Vet Faces Lawsuit For Flying American Flag
CLERMONT, Fla. -- A Central Florida war veteran faces a lawsuit for flying the American flag on a pole in his front yard.

"I don't understand why it would bring down the values of our homes by flying the American flag from a pole in my front yard," homeowner Jimmie Watkins said.

Watkins and his wife, Ria, received a final notice from the Sussex homeowners' association in Clermont that they must remove the flag or face legal action.

http://www.local6.com/news/16399678/detail.html

The former retired U.S. Navy communications officer said he refuses to back down for the American flag.

"Our people are serving today to give us freedom to do as we like here within the law of America," Watkins said. "It is my right to fly my flag from my pole and until a court of law tells me to haul that down, I will not haul it down. I think about all of the people who have served our nation and all of the lives that it's cost and all of the friends that I've lost."

Local 6 reported that all surrounding subdivisions in Kings Ridge allow a flag pole display in a person's front yard.

Jim Hart, who handles property management for 1,500 properties, including Sussex, said it is the association's call and not his.

"Each sub-association has its own set of documents and they can differ," Hart said. "The rationale for that only exists within the minds of the folks that are doing it. I can't sit here and tell you why."

The homeowner's association is not commenting about their rules. But state law said anyone can display a flag in a "respectful manner" as long as it is removable.

This is the most disgusting thing I've heard of since the War On Christmas.

Hahaha.

FUCK YOU!!!!

What kind of prick has a flag pole that pick outside their house. Good.

That pick? Huh?

it really is pick.

Click on the pictures on the news story it's taller than his house which isn't small either.

I can't quite tell from the pictures but he may have been in the navy.

Dude is kind of an ass about his flag. The pole is significantly taller than his house and it's a retarded flag anyways. What is with the 26 stripes thing, this old fart doesn't count the white stripes or something? And TEXT on part of the flag. I'd be ticked if I was in the association, too. Dude is desecrating the nation's flag.

It looks like he basically TRYING to start trouble with how that flag is displayed. He couldn't just go with the brace on the side of the house type of deal. Nope, instead a hugely tacky my-flag-is-taller-than-yours. Sorry, dude, but you signed an agreement when you moved in.

Shitty reporting. Dude could've at least read in the C&Rs what the size limits for flags was, and made an actual story of it rather than Fox News' next frothy crusade.

If he disagrees with the home owners association's rules, he should move out. It's not illegal in any state to paint your house with zebra stripes,* but that doesn't mean a HOA can't prohibit it. The guy is being a prick because he wants a different set of rules to apply to him that those he agreed to when he chose to move into that community.

*as far as I know

Let me just say that Housing Associations are a horrible waste of time & energy, and I will never own property within one. Why would I pay that much for a house - only to still have an outside party telling me what I can & can't do? The whole point of buying a house (at least for me) is to GET AWAY from the landlord mentality - yet a Housing Association comes along to be the unsilent masters of YOUR property.

Bollocks to THAT.

are housing associations good for anything?
i would murder someone if they ever tried to give me a $25 ticket over letting my grass grow an extra day

Far as I can tell, HOA's are a way of skirting the law, all in the name of "protecting property values."

I'd only say "common sensationalism of the day" instead of "shitty reporting" if I were in polite company, because they amount to the same thing.

Heh heh.