It was the man waving the flag
Girard continues to have great junior season
The Front Page
Morning Update
Friday, January 7, 2021
By Ken Tingley
What startled me was the man waving the American flag at Centennial Circle in Glens Falls.
He stood placidly on the sidewalk and I believe he had the best of intentions. I believe he was just trying to show his patriotism. There was certainly nothing threatening about him or his actions or anyone else gathered for the candlelight vigil in downtown Glens Falls.
But the flag was attached to one of those lightweight aluminum poles, and as he walked past I had a sense of foreboding. It was an instant visceral reaction. I finally realized he reminded me of one of the people at the U.S. Capitol a year earlier; one of those people who wielded our symbol of democracy as a weapon against police officers. Part of me feared the man waving the flag and that made me sad.
The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. The events of January 6, those images of wielding the flag as a weapon were now ingrained in my brain, perhaps forever.
The man was part of a group of more than 50 citizens gathered in Glens Falls for a candlelight vigil to honor the Capitol police officers who risked their lives a year earlier.
Across Warren Street a row of people were standing with illuminated letters spelling out “Voting rights” and then “Democracy.”
It was my own way to mark the January 6 anniversary.
The group has a long history of peacefully demonstrating in front of Rep. Elise Stefanik’s nearby office. Most of the time there were only a handful of them who didn’t draw much attention, but in 2019 Glens Falls became ground zero for the divisions in our country when counter protesters displaced the group at Centennial Circle.
It was often ugly that summer and fall.
There was none of that Thursday night. This was a hot chocolate and marshmallow crowd. They had masks if you forgot yours. Most probably were getting Social Security.
As the organizers began to speak Thursday evening, one of them reminded those present that there is always the danger, “especially in Glens Falls” of encountering counter protesters. That’s part of Hometown, USA’s history now, too.
Because we are divided, too.
Sure enough, at one point a dark Cadillac driving down Warren Street toward the roundabout, slowed down and began engaging those holding the signs.
“Fuck Joe Biden,” the man screamed.
“Down with the communist regime,” he yelled before roaring off.
It was the only incident of the night.
There were several speakers asking us to remember the sacrifices the Capitol police officers made a year ago and the losses they suffered.
At one point, a small group began humming the chorus from Simon and Garfunkel’s 1968 song “The Boxer.” That tells you something about the age of these radicals.
The last line of the first verse goes like this:
Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest
That seems appropriate for these divided times. It seems to go to the heart of the problem.
The speakers continued Thursday night and they sometimes showed their anger about the events of a year ago.
But I didn’t feel like being angry anymore. I didn’t feel like listening to what was obvious to me about the events of a year ago. And I didn’t know how to fix it because “a man hears what he wants to hear.”
Earlier in the day, historian and author Jon Meacham’s was part of a panel discussion in Washington about the events of a year ago and where they place in American history.
“This is a chapter, not the end of the story” Meacham’s said. “If it is the end of the story, then we have failed in a way as a people that the world will forever condemn. To lose this gift through selfishness and a greed for power, for an autocratic impulse, would be beyond tragic. I don’t believe that is going to happen, but I do believe we are as close to that than at any other time since (Fort) Sumter.”
I was glad to see so many people braving freezing temperatures to support a cause, to leave their TVs for a few hours to show they concern for the future, but I kept wondering about the guy in the Cadillac and his grievances. It seemed like he might be doing just fine.
Girard nets 26
Joe Girard III continues to play the best ball of his college career. His 26-point effort Wednesday night was wasted in a one-point loss to Miami.
For the most part, Girard has found his shot again while looking like a real point guard. Unfortunately, Syracuse continues to struggle and with a tough ACC schedule ahead, it could prove difficult for the Orangemen to make the NCAA tournament.
Tweet of the Day
The image of so-called patriots storming the Capitol using flags as weapons brought back to mind the many events I organized in City Park and in front of Stefanik's office from 2017 through 2020. The physical menacing and verbal violence inflicted by Trump supporters spewing sexual insults to mostly elderly women refusing to engage their taunts, always made us nervous that the Trump campaign flagpoles were potential weapons against us. In 2017, we asked the City to ban them to no avail. Yet, I always brought my porch flag, an American flag, which was appropriate to our message of democracy, not allegiance to a man in power. Yesterday, before your arrival, a car slowed and it's driver shouted at me and my friends that we were Biden's Whores. This hatred of others who are expressing their grief on the anniversary of an egregious attack on the democratic process is pathetic and stems from demented thinking. It has nothing to do with opposition to policy or proposed legislation. It is purely the feeble expression of the malcontent defending the indefencible. It was a good night, well organized, and for those of us who do not take our democracy for granted, peaceful.
So glad you made it to the rally. I was holding the 'R' in Democracy. That might have been Joe Wagner carrying the flag. He always brings it with him when we have the lights. Can't blame you for your reaction though. Hopefully some day it will just be a memory only.