Ag spokesman: No ultimatum on flag

This was an act of conscience by a brave man. I salute him. It is not your country right or wrong, and should not be. As for the writer who says that you are saluting the rank, not the man; maybe he never deserved the rank. It was Helms who was disloyal to our country, by his actions. If anyone knows how to contact Eason directly, I would like to do so, to offer support. Maybe the fellow who has known him for longer than 29 years could supply an email?

I agree with Mr. Eason. Helm was who he was. The flag is an indicator of honor and loyalty. Who was the governor and the commissioner trying to impress the "good ol boys club." Helm was loyal to himself and to all who represented hatred. Isn't it amazing and yet sorrowful he died on the day of independence. The old order of this country must die to past prejudice. Helm represented many things. But one thing is certain he did not represent the people. Eason resigned or was he forced because his counterparts resented what he stood for. The fact that all men were created equal is not a true statement in the real world. There will always be prejudice in this world because some people will refuse to love because of the color of the skin. I pray Eason will move on to better things in his life. I feel Eason deserves better. It was difficlt to listen to the venom spurted from Helm's mouth. How was the flag at half mast honoring Helm? Was it for the hatred for how he disregarded others or the fact he tried to keep other people in bondage to that slavery mentality?

This man is so petty and shallow that it is hard to imagine that the state will not be better off without him. How many other decisions has he made in his career that have been based purely on emotion? The taxpayers deserve better.

It matters little at this point who is telling the truth. The fact of the matter is a public employee directly violated an order of the chief executive of our state in order to inject his own political views into state work. Any state employee who does such should not be offered early retirement, they should be FIRED.

Eason is a bonehead. I can understand not wanting to pour accolades on an individual with whom you have great disagreement. However, in the military, you are told to salute the rank, not the man. That is how I feel about flying flags at half staff. Like him or not, Jesse Helms did have a long history of loyal public service. One state employee retired rather than lower the flag at his facility to half staff. Good riddance. He is ticked over Helms' opposition to the MLK holiday. I detest that holiday for several reasons, not the least of which is that it replaces other official holidays such as Veterans' Day or Presidents' Day in government as well as private company calendars. I believe it to be an appeasement of a minority at the expense of the majority. From my blog.