Norwegian Flag Removed From Michigan B&B Because People Think It’s A Confederate Flag–No, This Is Not Satire
Normal people are caving to the demands of idiots.
Sometimes they’re simply trying to avoid being “canceled” because of a stupid misunderstanding. That seems to be what’s happened to the Offenbeckers of St. Johns, Michigan.
Greg and Kjersten Offenbecker own a bed and breakfast called The Nordic Pineapple. They bought a Civil War-era mansion and turned it into a nearly 9,000 square foot B&B. When they moved into their new property, they flew two flags–one on either side of the front door. One was the American flag, the other the Norwegian flag as a nod to Kjersten Offenbecker’s Scandanavian heritage.
Both flags have been removed.
They’ve had to remove the Norwegian flag because, over the past two years, people continue to confuse it with the Confederate flag. But recently it ramped up. Kjersten said that over the last week they’ve received “at least a dozen hateful emails” and twice as many comments.
Kjersten posted her thoughts on the B&B’s Facebook page.
She wrote:
It is a sad day at The Nordic Pineapple. We have decided to no longer fly The Norwegian flag on the front of the inn. This flag is so often mistaken for the Confederate flag and people are often offended by it before they realize that they are mistaken. I am very proud of my Norwegian heritage and will fly it on special occasions like Norwegian Independence Day and maybe I will find a less conspicuous place to fly it but, for now we feel that it is the best decision to take it down.
I urge people to slow down and see the world through less jaded glasses. When we think of the worst before we have all the facts, we lose sight of all of good that out there that we should find. If you got to know us you would see that we are very proud Americans and very patriotic. Greg served this country in the Navy during Desert Storm and was a proud employee for the Department of Homeland Security. We have 2 adopted children who are both black and we have tried to teach them not to judge on first glance or outward appearances. We love being members of the St Johns community and are heartbroken to have had to make this decision. Given the current cultural climate and the idea that people are judging us based on the misconception of the national Norwegian flag vs. the Confederate flag, this is what is best for our family and our Inn.
https://www.facebook.com/thenordicpineapple/posts/2359757827662332
Not judging things on the first appearance? That’s some wisdom that our country needs right now.
The flags both have a red background, but the Norwegian flag is a blue cross (appropriately called the “Nordic” or “Scandanavian” cross) over a white one while the Confederate flag is a blue saltire (St. Andrew’s cross) with white stars on it over a white saltire.
“It bugs me as far as the stupidity of people,” Greg Offenbecker said. “Even if the flag is blowing in the wind or laying limp, there are no stars on it. They look nothing alike.”
Over the last two years the couple responded to concerns about the flag at the front of their property with a simple explanation of what they were actually hanging on the house.
“Can you look again?” Kjersten Offenbecker usually asks them.
The Offenbeckers are being called racist for giving a nod to Scandanavian heritage.
You can understand why the Offenbeckers wouldn’t want to be called racist–two of their children are black who have experienced bigotry first-hand in their previous schools.
Their children experienced racism at a school district they attended on the west side of the state, she said, but so far their experience at St. Johns Public Schools has been positive.
“Having experienced that before and moving to a small conservative town in the middle of Michigan and have that not be an issue has been wonderful,” Kjersten Offenbecker said.
Kjersten decided to take it down after a recent email said that the couple should be “ashamed” of the “Confederate” flag flying in front of their home.
“How could we be so bigoted and close minded, this person wrote, and I was really hurt because I feel like we’ve done a lot to integrate into this small community and be part of St. Johns,” Kjersten Offenbecker said.
She doesn’t want people to believe they are something they aren’t any longer.
The couple took the Norwegian and the American flag down last week.
“I was saying leave it up and she was pretty dead set on taking it down,” Greg Offenbecker said. “I said, ‘If you take down one take down both.'”
Source: Lansing State Journal
This is just awful.
And stupid.
Why, oh why, are so many people willing to cave to the mob of idiots that surround us? The people writing scolding emails to the Offenbeckers can’t tell the difference between a Norwegian flag and a Confederate flag, are taking their moral outrage to the Offenbeckers, and are suggesting that a couple with black children are racists and we’re supposed to believe that these outraged individuals are rational human beings?
We need to all stand up to these idiots before they completely destroy society with their stupidity.
Maybe standing up to idiots means a trip to St Johns, Michigan to stay in a historic mansion converted into a B&B and give the Offenbeckers a little support.
