The Army Times reported Monday that the Americans working in Haiti to help with the earthquake relief effort have decided not to fly the American flag over their compound. The statement made is that they do not want to offend their Haitian hosts or give the impression that they are a conquering or occupation force. This is beyond dumb. Whenever a natural disaster occurs anywhere in the world, the Americans are usually the first ones in with food, first aid, and any other necessities they can provide. As far as I am aware, we have not taken over any countries or claimed any new territory since the 1950's. We do not govern France, Germany, or Japan despite having large groups of soldiers flying American flags there during World War II . Although we still have a presence in Germany and Japan, we also contribute to their economies in a major way, and I don't think anyone would accuse us of taking over those countries. Since America gets blamed for many of the ills of the world, it seems to me that we have the right to be proud when we are helping someone recover from a disaster!
I would like to point out that Britain, France, and Croatia have no problem flying their flags. When did we lose the courage to fly our flag proudly when we are helping another country after a natural disaster? This is a decision that needs to be revisited.
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