You can admire the man for taking a stand and sticking to it, but you ignore the orders of your superiors at your hazard.
Eason’s superiors gave him an ultimatum: lower the flags or retire immediately.
I find this interesting, because I know for a fact that insubordination (defined as refusal to obey a direct instruction from a superior in State of NC-speak) is an “immediately terminable offense”.
In other words, they could (and in my opinion, should) have fired this idiot. Disagreeing with Helms’ politics is no excuse for his failure to follow his boss’s instructions. (As I was taught in the military, “You salute the rank, not the man.” The same concept applies here.) This kind of behavior in a government employee can’t be tolerated, because it quickly gets out of hand. “No one could need a house that big, so I’m not going to sign off on the building permit.”