In Indonesia, it was hung outside homes, on motorbikes, cars and trucks, in a sign of discontent with the government that boiled over into deadly protests railing against lavish perks enjoyed by politicians. In Nepal, it was draped on the golden gates of the palace that houses parliament, as young people toppled their government. In the Philippines, it was raised at rallies by protesters furious at alleged government corruption.
The crosses of St George are retailing for about 2.36 on Temu, depending on whether you want them car-window sized, or big enough to write the words GET OFF MY LAND in the white spaces. Keir Starmer has declared that he is a supporter of flags. Alas, at the time of writing the prime minister's position on other items of tactile fabric remains unclear.
T hroughout the culture war flareups of the last fifteen years or so, liberals and conservatives have periodically traded fire over matters that are fundamentally symbolic and often negligible to meaningless at the level of actual political substance. In their own different (and often quite cynical) ways, both factions have been adept at converting cultural issues into the language of political grievance and, in turn, into supposed forms of political engagement-and even activism-that have often amounted to little more than new kinds of shopping
The Bundestag's administration has ordered deputies to immediately remove rainbow flags displayed in and around their parliamentary offices, stating that displaying flags is "fundamentally prohibited, regardless of their symbolism."