Distress Signal - Worse Than I Thought
When I first saw the photo of the U.S. flag on cables attached to the Roxbury mosque's minaret, I thought that maybe it was unintentional. An upside-down American flag is a distress signal, but maybe it was a simple mistake. Looking at this AP photo taken later than the Boston Globe photo, I wonder. This appears to be a deliberate insult to our country. If it was deliberate, the Islamic Society of Boston owes the CIty of Boston an apology. 
What a disturbing sight.
UPDATE: One of my readers e-mailed me, questioning did I really believe that this was done on purpose? My answer: Yes. If it was accidental, the people at the ceremony would have fixed it, surely not an impossible thing to do. Flying any country's flag upside-down is a deep insult. Hanging the American flags upside down is a common, anti-American practice in the Middle East.
UPDATE 2: Review these photos from the ceremony on the Muslim American Society's (ISB's twin organization) website and see what you think. Some are taken from the ground before the minaret was raised, other photo are taken from inside the minaret, where Imam Nehela and Hossam Al Jabri (in hard hat) were. The flag was even with the bottom of the minaret when it was raised. The flag was upside down when the minaret was placed and the flag was brought in. Somebody did that.
In this photo from the MAS website, the American flag was rolled up, tied and casually put aside. We Americans revere our country and our flag. There are proper ways to display and fold the flag. Please learn the proper respect for our national symbol.
UPDATE 3: People have told me I'm nuts, and there's no way that the upside-down flag was intentional. Maybe I got carried away because the image of the upside-down flag is so offensive to me. I've revised this post a bit to take out the accusatory stuff. But as I stated before, it's ironic that this disturbing image (an AP photo) is what ended up in the news media. Where else will it be published?
UPDATE 4: This is a contentious issue, and some readers agree with my initial impression. Whoever disconnected the flag to pull it in had to decide whether to remove the knot or clamp from the top or the bottom of the flag. This picture shows how the flag was originally attached.
The MAS is nothing but a group of terrorists. For sure they are America-haters. I figured this was on purpose. It reminded me of the illegal alien marches last year, with the American flag upside down and UNDER the Mexican flag. No accident there either.
Thanks for mentioning this article at Right Truth.
I think you are a kindred spirit!
Posted by: Debbie | June 13, 2007 at 07:20 AM
I came across your message after doing a google search regarding the Minaret capping. Are you for real? Lol, the Minaret capping was not about America! Why on earth would you want an apology? The least I have to do is respect your opinion, and I do, but sister, you believe the position of the flag was a disgraceful act? I for one didn't notice the position of the flag when I was present at the event, and seriously, I didn't particularly care about the american flag. I wouldn't have cared if it were a flag of my own country of birth. As a Muslim, the only focus was thanking Allah, subhana wa ta'allah, for the glorious, historical moment for Muslims in Massachusetts. If it had been my own personal choice, the flag wouldn't have even been displayed at all.
Posted by: Naomi | June 13, 2007 at 05:52 PM
Naomi, thank you for your comment. I may have gotten carried away in this port because that photo was so offensive to me. The position of the flag while the minaret was being raised was not disrespectful. But when the minaret was placed down, the flag was upside down, as shown in the AP photograph above. It may have been unintentional, but it is still hugely disrespectful. The ISB had their reasons for including the American flag in a religious ceremony, but they goofed in how they handled the flag.
Posted by: miss kelly | June 13, 2007 at 08:48 PM
There is so much wrong with this I don't even know where to begin. Sorry...Muslims need to either want to be a part of this wonderful country of ours, or they need to make the decision to live in an Islamic state where they can have all of the wonderful things that sharia law and Islam offers...total submission.
Posted by: pat butcher | June 13, 2007 at 09:46 PM
In my pictures ( http://eaazi.blogspot.com/2007/06/mosque-rises-in-boston.html )the flag is right-side up because I took them from a different location.
I am sure that Mary O'Hayes would have found some way to dump on Muslims even if the ISB had been feeding the poor instead of capping the minaret.
As I understand flag etiquette, the American flag may be rolled under several circumstances, but there is a special procedure for folding.
I give the ISB credit for only flying the American flag unlike many Boston-area synagogues, which demonstrate subversive attitudes and dual loyalties by flying the US flag often incorrectly and subordinately to the Israeli flag.
The State of Israel has attacked US installations and ships. It has wantonly killed US citizens. It is a state that is founded on genocide and that commits it right before our eyes.
Except for the treasonous manipulation of the US political system by racist ethnic Ashkenazi Americans, the US would probably be bombing Jews-only towns and infrastructure right now in stolen and occupied Palestine in a just and principled effort to abolish a vile criminal Zionist entity, whose existence represents a unique and heinous crime against humanity.
Posted by: Joachim Martillo | June 14, 2007 at 06:28 AM
The flag in the pictures is tied to the vertical cables by string knots at both sides.It is only at the top that the position changes as in AP picture.It is only one person at the top (in red cap) as in MAS Boston pictures.A hand at the top decided to undo a knot on one side. I am not a psychologist but when we pick one knot out of two is it a decision or is it devine guidance (could be 140 feet up in the air. The knot could have opened accidently on one side without human intervention. Many people have movie of this happening. How about posting it on Youtube for us all to see the human or devine hand?
Posted by: azzam | June 14, 2007 at 12:32 PM
It could have been accidental, but I assure you that most construction people involved in this sort of ceremony would have made damn sure that the right knot was untied first. You don't leave that up to chance. The ISB is very careful about many details, but not this one.
Posted by: miss kelly | June 14, 2007 at 12:47 PM
You are soo wrong,,, you deleted my comment on this which proved you were wrong.. what a shame!!
Posted by: bashir | June 14, 2007 at 12:58 PM
Bashir, I most certainly did not delete your comment, my dear boy. I haven't deleted any of your numerous comments made in the past day or two. I love differences of opinion. Maybe you left the comment on the first post about the upside-down flag.
Posted by: miss kelly | June 14, 2007 at 03:27 PM
How does it become "dumping" if you see a picture and ask questions?
The man with the red cap has been very active in the Islamic Center of New England.
Go to this site:
www.icne.net
You see a picture of ICNE Quincy. How does a flag pole with an American flag become a black van?
Go see for yourself Mr. Martillo. And then you may want to post both pictures,side by side and ask a question:what happened?
Oopsy! just internet error.
Posted by: Azzam | June 14, 2007 at 03:44 PM
Geez what a lot of commotion. I was there in the parking lot when the cap was being prepared, then raised. I took pictures with my cell phone. It seemed a good intention gone awry. The flag was displayed on a wood bar. When they got it to the top, you could see them struggling to "land" the cap. That took a few minutes. Then they needed to remove the flag. One guy grabbed the bar and pulled up one end to swing it into the window. I saw it was upside down, but they certainly didn't leave it like that. It was moved inside and we didn't see it again until these photos and comments appear alleging more sinister motives. By the way I'm a convert to Islam for more than 10 yrs and not all converts fit the subsequent insults cum comments about us. We like rules? hmmm
Like "Miss Kelly" I lived/worked in Islamic countries. I met people who were kind, generous and had a calm piety that I admired. I met stinkers - but we have plenty of those here too.
I have no idea what ISB will say about this, but as an eyewitness I think it was just a mistake.
Posted by: Jay Ell Peecher | June 25, 2007 at 11:36 AM
Debbie said it just like it is, and I've never heard any American muslim offer a different opinion. The US flag doesn't matter to her, all that matters is Allah. Now as a Christian, god is the priority for me personally, but my country is a close second because my freedoms are very important to me. Those who don't hold our flag in high regard should pack up and leave!!! Period.. I'm sick of you America bashers, get the heck out of our country if you don't like it.... I have found that leftist socialists and right wing fundamentalists are in this camp and you know who you are. Why don't you go somewhere where you will be oppressed so you can whine about it there?
Posted by: Clay | June 26, 2007 at 07:53 AM
Since the state of the nation is reaching a new low with the commutations of the Liddy sentence yesterday, I'll be flying my flag in the distress position tomorrow.
Care to join me?
Posted by: ben holmes | July 03, 2007 at 01:49 PM
I have no idea why the flag was hung in this position. But I can tell you that flying it upside down is NOT a sign of disrepect. Some very quick and easy research would tell you that it is a legitimate way to fly the flag and signifies distress. I have been flying my flag upside down as a show of my love of country and disrespect for the government that is trying to kill our democracy.
Posted by: susan howland | July 06, 2007 at 08:57 AM
Susan, are you suggesting that the ISB was giving a distress signal during their ceremony?
Posted by: miss kelly | July 07, 2007 at 09:50 AM