The woke police have struck again, this time in central Michigan.
Inn owners Greg and Kjersten Offenbecker bought a historic mansion in the town of St. Johns and converted it into a quaint bed and breakfast, which they lovingly dubbed "The Nordic Pineapple." The inn itself has plenty of 5-star reviews on Google and TripAdvisor, and seems loved by all.
Why, then, might you ask, are the Offenbeckers being crucified at the Altar of Wokeness™? I can explain, but first you'll need to put aside your knowledge of history and your basic levels of common sense. Pretend that all you do is surf Twitter and watch Rachel Maddow all day every day. Once you're in that frame of mind (you'll know once you start getting angry at anything that reminds you of conservatism, liberty, or joy), squint at your screen reaaaaally hard and hold your breath.
Are you doing it? Squint like you've never squinted before!! Now, look at these two flags side by side:
Aha! Do you see it? What we have here is a classic case of Racism! Undoubtedly, the cute little inn is just a facade for something like a neo-nazi club or some kind of KKK gathering. Who else would hang a – whispers – Confederate flag?
Except it isn't a Confederate flag. It's a Norwegian flag. Kjersten, wanting to celebrate her heritage, has flown a Norwegian flag outside the inn for years.
A few guests have previously mistaken the flag for a Confederate flag, but it was an occasional case of mistaken identity. In recent weeks, following the ongoing BLM riots – er, protests – the couple has received a deluge of nasty comments:
"What we're getting is so much more negative now," said Kjersten. "It's not just, ‘hey you're flying the Confederate flag.' It's, ‘you should be ashamed to fly the Confederate flag. You're a bigot because you fly the Confederate flag.'"
After a slew of rage-soaked comments and hateful emails, the Offenbeckers decided to remove the flag. Since then, they have received an outpouring of support from the local community and are now considering rehanging the flag.
That this couple would even have to think about flying the Norwegian flag is an indicator of how dumb our citizenry and the cultural narrative have become. Greg Offenbecker, who served in the Navy during the First Gulf War, said it best:
"It bugs me as far as the stupidity of people. Even if the flag is blowing in the wind or laying limp, there are no stars on it. They look nothing alike."
Indeed, Greg, but this is #2020. All bets on intelligence and common sense are off.
Perhaps the most important point of this story is that St. Johns is not an ultra-Left urban enclave filled with Bernie Bros. It's a small, agricultural, Midwest town. The town's claim to fame for over a century has been its mint farms. If the anger-driven, revisionist narrative of the Left is present even in a town like St. Johns, it's cause for serious concern.
I'd keep that flag, Kjersten. Your grandpa might have moved to America for the promise of freedom, but we might soon be finding ourselves looking at places like Norway to escape the insanity.
