FDNY Bans American Flag

I have noticed a trend of government entities overreacting to legitimate concerns and coming up with policies that go so far that they actually become silly. Normally this is seen in schools. Recently the Fire Department of New York jumped on the band wagon.

Two weeks ago the department received a report of slogan of a sexually explicit nature found in one of the fire stations. In response the department ordered all personal decorations removed from lockers. (See FoxNews.com for report.) So let's see, because of one inappropriate slogan, firefighters are not allowed to put up family photos or yellow ribbons or for that matter the U.S. flag. Even pictures of fellow firefighters who died serving on 9/11 were ordered removed.

At first the department looked as if it would strictly enforce the ban. The original order said everything except for name and firefighter number. This past Wednesday they released a statement allowing the flag and pictures of firefighters killed on 9/11. Personal pictures of family are only allowed on the inside of the locker. This policy shift comes after the union complained during contract negotiations.

If the issue is offensive material like sexual slogans or outright porn why not just say that and ban those items? Why ban everything knowing this would include family photos? It seems in an effort to be politically correct we have become a nation of cowards when it comes to dealing with issues like these. It is time to end the trend of overreaction and to learn how to deal with real problems with out going overboard.

(For more see coverage in the New York Daily News.)

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