What's the deal with the Confederate flag?

First, to Joe above. I predict your age to be about 13 or 14 from your answer. Joe, let me introduce myself, I am a combat veteran of the United States Military. My father is a combat veteran of the United States Military and two of my Great Grand Uncles where killed in service to this country in World War 2. All of the above are direct decendants of two grandfathers who fought in the 38th Virginia Infantry for the CSA. The Confederate Battle flag of the 38th is very similar in looks to the Confederate Naval Flag that is commonly used today. Now, neither one of my Grandfathers 4 times removed owned slaves. We know through our family history that they fought to protect their farms and families from a Northern invasion. They would not have fought to protect an institution from which they did not benefit. This young sir is fact not fiction and is historically doented in letters from that time. The war was about politics as wars are usually about. If the war was about slavery, Lincoln would have issued the proclamation at the start of hostilities and not waited until 1863 to do so. Why do we fly the flag? We are proud of the sacrifices that these men made in behalf of their families. Why does the state of SC have the flag on its capitol grounds? The state is proud that its citizens answered the call to defend the state from its then enemies. Many thousands of South Carolinians died in service to the State of SC. It is fitting that South Carolina still pays respect to what it asked of its citizens. Now, I can guarantee you that many decendants of those soldiers also died for the USA in WW 1, WW 2, Korea, Vietnam, and Iraq. Are those men white trash? Now as far as IQ goes I would venture that my IQ is higher than yours as I research the issues before I speak. I also have a degree from Virginia Tech and have had a successful career to date. What have you done? I am proud of all the veterans in my family and will continue to honor them as long as I live. I hope they would be as proud of what I have accomplished on the back of their sacrifice. You should do the same for yours. The Confederate flag is an honorable reminder of those past soldiers who helped to shape what our nation is today even in their defeat. Please ignore the hate groups who use it and dishonor it in ignorance. They do not get it just like you. So really you and the hate groups are one and the same as far as I am concerned. Get educated son. If you want to pick fights with racist trash then go find the websites for the KKK, the Nation of Islam, Nazis, or Black Panthers. That should keep you busy and they are very willing to fight with you.