Veteran claims he was fired for taking down tattered, ripped American flag at business

[aznation]

http://www.koco.com/article/veteran-claims-he-was-fired-for-taking-down-tattered-ripped-american-flag-at-business/20273451

 

This story really ticked me off when I saw the video !!!

 

So, I sent Loomis the following email. I don't expect a reply from them, but we'll see.

 

Date: Tuesday, May 8, 2018 at 11:14 AM

To: [email protected]>

Subject: RE: Veteran claims he was fired for taking down tattered, ripped American flag at business

To Whom it May Concern,

Below, you’ll note that a story of Nicholas Odparlik, an Army veteran of 8 years in Oklahoma City says he was recently fired from his security job at Loomis, located at 1610 NE 4th St, Oklahoma City, OK 73117 after he tore down a tattered American flag. In the story, you’ll note that Nicholas attempted to bring up to management that the flag was not in a condition to be properly flown but nothing was done. After nothing was done by management with regards to taking down the flag, Nicholas took it upon himself to take the flag down and was supposedly fired for doing so.

• The U.S. Flag code states that, “the flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.” Thus, when a flag is torn and tattered beyond repair, it's time for it to be retired.

As a fellow American veteran of the United States Air Force, I find it disgusting that a flag in this condition was being flown by Loomis at this location in the first place. Secondly, it appears management, after being notified by Nicholas of the flags condition appears to have chose to take no action. Nicholas then removed the flag himself, which is the same thing I would’ve done if I were in his shoes given the condition of the flag and lack of action on the part of management.

If Loomis fired Nicholas because of his action in taking down the flag, then this is a despicable act on the company’s part.

According to the video, your management at the Oklahoma City location was not at liberty to discuss personnel matters.

I realize there’s always two sides to every story. That said, I would at least like a response to my email on whether you think it was right to fire an employee for taking down a torn and tattered American flag when your companies management at this Oklahoma City location chose not to take any action to remove the flag.

I’m seriously thinking about posting this story on as many Facebook Veteran’s pages as I can or any other social media sites I can think of, but I’ll await your response. If I don’t hear back soon, I’ll proceed with my posts, as I think this was totally unfair to Nicholas. He should’ve been commended for his actions instead of fired. Whoever in management at the Oklahoma City location who chose to do nothing should’ve been the one to be fired if anyone.

Thank you for your consideration. I appreciate it.

 

 

[Adg105200]

Wow, definitely keep us posted on any updates.

 

Andrew

[Blacksmith]

First, let me say that nobody feels more strongly about loving treatment of our flag than I do. I’ve pulled off the interstate on a family vacation, to talk with a business about the condition of their flag. So I totally get it.

 

That said, I think one needs to logically separate the issues.

 

One issue is the condition of the flag, and that he took action and retired it.

 

The second issue is that he took it home with him - at least I’m assuming that, based on the fact that he had it to show the interviewer after he was fired.

 

I personally think they are separate issues, and - to the degree my opinion matters - I’m good with the first part.

 

The second part, I think is a different matter.

[aznation]

Yes, I agree with you with Blacksmith. If he took the flag home with him, technically that could be considered stealing. Like I said in my email, there's two sides to every story and I'm waiting to hear (if I do) from Loomis. Still, the fact that it was obvious management was apparently going to take no action with regards to the flag, it seems reasonable to me and perhaps to Nicholas that management would still have no intentions of retiring the flag properly if at all. Therefore, I can see why Nicholas decided to take the flag himself for proper retirement. Should Nicholas have been fired for that given the circumstances? I still don't think so.

[RedLegGI]

It really wasn't his call to take down the flag. Your patriotism and respect for the flag, doesn't trump the property rights and lack of respect of the company you work for. A proper course of action, if he truly wanted to do this properly and not get in trouble, would have been to have bought a replacement flag and run it up the pole. No one would have been the wiser, and the problem would have been solved. Instead it appears he was on a one man mission to take the flag down, take it home, and then claim the victim when he did it.

 

Do I understand why? Absolutely. Does that mean hes right? Not one bit. It makes me wonder if this guy is the type that gets mad about this, but then doesn't say a word to someone wearing an flag T-shirt or pair of shorts.

[aznation]

I see your points RedLegGI. Guess I just kind of feel sorry for the guy. He's young and I think he was well intentioned. Just went about it the wrong way.

[cutiger83]

The guy is an 8 year veteran so he is old enough to know what he is doing and any consequences for his actions. We also do not know what he has done at his work prior to this incident. While on the surface it may look one way, we do not know the full story. We should never have knee-jerk reactions to something we see on the internet.

[aznation]

The guy is an 8 year veteran so he is old enough to know what he is doing and any consequences for his actions. We also do not know what he has done at his work prior to this incident. While on the surface it may look one way, we do not know the full story. We should never have knee-jerk reactions to something we see on the internet.

 

Absolutely agree, that's why I said, "I realize there’s always two sides to every story."