrived in great waves, followed by little or no immigration, Mexicans have been experiencing all three generations of immigration all at once, and often in the same family, for decades now. This makes the most mixed immigration group the US has ever experienced.
The best advise to all varieties of ethnic Mexican, and the best public policy directed at them is the same: break up the “little Mexicos”.
Phoenix, for example, while close to Mexico, has no great Mexican quarter like Los Angeles. There are few, if any who have not fully integrated on or before schedule. This can be problematic for illegal children brought to the US as infants, but otherwise fully integrated into the American culture. Identical to other American teenagers and adults, they know nothing of Mexico, and other than lacking a piece of paper are fully American.
First I’d heard of it and it’s already been forwarded to lots of friends who will LOVE it.
*That* kind of man is what it’s gonna take to keep this country going.
[No country for “old” men”?]
Don’t bet on it.
Those so-called “old men” have little time left and therefore, less to lose.
God bless him and his outrageous backbone!
Cool!
Dude, it’s just not your day ...
You SHOULD have been hearing the immortal Katherine Hepburn delivering that rebuke.
C’mon. Lighten up.
I think he’s a Patriot.
Anytime, anywhere, I would support Jim Brossard and his actions. I salute the man.
What we need is a few million patriots like him, all in the same mood, all at the same time and ALL headed to DC.
The politicians are not going to give us our country back, we are going to have to take it.
Thanks Mr. Long Beard!
I knew the story didn’t happen TOO recently when I posted it; but I didn’t know it had happened quite as far back as it did.
But, like two of three of you, it was news to me.
And like Salamander, it’s a great story that should be told again.
I’ve got nothing against Mexicans, Mexican-Americans, or Hispanics in general; just respect the United States, and come here legally. If I entered Mexico illegally, I would be treated VERY POORLY by the government. Which is why we don’t tend to try that.
Jim Brossard saw something that legitimately outraged him. And he took responsibility to change it.
What a nation this would be if even a tenth of Americans did that.
And with all the snotty attitude of Queen Victoria inspecting a whore house, too.
Not saying that your idea isn't a good one too (it would have also worked for me), but I think what Jim Brossard was thinking was, "You aint ever going to disrespect THIS flag ever again, pal! Not unless you're able to pry it out of my hands first!"
Unless you count the entire South Phoenix area. Geeesh. Ain't no integration goin' on around here.
Now that the comments have faded away, thought I’d say a couple of things.
Mexico and the USA represent very different worldviews. And that is one of the reason that the US has so succeeded, while Mexico fails generation after generation.
I know of MANY Hispanics (from Mexico and throughout the Latin American world) who have come to the US and embraced our worldview and our system of democracy and freedom. I wouldn’t trade these people for ANYTHING. They know the crap they came here from; they are often the most fiercely patriotic Americans of all as a result.
Then there are the people you rightly described. They don’t come here to be Americans. They don’t give a fig about America, or American values, or about our worldview. All insults aside, they basically come here as parasites; they live off our success, and send the money home before returning home themselves.
As a result of a massive Hispanic subculture, this above ‘illegal immigrant’ mindset has essentially become entrenched. They now have their own communities, and are reinforced in how they live and think.
Because Democrats are demagogues to their core, they have taken advantage of this movement, and trade their efforts to legitimize it in order to win the Hispanic vote.
We can’t afford these people. More than half are paid “under the table.” Well more than half don’t pay income taxes. They don’t have health insurance or auto insurance. They take advantage of the liberal government social support networks (which don’t ask about citizenship, and are paid by the numbers of people they aid). Education and health care are dramatically more expensive because of illegal immigrants. California alone spends $1.5 billion a year incarcerating illegals.
We have an obligation to our OWN citizens, not to the citizens of Mexico. California could nearly erase its deficit if it didn’t have to bear more than $10 billion a year every year due to by illegal immigrants.
A couple of years ago, Hispanics chose May Day - a communist holiday - to demand recognition for illegal immigration. And traitorous liberals supported them.
That’s why when I see some guy hoisting a Mexican flag above the American flag, I’m going to come unglued, too.
I am Jim Brossard! (and if you don’t get this reference, think Michael Savage and Rick Roberts)
I didn’t initially realize why this struck me the way it did when I saw it. I felt Brossard’s outrage without realizing exactly why.
On reflection, I now realize why.
Being a soldier is all about recognizing flags. Twice a day (Reveille, Retreat) during garrison duty we faced the flag wherever we were and assumed parade rest. If we were in a vehicle, we were to pull over to the side of the road and wait until the final note of the song sounded. We weren’t doing that to honor the song being played, but rather the American flag that we were to face while it was being played. In the field we rallied to our battalion and platoon colors for formations, with the American flag ever present and ever prominent. We recognize the meaning of the flag, and we pay attention. You will never see more flags - and in particular more American flags - than you will when you serve in our armed forces.
Jim saw the flag of a foreign country elevated above the American flag on American soil, and he reacted like a soldier and a patriot.
I agree completely. But I’ll make the point that the criteria the US is using is exactly wrong. Legal or Illegal, short time or long time, matters far less than if they a honest, hard working, and integrating, or not.
The legal and illegal issue has become very cloudy, because many families have both legal and illegal members. I am inclined to encourage their illegal members to become legal, *while* remaining in the US, instead of forcing good people to leave the US, likely for more than a decade, before they can get through the ridiculous immigration process.
However, it *only* applies to those who are behaving as good citizens.
Those who are not, should be shown the door and prohibited from reentry, which is a serious federal crime. And this is not generous or liberal, in fact, I support the rule that naturalized citizens should have their citizenship stripped from them if they become criminals, and deported—again, barred from reentry.
And the rules could be quite strict indeed. If you want to be a citizen, you must speak English. You must have a job and a permanent residence. You must not have a serious criminal conviction, *or* be associated with a known criminal organization.
Citizenship should be a LOT easier to obtain with honorable service in the US military.
Other ways of expediting citizenship should include home and business ownership, audit and payment of all past taxes and interest, compensation for ID theft and “administrative repair”.
Keep the good immigrants, boot out the bad ones.
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