Strong words from Jill Lawrence about that flag everyone is talking about (and the Palm Beach Post chimes in)

Jill Lawrence titled her op/ed in The National Memo this way: "The Confederacy Crashes In A Week. It Only Took 150 Years." She attributes the tipping point to Gov. Nikki Haley who she believes "set off the swarm":

     It is tempting to go with a safety-in-numbers theory. Politicians and businesses may recognize a unique moment of opportunity to act on principle without paying a penalty. [emphasis added] It’s like speeding at the same rate as other cars when you’re in a long line of traffic. Everyone’s doing it, so nobody’s likely to get a ticket or — in this case — lose votes or customers.
     The risk has been high until now. For instance, a Winthrop University poll last November showed 61 percent of people in South Carolina — including 73 percent of whites — wanted to keep the flag on the Capitol grounds. Gov. Nikki Haley, an Indian-American Republican running for re-election that month, called it a non-issue in her campaign. But this week, surrounded by Democrats, Republicans, blacks, and whites, she called it part of the state’s past and said it needs to go. And with that she set off the swarm.

The Palm Beach Post has an editorial today on this very issue. They seem to agree with Jill Lawrence's analysis:

     Certainly it [the confederate flag] was a potent symbol for Dylann Roof, the callow 21-year-old who posted photos of himself brandishing the Confederate stars and bars while explaining his white supremacist views and announcing his demented ambition to single-handedly launch a race war.
     Starting with South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s renunciation [emphasis added] on Monday of the Confederate banner flying on her state Capitol grounds, a taboo seemingly has been broken — a taboo against coddling this lingering symbol not just of the Civil War but of the Ku Klux Klan, “Segregation Forever” and murderous resistance to the civil rights movement.

And am told The Other Blogger (TOB) is backpedaling as fast as she can:

So very charming, isn't it?

This image was posted on TOB's blog the week prior to Lake Worth's MLK March.