Black and white american flags
 

Does anyone know why you see all those blacek and white american flags along the roads on the tour is it a protest?

you need a new TV

Every Year!!!!!

:lol: Post of the week!

And why is Vino wearing that funny jersey? :D

they turned our stars into pine trees, the *******s !!!

vive le breton!

It is the flag of Brittany (a region in France).
Just like you see lots of yellow flags with a black lion . . . flag of West Flanders (a real hotbed for cycling in Belgium).

Does it look like a white flag with a black lion on a black and white set? :crash:

This thread gets my vote for the best first two posts of the TDF forum :thumb:

Smart ass
 

Thanks it just looks like a black and white American Flag I don't know enough about France to know their cowardly regions and yeah I miss spelled Black so as a argant American F ya all

Hint #1: "misspelled"

Hint #2: Lighten up.

:roflmao:

:roflmao:

:roflmao:

Actually a black & white stars and stripes is pretty sharp sarcasm considering the black & white, "with us or against us" Bush/Cheney mindset. And while..

I myself don't care for displays of nationalism or protest in sports, that's just life. Anyway, as an aside, the Olympics is as much about the gambling odds and the marketing as it is about the spirit of competition.

Yeah, I'm jaded.

another absolutely ******** thread in the TdF forum. go figure.

Will the converter work on a BW TV when the signal goes digital or is it racial?

And in case any one asks... the Isle of Man's flag shows three legs running in a circle. I'm sure with Cavendish surging as of late, there will be lots of hometown flags waving him on.

Instead of jumping all over the guy, why not take the opportunity to educate him (and a few others here...)

Gwen ha du is the name of the flag. It is brezoneg (breton in breton) for black and white. Brittany has it's own language and culture that predates the French influence that started in earnest when Anne of Brittany married King Charles VII of France in 1491, bringing all of Brittany under the rule of France. Breton was still spoken in Brittany, though, for hundreds of years, and you can still hear it if you listen. All the road signs in Brittany are in both Breton and French, much like in Ireland where the signs are in Irish Gaelic and English.

After WWII, even the remote parts of Brittany became French speaking, and Breton was discouraged or forbidden, not taught in schools, and generally considered backwards. That meant that a generation whose parents spoke Breton did not learn the language. When you skip generations in language, the language is typically on it's way to a certain death.

Culturally, Brittany is Celtic. There are menhirs and dolmens (prehistoric standing stones) all over the place that predate the Celts. The Breton language is closely tied to the now-extinct Cornish that was spoken in southwestern England. The Cornish were pushed out of Cornwall by invasions of England (Angles and Saxons and the like) way back. They probably landed in Brittany. King Arthur and Merlin and the gang are thought to have spent considerable time in Brittany.

In the past 30 years or so, Breton-only schools have been established all over Brittany (Diwan), so that the children are learning the language even though their parents don't speak it very well. Breton music is Celtic, with the Binou being the Breton bagpipe. It's a beautiful culture and landscape, and some of the best cycling in the world.

I hope you get to go sometime and see for yourselves.

Kenavo.

The Occitan flag is the coolest.http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z...oe/drap_oc.gif

Thanks for the history lesson, but what about the confused American with visions of wood nymphs, damsels in distress, Guinness ale, Led Zeppelin, Braveheart, Tolkien, and the The Once and Future King?

Didn't you see his second post, I think he may refuse your offer of education.:D

It wasn't just for him...

People were being pissy about it and he was pissy back. I wouldn't expect someone from Europe to be able to recongize regional flags from North America. Would someone from Saskatchewan even be able to recognize their own flag?

At least the Breton flag is immediately recognizable. Some French regional flags involve count-the-lions guessing games.

Led Zepplin is all about Wales, which is very close to Brittany culture-wise. Brittany also has wood nymphs, damsels in distress, and the Once and Future King, as well as wind-swept moors and mysterious misty forests. Instead of Guinness they have really awesome very hard cider. Instead of Braveheart, they have Guihmarc'h. The Mabingion is a collection of Breton tales and myths. I visited the purported grave of Merlin near Josselin, as well as a fountain of youth (but there were vipers, so I didn't actually take a sip).