In a different context and I apologize for the analogy but they were like scout badges, only he was recognizing the downfall of "the white man."
Add to that the confederate flag and the picture completes itself. The confederate flag is the action of reclamation. In South Carolina it is still a prominent symbol of a revolution. The Civil War was a southern revolutionary war.
That is what I said before, his masculinity is all screwed up. He lives with symbols and not an intact sense of himself. Symbols are to remind people, right? A company, product has a symbol. A fight against breast cancer has a symbol. Symbols are source of social acceptance and even importance.
He stated he was having a difficult time deciding about killing, but, he had the reason for his actions reminded to him by the symbols that represented his manhood. He'll find lots of very dangerous friends in prison.
The confederate flag (and yes I refuse to capitalize it) is an American symbol. In Europe and even in the USA the White Supremacist uses the swastika. There are plenty of men that have a confederate flag on the back of their pick up trucks. It is a reminder and even an invitation to either friendship or fight.
