All things Belgian

[Colon™]

I think our flag is beautiful BTW. Only that of Japan and South Korea beat it.

[Spiffor]

I like the shape, but the color scheme sucks imo. Italy ftw

[Colon™]

Are you nuts? The colour scheme is exactly what makes it great. Italy's scheme is the one that sucks.

[Spiffor]

Really, I can understand that you're a Belgian nationalist (who in Belgium isn't?), but you have to see the light. There are simple rules:
1. If a tricolor wants to have a shot at greatness, it needs white.
2. If a tricolor doesn't want to suck utterly, it cannot have yellow (those flags who only have all-warm colours are the exception).

Face it, your flag sucks about as much as Romania/Chad's, and manages to be worse than Germany's.

[Colon™]

It doesn't need white at all, it does need red in all circumstances. The Belgian indeed is not an all-warm colours flag but this ignores that black is a colour that is compatible to any other colour, therefore a black-yellow-red scheme suffices just as well as an all warm-colour scheme. I agree Romania's blue-yellow-red scheme indeed is a scheme sucky beyond imagination, but exactly because it uses blue instead of black. Germany is not comparable as well, because it uses horizontal stripes, which always suck, except when counterbalanced by a square as is the case with the US' flag.

[Spiffor]

I'm afraid that your complete ignorance in vexillology shows here.

Black does not fit all colours on a flag. Actually, black is seldom a good choice, considering that it counterbalances most flag colours (which are vivid, whether cold or warm), and create a sucky impression instead of creating insdpiration. However, I can understand that Belgium would want a flag that doesn't inspire anybody.

As to the debate on squares counterbalancing vertical stripes, I will not mention the debate. Let's just say that the US/Malaysian flag is an abomination, a pox on all that is good in the flag world.
Much better are triangles, like in Cuba or in Palestine, which are an amazing aethetization of an already explored theme.

In any case, I'm afraid to tell that your flag sucks. Sure, it is bigger than Denmark's, but Denmark's flag is beautiful, even though it reminds everybody of the only thing the Danes are capable of, i.e bloody rampage.

[Colon™]

You are clueless on matters on colour-balancing. On the one side the Belgian flag has red, which is a very powerful colour. Next to it, there's yellow, which is a much kinder colour, and finally there's black which also is a powerful colour, therefore being an ideal counterpart to the other side's red. Black and red are like natural partners in crime, that's why the anarchistic flag is so cool for instance.

Triangles generally are the flag's equivalent of Swedish pop-music: catchy, storming the front-stage, but lacking gravitas and outdating oh so easily. Maybe flags such as Cuba's had a certain revolutionary chique back in the 60's and the 70's, but right now it has all the air of the rust-with-wheels that travels Havana's streets.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by Colon™
You are clueless on matters on colour-balancing.

Now this is BAM. You know nothing of my credentials, and of how far I pursued my research in the matter. But continue, this is amusing.

On the one side the Belgian flag has red, which is a very powerful colour. Next to it, there's yellow, which is a much kinder colour, and finally there's black which also is a powerful colour, therefore being an ideal counterpart to the other side's red.

This is precisely the problem. Red and black go fairly well together, in a bicolor fashion. The use of yellow in the Belgian flag puts the flag off balance. And while the Belgian flag could have possibly sucked less (by going the way of the German flag, i.e. by putting red and black together, so that a colour-conscious viewer could try to ignore the yellow), it chooses the worst possible path by putting yellow between the red and the black. Instead of balancing the flag as you prtend, it makes the flag into a kind of horribly mangled mess of inconsistent colours. This creates a feeling of dizziness among most colour-conscious creatures, and can even induce nausea to the most sensistive ones.

Black and red are like natural partners in crime, that's why the anarchistic flag is so cool for instance.

Yes, but you'll notice that the anarchistic flag is also a bicolor (and thus the natural balance of both colours isn't horribly offset by an alien element), and it also has a triangular pattern to it, which makes it even cooler.

Triangles generally are the flag's equivalent of Swedish pop-music: catchy, storming the front-stage, but lacking gravitas and outdating oh so easily.

I would argue that Swedish pop-music doesn't outdate that much. ABBA still has a large airtime for a band that old, and is still largely recognized internationally as a band worth listening. But ABBA is not the heart of the debate.
I would rather argue that a better analogy wrt triangle-shaped flags is swedish porn. Even long after its country ceases to be a source of inspiration, it makes a very longlasting impression on the populations that know them. The trailblazing, daring aspect of the flag (or Swedish porn) remains in memory even after the government turns conservative.

Maybe flags such as Cuba's had a certain revolutionary chique back in the 60's and the 70's, but right now it has all the air of the rust-with-wheels that travels Havana's streets.

I'm afraid I disagree. True, Cuba itself does convey this impression, but the flag still stands for the values of trailblazingness and daredness, like Swedish porn, as I explained above.

[Colon™]

Originally posted by Spiffor
Now this is BAM. You know nothing of my credentials, and of how far I pursued my research in the matter. But continue, this is amusing.

All those "credentials" and all that "research" apparently didn't gift you with an eye for balanced colour-schemes. Your stupendous suggestion that Romania's flag is somehow comparable to Belgium's shows this.

This is precisely the problem. Red and black go fairly well together, in a bicolor fashion. The use of yellow in the Belgian flag puts the flag off balance. And while the Belgian flag could have possibly sucked less (by going the way of the German flag, i.e. by putting red and black together, so that a colour-conscious viewer could try to ignore the yellow), it chooses the worst possible path by putting yellow between the red and the black. Instead of balancing the flag as you prtend, it makes the flag into a kind of horribly mangled mess of inconsistent colours. This creates a feeling of dizziness among most colour-conscious creatures, and can even induce nausea to the most sensistive ones.

Yes, but you'll notice that the anarchistic flag is also a bicolor (and thus the natural balance of both colours isn't horribly offset by an alien element), and it also has a triangular pattern to it, which makes it even cooler.

How you can believe Germany's flag is better than Belgium's, even ignoring the use of horizontal stripes, is beyond me. Germany's flag uses a strong-strong-soft scheme. The blatant asymmetry of this should be obvious even to a 5-year old.
The problem with the anarchistic flag, despite being so cool is exactly that is uses only 2 colours. While it may work with Japan's flag because of the contrast, it poses problems with the anarchistic flag because both red and black are strong, giving a harsh and aggressive air. This is a problem the Belgian does not have because it uses yellow as a kind, fresh colour between the black and the red.
Yellow and red are very compatible, on the colour spectrum, they only have orange between them, which naturally is a blend of both. The fact they can be blended into orange also proves they're compatible. Black and yellow provide for strong contrast, like Japan's red and white.

I would argue that Swedish pop-music doesn't outdate that much. ABBA still has a large airtime for a band that old, and is still largely recognized internationally as a band worth listening. But ABBA is not the heart of the debate.
I would rather argue that a better analogy wrt triangle-shaped flags is swedish porn. Even long after its country ceases to be a source of inspiration, it makes a very longlasting impression on the populations that know them. The trailblazing, daring aspect of the flag (or Swedish porn) remains in memory even after the government turns conservative.

ABBA only generates interest in the form of kitch. People listen to it because they realise it's not meant to be taken seriously. Like you'd watch an Ace Ventura movie, it's so completely over the top it becomes ok again.
While this may be acceptable in entertainment, it's not acceptable at all in the matter of flags.

I'm afraid I haven't experienced Swedish porn yet, so I can't comment on the relevance of the analogy.

I'm afraid I disagree. True, Cuba itself does convey this impression, but the flag still stands for the values of trailblazingness and daredness, like Swedish porn, as I explained above.

It stands for a bygone age. Like Castro has failed to move on, so has Cuba's flag.

[Imran Siddiqui]

[q=Colon]How you can believe Germany's flag is better than Belgium's, even ignoring the use of horizontal stripes, is beyond me. Germany's flag uses a strong-strong-soft scheme. The blatant asymmetry of this should be obvious even to a 5-year old.
The problem with the anarchistic flag, despite being so cool is exactly that is uses only 2 colours. While it may work with Japan's flag because of the contrast, it poses problems with the anarchistic flag because both red and black are strong, giving a harsh and aggressive air. This is a problem the Belgian does not have because it uses yellow as a kind, fresh colour between the black and the red.
Yellow and red are very compatible, on the colour spectrum, they only have orange between them, which naturally is a blend of both. The fact they can be blended into orange also proves they're compatible. Black and yellow provide for strong contrast, like Japan's red and white.[/q]

And Spiffor is pwned.

[Spiffor]

Watching a Ned-like zealot squim equates being pwned?

[alva]

Are you two taking this serious? It's a flag!! Who cares?!

[Colon™]

Tsk tsk

[Ecthy]

Our flag

[Arrian]

Do you have a flag? No flag, no country, can't have one!

Stars & Stripes, baby!

-Arrian