Vote on flag desecration may be 'cliffhanger'

USA Today | June 14, 2005 | Andrea Stone

[RWR8189]

Title and link only.

[USAfearsnobody]

They've actually been working on this?

[RWR8189]

It has passed the House every session since 1990.

[hmong]

"""Many Americans consider it the ultimate test of a free society to permit the insult or even desecration of one of the great symbols of the nation.""

Biting the hand that feeds you??? Idiots....burn commie chinese, vietnamese, laos and cuba flags...that burn and torture people that speak their minds.... Dumb MTV dopes.

[rmmcdaniell]

Call me a cynic, but this will never be enforced against liberal protestors. Did you see Bush go after Clinton's staff for destruction of white house property after he left office? No! That and every other misdeed by the Clintons were swept under the rug by the "new tone". Do you see Republicans enforcing immigration laws? or the justice department going after liberal when they violate election laws? This will just allow another law to go on the book that our side will be too afraid to enforce for politically correct reasons.

In fact I'd bet that the first case of someone being prosecuted is when a Janet Reno style Democrat hack goes after a conservative activist after they "mis-use" the flag according to some convoluted code during a rally/event.

[USAfearsnobody]

Sorry but I agree with the above quote: """Many Americans consider it the ultimate test of a free society to permit the insult or even desecration of one of the great symbols of the nation.""

It's the Soldier by Father D.E. O'Brien, USMC 

It's the soldier, not the reporter,

    Who has given us freedom of the press.

It's the soldier, not the poet,

    Who has given us freedom of speech.

It's the soldier, not the campus organizer,

    Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate. 

It's the soldier, not the lawyer,

    Who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It's the soldier who salutes the flag, Serves under the flag, And whose coffin is draped by the flag,   

    Who gives the protester the right to burn the flag.

~~~~~~~~~~

For it has been said so truthfully that it is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us the freedom of the press.

It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the agitator, who has given us the freedom to protest.

It is the soldier who salutes the flag, serves beneath the flag, whose coffin is draped by the flag who gives that protester the freedom he abuses to burn that flag.

 

 

 

[USAfearsnobody]

Really... wow I've never known that.

[Critical Bill]

Actually the US has been doing the right thing up until now..ignoring the flag desecration taunts. To make a law about it will play into the Islamo's hands and they will go out of their way to stomp on it more. Part of why they whine and ululu so much is because the West ignores them, the perfect weapon against a proud, cruel, tribal, ignorant 7th century and pychotic race of people.

[ConservativeMind]

I don't want anyone to burn the flag, but if someone owns it, it should be their right to do so.

As a former Boy Scout, I knew the proper way to respect the flag, even disposing of it should it touch the ground. Today, we see people weaving it into clothes and torturing it on automobile antennas as though this is respectful.

At least the Armed Forces know how to treat the flag, even if civilians don't give a damn.

[TYVets]

The wimpy republicans can only pass hot air out of their mouths.

[I still care]

I think I should be able to burn anything I want that I own, whether it be a flag or a Koran.

And I should be allowed to criticize anyone I want who does so without fear of reprisal.

The only exception I see to this is to pay people public money (tax recipients) to do this. For instance, an "art" piece burning the flag or Koran. Or a teacher on pay at a public university doing this in front of students.

If the people pay the salary of such an employee, that person should be required to adhere to the sensibilities of the majority of the public who pays it. Why should I pay the salary of a person who insults what I hold dear?

This does not seem to be the prevailing wisdom, but it seems rational to me.

[Leatherneck_MT]

As someone who has served, saluted, folded, hoisted and lowererd that flag from coast to coast and from one base and ship to another across this world, I have to say that they are indeed free to desecrate the Flag if they so choose.

But at the same time, don't anyone EVER try to charge me with assault for beating the ever loving snot out of some hippy maggot who does try to desecrate one in my presence.

That is MY free speech right.

[familyop]

Our soldiers should have the right to stop doing their duty if we fail to pass and enforce a law against desecration of our Flag. If any of you have a right to let our country down, our soldiers have a right to let you down.

To heck with anarchist libertines who are all a column of the extreme left.

[teeman8r]

i respect your enthusiasm past and present in defending this country's honor, but to threaten life and limb to one who lives in a free country, the expression of desecrating symbols is the ultimate expression. physical battering of those is not freedom of speech, but assault.

i respect the flag as a symbol of our great country. flying it on antennas and wearing it on our clothes push the limits of desecration but i look at it more as respect and pride to show off our national pride.

limiting freedom does the flag more disservice than any hippy burning his own flag.

teeman

[teeman8r]

our soldiers do not fight for our flag but for our constitution and our freedoms.

the flag is just a symbol of our great country, and every time it is burned in protest is a sign of how great this country truly is.

teeman

[Leatherneck_MT]

No you misunderstand my point.

I fully support some maggots right to burn a flag.

But if he does it in my presence, I expect MY right to defend that flag to ALSO be respected.

Free Speech IS a 2 way street. It doesn't just protect the child molesting maggots that infest this country.

[familyop]

Every time someone burns the Flag whole in public to disrespect it, we're reminded of those who have misdirected our country since the late 1960s. I believe that such people belong in jail. Their first effect was to cause tens of thousands of allies to be massacred by Communists. They have broken our families, corrupted our economy and weakened our defense for almost 40 years.

I also agree with the alternative presented by Leatherneck_MT. When our Flag is physically, publicly desecrated in the name of "free speech," our soldiers' "free speech" right to physically beat the hell out of the illegitimate, anarchist brats of socialism should be respected.

[Sam Cree]

IMO, you guys' expectation of an actual right to use violence against those who would destroy a mere symbol of the state, emotion laden though that symbol may be, aligns you more closely with the very Left that you despise.

I would add that while I agree with you that desecration of our flag is sickening, prohibition of its desecration is more so.

[familyop]

We see that many people are misinformed with regards to our Flag. But in the interest of trying to re-educate the few readers who will pay attention, we'll give it a try.

The Flag is a sign to the enemy that the enemy has no right to enter with evil intent against us or to hurt any of us on the ground that is under it, whether that Flag is flying here or elsewhere. That's what our buddies have died and die for.

Yet people like you want to have people incarcerated for intentionally tearing down stoplights--mere symbols--symbols that no one had to fight and die for to erect.

From here on, the brats of officious hippies (old Baby Boomers who only recently have real haircuts) are nothing more to us than symbols of hatred and contempt against our country. But inevitably, in the course of degeneration of some of the wise values of the Greatest Generation, our officious hippie tyrants will probably, eventually be left unprotected from terrorists and other enemies anyway. Let them try to hire mercenaries from antagonist countries to protect them.

The coming defenseless posture will be due to the demoralizations against our real men (certainly including Marines in infantry specialties) caused by the Baby Boomer theft of the real American economy we once had, Baby Boomer dishonoring of real men with waves of feminist lies, Baby Boomer revision of nearly all education and media toward anti-American and anti-Family misinformation, Baby Boomer destruction of soldiers' families (or the families they could have had) with the Baby Boomer divorce industry and Baby Boomer revisions against knowledge of what our Flag is really for.