• @zqwzzle@lemmy.ca
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    1657 months ago

    Isn’t putting up flags an American thing too? Don’t really see this kind of nationalism in other coutnries.

    • modifier
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      297 months ago

      I’ve seen it in just about every country I have visited physically and in Geoguessr. Maybe not quite as prevalent as the US but I wouldn’t actually say the difference is as big as people probably think.

      What’s funny is that beyond knowing you’re in America, the flag doesn’t help a lot with location guessing. USA is one of the tougher countries to pinpoint within in GeoGuesser. It’s probably harder to distinguish Vermont from Ohio from Oregon (depending on the photo) than it is to tell Albania from Austria even with no flags or signs.

      • @gmtom@lemmy.world
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        237 months ago

        Complete opposite of my experience. While you do see flags in other countries they are usually only at governme t buildings, it’s rare to see people flying flags themselves. Whereas in America they are everywhere and also buildins will often have multiple. Like I went to a mall and the outside had at least a dozen flags on sides.

      • KillingTimeItself
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        47 months ago

        american geography is also aggressively diverse as well, it varies from ice in alaska, to the literal desert

        • @bestagon@lemmy.world
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          27 months ago

          Or ice in Minnesota to the literal desert, or ice in Massachusetts to the literal desert, or ice in the literal desert to the literal desert

          • KillingTimeItself
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            27 months ago

            comparing american lat to european lat is a rather interesting exercise, the majority of europes latitude is covered by america. We’re quite the diverse climate region.

    • @SlopppyEngineer@lemmy.world
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      287 months ago

      I went to a hardware store in the states during a trip. Turns out they had a patriotic corner there, full of flags and banners. I’ve never seen anything like that before in any country. In a lot of countries you have to search for even a tiny souvenir flag.

    • @Thorny_Insight@lemm.ee
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      137 months ago

      In Finland we have plenty of national “flag days” every year. I don’t see people putting up flags on their porch or anything but many has flag poles on their yard and flying a Finnish flag has no racist implications to it or anything like that. It’s a traditional thing to do and especially the elderly are pretty strict about it.

      • @AA5B@lemmy.world
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        117 months ago

        That was what the US used to be, but now flying a flag has too many negative connotations. Don’t let your nationalist nut-jobs ruin it for you too

        • @Serinus@lemmy.world
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          87 months ago

          If it doesn’t have a blue stripe, you can absolutely still fly the flag at your house. It’s when you have it on your shirt and car that it gets weird.

          • @doctordevice@lemmy.ca
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            67 months ago

            I make a lot of assumptions about people flying regular US flags in their yard, and I can’t really say any of them are positive. Could be a regional thing? I’m in a pretty heavily left-leaning area and the people that are that outwardly patriotic are typically far right. Not universally, but enough for the assumptions.

            • @AA5B@lemmy.world
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              7 months ago

              I am proud of my country and most of the ideals we stand for: that’s why I do what I can to help it live up to those ideals, to be even better. It is our patriotic duty to constructively criticize, to correct its mistakes, to rebel against the status quo, to invest in all citizens and a better tomorrow.

              For example, look at all those immigrants fleeing into our country looking for a better life: it’s our duty to make this country work like the ideal they are coming for.

              • @doctordevice@lemmy.ca
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                37 months ago

                I think I’m probably less proud of the US than you, but I generally agree with your sentiment. Although I don’t think that sentiment necessitates a nationalistic action like flying a flag in a yard or on a car. Especially when that type of nationalism tends to be associated with a mindset that is anti-immigration.

              • @Zwiebel@feddit.org
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                17 months ago

                Fyi as an outsider, “patriotic duty” has to be one of the most american phrases I’ve ever heard

    • @Kecessa@sh.itjust.works
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      117 months ago

      It seems like it’s common in places that have an independence movement (Quebec, Ireland and Taiwan as others have mentioned), the USA is an exception to that.

      • @boogetyboo@aussie.zone
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        27 months ago

        And they without fail put up the coalition corflutes during elections, and had the ‘if you don’t know, vote no’ signs during the referendum.

        The Venn diagram is a perfect circle.

        • @SchmidtGenetics@lemmy.world
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          7 months ago

          Every city/town/municipality I have traveled to has multiple. It’s not every yard, but there’s enough that it’s noticeable. About the same rate as most cities I’ve been everywhere really.

          Lots of business in fact fly them, dealerships are one prominent one.

          Do you travel by air instead of vehicle between places?

          • TSG_Asmodeus (he, him)
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            07 months ago

            No, I’ve actually driven from Vancouver to Alberta quite a few times, a couple to Saskatchewan, and once to Manitoba.

            Outside of very specific government buildings, I barely see them*. It’s so rare that, like I said, I very much noticed when one was suddenly in walking distance of my house. I’ve seen them super faded in windows of old buildings at times, but not a flag standing outside.

            (*If I go to the extremely rural areas of BC or Alberta, I will see more in a single ‘town’, and I mean like ~100 people, than I will in Vancouver, say. But those in small areas stand out and are, frankly, not usually a great sign? One house that has it also has a confederate flag up, as well as a replica General Lee car from Dukes of Hazzard)

            • @SchmidtGenetics@lemmy.world
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              7 months ago

              I spent 2 minutes going down a couple streets in abbostford before finding one……

              Sounds like you just aren’t as perceptive as you thought, they are far more common than you’re thinking. Or you live downtown where there’s less individualism, but I’m sure there would be a few balconies that have them, provided condo board rules don’t disallow them….

      • @bergie@lemmy.world
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        17 months ago

        We were there a couple of weeks ago. Seems different neighbourhoods had different flags. We elected not to fly a courtesy flag on our boat as all the alternatives were partisan one way or another.

        • @GeneralEmergency@lemmy.world
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          37 months ago

          It’s one of the more obvious signs that you’re in either an unionist or republican area. Kerb painting, murals, street names in Irish.

        • @Zwiebel@feddit.org
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          37 months ago

          As another example: In the context of 19th century “Germany”, the “nationalist movement” refers to the unification movement, so a “nationalist” was just a person who wanted the many german countries to become a single nation-state.

    • @calcopiritus@lemmy.world
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      37 months ago

      Depends on which part of the country. In Spain some places are full of Spanish flags, others have none, and others have regional flags (Catalonia, basque country).

      My guess is they’re more common in rural areas, independent of the country.