UPDATED: Confederate flag still flies in Canada, EH!

All the hoo-rah and hoo-hah about the appropriation of the Confederate battle flag by a racist teenage nutbar -- see yesterday's post -- has been followed by a tsunami of overreaction and political correctness on the part of the lamestream meeja and black-vote-seeking politicians. Surprisingly, even retailers are jumping on the anti-South bandwagon. WalMart, Sears, Amazon and others are falling all over themselves to get the "Southern Cross" out of their catalogues and off their online shopping sites.

Yet the demand persists, not just across the Excited States of America -- and Walt means all 50 states, especially Alaska! -- but north of the world's longest undefended border. Yes, there are lots and lots of Canucks who aren't happy seeing their country becoming the Great Formerly-white North, and they're showing where their sympathies lie by displaying their own versions of the "rebel flag". Like this one.

"Rebel flag" stickers and decals are a common sight on highways in northern Ontario and the Prairie provinces, although (Agent 3 tells me) not so much around the Jane-Finch corridor in Toronto. In provinces which don't require a front licence plate, you can buy license plates merging the Dixie flag with a symbol of the province (the official seal of Alberta, in this case) or the Canadian maple leaf.

Then there's the case of Hillbilly Heaven, a restaurant in Hamilton ON mentioned in WWW just over two years ago. As you can see from the picture in Walt's post, the owners painted a large Confederate battle flag on a panel right over the front door. They said they were just using an iconic southern symbol to advertise their food -- barbeque, beans, pecan pie, that kind of thing. But, as their website says now "In this world, you can't do anything without someone getting upset", and the PC police made them take the flag down. Maybe they should have tried a Canadianized version, like this.

What does the Confederate flag symbolize to Canadians who fly, wear or otherwise display it? According to a story in today's National Post, the meanings vary, with defenders citing rural pride, redneck kitsch, or simply a generic statement of rebellion, like wearing a Che t-shirt.

During the War of the Secession, many residents of the British colonies which later became Canada supported the Southern cause. Although most British North Americans weren't in agreement with slavery -- it was outlawed in the British Empire decades earlier -- they did champion the Confederates as underdogs standing against the Washington government for the freedom to choose their own way of life.

Stop the press!!! Agent 3 just called with an update. Seems what he told me about not seeing Confederate flags in Toronto isn't entirely accurate. You can still buy the Dixie flag at numerous outlets in the GTA, he says, including Reppa Flags and Souvenirs, which is run not by a redneck but by... wait for it... and Indo-Canadian gentleman. Tell `em Walt sent ya!

UPDATED Thursday morning 25/6: CBC News reports "Confederate flag sales jump at St. John's shop as U.S. grapples with massacre". The subhead reads: "Business owner says limited stock sold quickly; more on the way". Looks like political correctness hasn't reached Newfoundland yet. But trust the CBC to get the design of the Confederate battle flag wrong!