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Man Burns NJ Flag To Protest Christie's Whitney Houston Tribute
By
Garth Johnston
Published Feb 20, 2012
Modified Feb 20, 2012
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Feb 20, 2012
Modified Feb 20, 2012
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To commemorate the passing of Whitney Houston New Jersey Governor Chris Christie had the flags in the Garden State lowered to half-staff on Saturday, something which not everyone agreed with. In fact, one Michigan man was so furious over the honor he went and bought a New Jersey flag and burned it on his outdoor grill in protest.
"This was a person who was a great entertainer and a great voice," John Burri, who lives in the city of Wyoming in western Michigan and whose son died in Iraq in 2005, said after the flames had subsided. "But this was not someone who gave their life and shed their blood for our country." He went on to say "It was a slap in the face for every family out there who has lost a loved one in the war. It's a watering down of what it means to be a hero."
While veterans have been complaining loudly about the flag flap, Christie for his part has not backed down. "I am disturbed by people who believe that because her ultimate demise—and we don’t know what is the cause of her death yet—but because of her history of substance abuse that somehow she’s forfeited the good things that she did in her life," the governor said last week. "I just reject that on a human level."
Christie said Houston deserved the honor because of her huge cultural impact and as "a daughter of New Jersey."
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