Am I out of Line

Today at work, my boss pulled my Air Force emblem off my office door at work, peeled the tape off it and shoved it under my door while I was in conference with a staff member. She told my secretary it had no business being on there (although she had no problem with it being in my office). When I inquired about her (my boss') large angel on her door and angel sign on her door nob she replied that "her angel is an international symbol of good will and was fine but that we were not in the business of selling the Air Force, it did not belong on my door. She expressed surprise at having to tell me that".

Admittedly, the Air Force did have airforce.com on it in not too big letters but the main of it was 4 or 5 inches in diamerter with US Air Force and the wings on it. That was it. I am hard pressed to see where her angels and angel sign (religious symbols) are fine but my symbol for a federal military service was not.

Just curious.

North

 

You should have then shoved the Air Force emblem somewhere else.

If you work for a private company, your recourse is very limited. However, I think that your local newspaper would be very interested in this type of story. It's amazing how fast people change their opinions when the media comes calling.

 

She's wrong. You're wrong. It's a wash.

She's wrong in the way that she handled the situation (pulling it off while you were gone). However, if this is not a government employer, my take is that it wasn't necessarily appropriate for it to be on your door (just as the angel should not be on her door).

By the way, aren't you luck to work for her?



Tom Nixon

 

She's wrong. You're wrong. It's a wash.

I disagree, unless your Air Force emblem could be considered in poor test, otherwise without a policy regarding what can be put on office doors, she is totally out of line. The unfortunate part is that the only thing you can do is grin and bear it, and display it proudly within your office.

Tom

 

The Air Force emblem should not have been an issue. She was wrong. You were simply displaying your pride in the Air Force. If your company frowns upon military ads, then this should have been in writing (a company policy).
As for her angels, you should ask your boss to have her do the same. Have them removed from her door.

 

Get a big and obvious AF tattoo, North. Like an Apache helo chasing an angel

 

This is curious behavior. There is a larger issue here, I think.

When I was a county substance abuse director, I had a life-sized cutout of President Bush in my office. No one cared and Democrats worked in the vicinity of my office.

I have had pictures of RFK, Carter, Elvis, Ali, Jesus, etc. and a Bahai wall clock in my offices in all of the mental health/addictions agencies I have worked. I was never asked to remove any of them.

I've even had a Lon Chaney Wolfman (12" tall) doll on a deacon's table in a few of these offices with no problem.

Again, there must be a larger issue here.

 

Well, Jimmy, I gotta say I'm impressed.
All I got in my office is a crucifix & a photo of Mordecai Kaplan.
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North: Your boss is an ass. I wish you well.

Put a pix of Saddam on your door with a "balloon" saying "My guardian angel hates the U.S. military, too."

Or a pix of some gassed Kurds (preferably kids and babies) with a caption: "Project interrupted, courtesy of the USAF."

 

Is there a policy? I don't believe he said one way or the other.

Probably I don't like the Air Force emblem because it, of course, should be a Navy emblem.

Nope, I still don't think it is appropriate. However, I wouldn't have a problem with it at all if it were the U.S. flag on the door or if he kept all of the memorabilia inside the office.



Tom

 

Angels - Spiritual beings with wings
Air Force - Man with wings and many are very spiritual

She says or thinks - Air Force is military and they are all about killing

You say or think - So religion does not kill?....The Crusades, The Inquisition, Al Queda, etc

She says - It is not appropriate for you to have that on your door, etc

You say - It is not appropriate for you to tell me what to believe in or how to live my life. You hire my skills not my beliefs or lifestyle.

But then again she is your boss and will make things hard on you so just put it on your desk and go to your local army surplus store and buy and old Air Force class B uniform, remove all emblems and wear it into work.

Enjoy

 

Sounds like to me that she was being weird. Perhaps she was having a bad day? If things like that happen frequently with her then she's just a weird person. I say we should all meet at your office and publicly mock her ancestary. (Now I'm just being weird. )

 

I guess you have a point, Tom. It might be a bit like the sort of people who put their diplomas up in their offices gluing them to the door.
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Here's another idea, North. Get a pix of the malach hamoves (angel of death) and put it on your door. Them international symbols of goodwill perk a place right up.

Oh. If you're too dumb to ignore my bright ideas there is no hope for you. None. At all.

I still say you're being treated badly, but I'm not sure how you can actually "win" this one without it being a pyrrhic victory.

 

If your boss is the owner of the business, then it's "case closed."

However, if your boss is simply an employee, then it could could go either way:

• The Air Force emblem and the angelic emblem should both be allowed to stay.
  
  -- or --
  
• The Air Force emblem and the angelic emblem should both be removed.

Removing one while allowing the other to stay clearly shows bias on her part. BTW, why is she displaying religious symbols in a secular office?

 

Well, that was then. Now, I have a poster from the Broadway play Les Miserables, campaign poster of Carter, some Ali pictures, several Elvis collector's plates, picture of Elvis and picture of Norah Jones along with several 8x10's of my favorites current GOP office holders. Oh, the Bush cutout is here also.

I guess one's office and the door to one's office might be an issue, I don't know. I never had anything on any office door in any secular position, except a name plate.

BTW, I thought the dove was the symbol for universal peace (international symbol for goodwill), not an angel which usually represents protection.

Move your Air Force emblem into your office on the inside of your door and see what happens.

(For some reason I was under the impression you are a pastor. I didn't know you worked in the secular field.).

 

Your boss is a hypocrite.

I don't see anything wrong with your USAF display. From your description, it was in good taste. I think you should have a civilized discussion with her about what she did. Ask her the following questions:

1) Is there anything on the employee handbook that forbids the display of anything outside one's office, be it USAF stickers, angels, US flags, etc..?

2) Why the double standard? Why is it okay to display angels but not USAF emblem?

 

If North ruffles her feathers I hope he does not work in an "at will" state.

 

There are a variety of criticisms that could be leveled at her decision. The one that hasn't been highlighted yet is her contention that angels are a universal symbol of goodwill. They may be symbolic of something and some may say that it's "goodwill" but clearly there are many people throughout the world who would have another interpretation. My guess, as has been previously stated, is that she has another agenda. I would add however, that she doesn't feel confident in her ability to argue her case successfully or she'd be more honest about it.
Jack

 

Why fight 'em, when you can join 'em? Just switch to supporting the U.S. Navy and glue a large poster of the Blue Angels on your door.

 

This is kind of bizarre. I have never heard of an employer objecting to a military poster in the workplace. Never. Even in the dark days following our departure from Viet Nam, I never saw or heard of such a thing.

Was there no explanation given?

I would guess that the bosses of the boss are unware of her action and might take exception to it. Maybe even STRONG exception. I sure would.

Besides, what does she MEAN that "you're not in the business of selling the Air Force"? Supporting our nation's armed forces is EVERY citizen's business, whether we agree with the current administration or not. It is important to encourage young people to perform what is, after all, a UNIVERSAL military obligation! (Well, for males, anyway.)

Lord knows, we all PAY for it!