Clad in a purple T-shirt, blue bandana and beaded bracelets, Michael Jorden zooms through Hayden Lawn on his skateboard and takes a seat on the "Nipple of Knowledge."
While he may not be able to dunk like the legendary basketball player who shares a similar name, his fellow students may still know him - as the guy who skates with an American flag flying from his backpack. But as SPM learned this week, Jorden's reason for waving the ole red, white and blue is to inspire thought in ASU students.
SPM: Don't I know you?
Michael: Yeah. I try to make people think.
SPM: Well, you've sparked my interest. What's up with the flag?
Michael: I'm trying to prompt critical thought process in students, forcing them to question what the flag means. What was the intention of the Founding Fathers? Where are we now?
SPM: How much do you love America?
Michael: I love the underlying ideology of what America can be. I love the potential.
SPM: How do people generally react when they see you skating around with a giant American flag?
Michael: Dumbfounded. Nothing - no reaction. Then sometimes, less often, smiles [or] smirks.
SPM: Where does the flag hang out when it's not "working"?
Michael: Rolled up in my living room.
SPM: What about you? What do you do when you're not being the flag guy?
Michael: I like to practice yoga and tai chi, meditation, communicating with inter-dimensional entities.
SPM: Interesting. What is the best thing in the world - or other worlds, since you communicate with entities from other dimensions?
Michael: The best thing I can remember in this universe is the Pleiades, which is a far-off system of planets. It's a very beautiful place.
SPM: That's a good answer! I ask that question a lot, and the responses are usually "pie" or "Burt Reynolds." So do you consider yourself a patriot?
Michael: Yes. It's a unique form of patriotism. Many will consider me a dissenter, and to those I would say ... "Dissent is the highest form of patriotism."
SPM: That's deep. What's the best way to eat a Reese's?
Michael: I haven't had a Reese's for a long time. I would rather have some really sweet honey and organic peanut butter on a piece of bread.
SPM: Seriously? I guess I'll allow that. What's the best way to eat that?
Michael: With two knives - one for each jar - and a loaf of bread.
SPM: Nice. Who is the sexiest politician?
Michael: Thomas Jefferson.
SPM: I think I'm obligated to ask you about your name. Can you dunk like the other Michael Jordan?
Michael: No, but I can hang on the rim.
Reach the reporter at: christina.caldwell@asu.edu.
