Unpatriotic cities which ban our state flag shouldn't receive discretionary state funds

     A number of Mississippi cities, including Oxford, have decided to show their support for the Obama-donor-led effort to cram a new state flag down our throats by voting to remove our current state flag from city property.
    The idea is that our current flag is objectionable because it pays tribute to our Confederate forbears by incorporating the battle flag of Northern Virginia in its canton. And so cities with liberal boards of aldermen are voting to refuse to display our state flag to pressure the legislature into adopting another one.
    I happen to believe the Confederate flag is a wonderful symbol of our Southern heritage, and its inclusion in our state flag makes it unique. When people see it they know immediately that it represents a Southern state; most flags give no clue as to region. Every disparagement that can be made of the Confederate flag can also be made of the American flag, save that the American flag has represented far more evil.
    But I will leave the arguments over whether our current flag is a wonderful or evil thing to another day. Good or bad, it’s still our flag, and it’s the duty of our municipalities to display it.
    Suppose the Obama-donors were to be successful and the legislature were to adopt a new flag. Imagine the reaction of the same liberals if people like me refused to accept the new flag, or cities across Mississippi voted not to display it. I can just hear their sanctimonious sermonettes now!
    Mississippi is a sovereign state, and we as citizens have a duty of allegiance to our sovereign. This includes recognition of our state’s emblems, the most notable of which is our state flag. Municipalities incorporated under the laws of our state have an equal, if not greater, duty to recognize and display these emblems.
    As citizens we are welcome to seek changes in our state’s symbols. We the people are the sovereign together, but the decisions we make together must be respected by all. A refusal to display our state’s flag is, plain and simple, unpatriotic. It is a renunciation of citizenship.
    Mississippi’s various agencies distribute a great deal of discretionary money each year to counties and municipalities. If a city does not recognize its duty to show fealty to the sovereign through the display of our state flag, then the state should not provide these cities with any discretionary funding. The legislature should not advance any local bill for any of the municipalities, and if one should pass, Gov. Bryant should veto it.
    Certainly I will be contacting Gov. Bryant and other state officials and will ask them to end any discretionary funding for Oxford and other cities that have voted to ban our state flag. These aldermen can be just as unpatriotic as they wish, but if they have no allegiance to our state then our state owes them nothing, either.

___________________________

I have emailed the following to Gov. Bryant and will be sending similar messages to other state leaders. I urge everyone who disagrees with this nonsense to send a similar message to him and others.

Many cities are trying to pressure the legislature to change our state flag, despite the fact that the people voted overwhelming in favor of keeping the 1894 flag in 2001. This includes votes to ban the display of the Mississippi flag on municipal property.

I believe that municipalities have a duty of fealty to the sovereign, which includes the display of our state flag. Those municipalities which ban our state flag are effectively renouncing their state citizenship. I would ask that you, as governor, direct the executive agencies not to direct any discretionary spending to municipalities which have banned our state flag.

In the upcoming legislative session, I would also ask you to veto any local bill sponsored for the benefit of any municipality which has banned our state flag. Those who refuse to pay tribute to our state should not receive any special funding or favors from our state.

Thank you so much for standing up for the people and for the rule of law rather than the rule of the mob.

With flag decision Oxford's unpatriotic aldermen show lack of respect for democratic process

    In a rather disgusting attempt to curry favor with liberal elites, the Oxford board of aldermen voted unanimously to refuse to display the Mississippi flag on city property Tuesday night.
    The aldermen weren’t acting in response to a groundswell of citizen demand. In fact, 15 years ago Lafayette County voters decided in favor of keeping the 1894 flag, in the election where an overwhelming majority of Mississippi voters said “Leave Our Flag Alone!” The leftists who sought to change the flag 15 years ago are the same ones seeking to change it today. They just won’t quit.
    A recent newspaper ad calling for a new flag was signed by a number of "notable"Mississippians. A campaign donor search found most were either Obama donors or flunkies of ousted Ole Miss Chancellor Dan Jones. In other words, the people we should listen to the least!
    What has happened is that the Oxford city board has been filled for the most part with extremely liberal aldermen. Usually this doesn’t matter; after all, these people are running a city, not establishing national policy. But give them a chance to jump off the George-McGovern deep end, and they will.
    I happen to think we should keep our state flag. We’ve already voted on it, and by an overwhelming majority Mississippi voters made it clear they did not want a change. But if we have to argue this again, then the issue should again be presented to the voters. The city of Oxford shouldn’t be taking a position one way or the other.
    Suppose the left-wing fringe is successful in ram-rodding a new flag through the legislature. I’m sure they will immediately insist that it is the duty of all Mississippians to accept the flag which has been adopted through the democratic process. And yet, by refusing to display our state’s flag, Oxford’s city board has made it clear that it doesn’t respect the democratic process very much. Is every city henceforth to just display the state flag of its own choosing?
    I am a former Oxford resident, in that I now live a few hundred yards outside the city limits. So although I voted in the last election I can’t vote in the next one. But I still have an interest in what goes on in a city where I consider myself a resident. And what the Oxford City board has done is disgraceful. A refusal to display our state flag is unpatriotic, and in making this decision Oxford’s aldermen are not very different from the hippie flag burner’s of the 1960s. The hippies were wrong and so are Oxford’s elected officials.
    Unfortunately, Mississippi doesn’t have recall elections, but these are clearly power-hungry aldermen; most will be seeking re-election. Hopefully the citizens will turn them out en masse. Alderman Jay Hughes is seeking to oust Republican Rep. Brad Mayo in this fall’s legislative election. I hope the voters will send him – and the whole sorry lot – a loud and clear message.

A Confederate letter home has not an ounce of hate, only a large measure of love

Maj. Fred. C. C. Karr

I haven't blogged much lately, but I found a copy of this letter home written by my great-great-grandfather, Maj. Frederick Christopher Columbus Karr, and I thought I would share it. The letter has lots of sentence fragments and uses few paragraphs, so I have broken it up for readability. I have included some of the original misspellings, while correcting others. In some cases I simply could not make out the letters that he used, so he may or may not have spelled the word correctly.

This letter has some very interesting historical information, but I will reserve comment for a later time. I only note that you will not find an ounce of hate. Only a large measure of love.


Hd Qr 32nd Miss Regt
Tullahoma Tenn March 18th 1863

Dear Lucy,

I siese on this oportunity of sending you a few lines knowing you will be glad to hear from me at any time I am very well at this time and do hope that these few lines will find you and my dear little children in good health and doing well. I Recvd your letter last night that you sent by Wm Karr I was glad to hear that you all were well and doing as well as what you were it is a great satisfaction to hear from those we love.

I wrote you a letter the other day. My horse has got here he looks bad. I have no news to importance to communicate to you. I got a letter from D Cannon they were all well your Pa’s family was all well they are still in Holly Springs the Enimy did not damage them very much date of the letter Feb.

Some Prospect of a fight here soon. I think if it does come off it will be the hardest contested of the war. Some thinks we will whip them at this place. I can no say not knowing. Our army is in good fighting condition at this time the health of the troop is good at this time all seem to Be hopefull and confident of Success, the war is not at an End yet, the conscrip law has past the federal congress they will put 1 ½ million more men in the field by that law. So you see that we will have fighting fighting yet if they continue to prey upon us as you say if the Lord is with us all will be well if not to the Reverse. My Prediction is that the war will continue during Lincoln administration at least. But I am no prophet. I hope it will cease soon. I am tired of war. I hope we may all get home soon. With our dear ones at home I prefer the quietence of a Peaceful home to that of the Buz of war. Lucy I have no news to interest you the news is scarce in the army at this time.

I want you to Buye any thing you can that you need, if you get short of money let me know and I will send what your need at any time that I have a chance if you could feed a horse you might Buye one But you must Be your own judge about those things. I have no advice to give you. You will do the Best you can under the circumstances bad at best but might be worse I think the worst is come yet so we must prepare to meet it.

My love to all the friends and Relations My Best Regards to Mr. Frensley tell him he shall loose nothing By his kindness toward my Family. Kiss the children for their Pa tell them to be good children. I want you to teach them at home to Read and write as you will have no school to send them to also learn them to work.

No more at this time. Remember me in your Devotions your ever True and Devoted Husband F.C. Karr

PS Lucy I send you Fifty Dollars United States money I thought you might get some one to Buye flour coffee & salt. I gave $62 ½ for it use it for such articles as you need. Buy your salt.

Yours as Ever   F.C.Karr


ADDENDUM: I suspect, but do not know, that the large battle that Karr says is imminent is Chickamauga, which took place six months after this letter was written. Maj. Karr was wounded on the Chickamauga Battlefield and died Sept. 27, 1863, and is buried in a mass grave at the Confederate Cemetery in Marietta, Georgia.

ADDENDUM 2: Lucy must have been, by necessity, a strong woman. The name continues to be quite popular in our family.

Changing the name of Confederate Drive at Ole Miss is violation of state law

    There's a little glitch in Ole Miss Chancellor Dan Jones' plan to desecrate the memory of our Confederate War dead by changing the name of the spur road that serves to access the cemetery. He announced plans last Friday to change the name of the road from Confederate Drive to Chapel Lane.
    Such a name change is apparently against the law.
    Mississippi Code 55-15-81 provides that most streets named in honor of military units, organizations or events may not be renamed. This would certainly include a street serving a Confederate cemetery, named in memory of the men interred therein.
    Dan Jones has shown an unwillingness to adhere to the Ole Miss Creed regarding civil discourse. His hatred of Ole Miss and its history is so great that now he wants to break the law to erase memorials to the dead. Isn't it time we had a chancellor who would adhere to the Ole Miss Creed and obey the law?

    The relevant code section reads as follows:

(1) None of the following items, structures or areas may be relocated, removed, disturbed, altered, renamed or rededicated: Any Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Mexican-American War, War Between the States, Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War, War in Iraq or Native American Wars statues, monuments, memorials or nameplates (plaques), which have been erected on public property of the state or any of its political subdivisions, such as local, municipal or county owned public areas, and any statues, monuments, memorials, nameplates (plaques), schools, streets, bridges, buildings, parks preserves, reserves or other public items, structure or areas of the state or any of its political subdivisions, such as, local, municipal or county owned public areas, which have been dedicated in memory of, or named for, any historical military figure, historical military event, military organization or military unit.

UPDATE AND ADDENDUM: In the space of 10 hours this has become the second-most-read post I've had on this blog, as determined by direct click-throughs. Of course, I do have a few regular readers who just type in the blog name (in fact, I think this is becoming more common).

I really did not come up with this idea on my own. Someone posted a comment on Facebook which cited a Senate or House bill, not the code section. I read this on my phone, and when I tried to find the post on my computer I couldn't. I wanted to give whoever it was credit. But to whoever it was, next time cite the code section! You made me do some work. Also, my good friend John Cofield said he was aware of this information for the past few days and was just waiting for someone to publish it.