Comment by theden
10 months ago
I agree with you, and the reference _is_ politically loaded (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thin_blue_line):
>The thin blue line U.S. flag has been banned by some police departments in the United States for its associations with ideologies described as "undemocratic, racist, and bigoted."
>According to a 2018 law review article, "thin blue line" also refers to an unwritten code of silence used to cover up police misconduct, also known as the blue wall of silence, a term dating back to 1978
Seems like ignorance of the implications, not any desire to a tie themselves to a political stance. I think the “assume positive intent” principle needs to apply here.
Also, if you're not from the USA, you're more likely to associate it with the beloved Rowan Atkinson sitcom.
Of the key members of this drama though, almost all of them live in the USA.
Or the non-politically-loaded phrase that the sitcom is named for.
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It's surreal how some people can go from "thin blue line" to swastika in a micro-second. What the f is going on here? Where are you pulling this crap from? haha.
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Law review articles are largely written by students. They are not authoritative.
Do you think that Rowan Atkinson was dogwhistling about undemocratic, racist, bigoted police violence when he named his police sitcom "The Thin Blue Line" or do you think perhaps your dislike of the police has led to you associating negative attributes with anyone that happens to use any phrase related to the police?
Where I am from, the police is a respected, largely unarmed institution. Imperfect, as all institutions are. American left-political dislike of law enforcement isn't universal and most people don't have instant negative mental associations with everything police-related...
> Do you think that Rowan Atkinson was ...
No, but Ben Elton certainly was when he created and wrote it, even before hiring Atkinson to star in it . . .
When I last spoke to him Elton didn't view the entire UK Police force with disdain but he absolutely felt it was riddled with clusters of bigoted and violent police. You can see that in his other works such as the The Young Ones and various novels.
Sorry but have you actually seen the program? There isn't a hint of any of thise feelings.
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I'm not a left winger, and I generally respect the police, but everybody I've met with a "thin blue line" American flag decal or sticker has been a total asshole. It's not just hatred of the police. Connotations change over time, and the general connotation of "the thin blue line" in the US at the moment is unabashed support of far-right authoritarianism.
The phrase has nothing to do with any flags used much later by US policemen. That is the whole point of the thread.
>far-right authoritarianism
Get a grip. Even if it were a reference to what you say it is, that has nothing to do with the "far right". It is stock standard centre-right (and centre-left for that matter) position in the US to support the police in principle (if not, obviously, in every action theyve ever taken). The "defund the police" types are a minority of a minority.
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