Save the flag
It never fails to ammuse me. Every time I turn around some damn idiot in Congress thinks that the flag needs to be protected from burning.
The flag of the United States of America is probably the largest symbol on the planet. It stands for the freedoms that we are, as a people, promised. It stands for not being subjected to government abuses. It stands for speaking ones mind without retribution. It stands for praying to a god that I choose or not praying to any god, without being told that I am wrong.
The flag, like many symbols, is not destroyed by burning. In fact the Constitution of the United States is strengthened every time that someone decides to say his/her piece by burning the flag. The 'right' to burn the flag allows me to feel free. This doesn't mean that I should run around burning flags willy nilly. No if it is done, it has to be done with the knowledge of which it represents.
Burning the flag would seem to be easier today than yesterday. This is because the things that it stands for are eroding as our rights are stripped away. I can no longer buy cough medicine without showing a government approved photo I.D. and signing a log. Books I check out of the library are subject to review by government agents. To board an airplane I have to subject myself to a pat-down. These actions are unacceptable in a free society.
If the government wants to stop people from burning the flag then the government needs to restore the rights of the citizen. Making it illegal will not make me proud to be an American. It is pride in our country that protects the symbol of freedom from burning, not laws to throw us in jail for speaking our mind.
If the government is so obsessed by the desecration of the flag maybe they should look at how people treat it on a daily basis.
Fair weather flags are flown in the rain.
Flags are flown all night without being lighted.
They are flown frayed all the way to the jack on cars and pickups.
They are allowed to not only drag the ground, but to sit in flower beds absorbing the soil that wicks up.
They are flown upside down because someones staff broke, and allowed to drape bushes and trash cans while doing so.
These actions are all done by people that claim to be patriotic. Sorry people, owning and flying a flag does not make a person patriotic.
I have only seen one flag flown off of a military installation, that was consistently flown properly. That includes government buildings, schools, car lots, patriotic rallies, et al. This place is at a house down the street from me. It is flown 24/7/365. It is dipped when appropriate. It is lighted at night. It is of the proper materials for all weather flying. To the person who flies this flag in my honor, and the honor of all that have served this country, I salute you. YOU have made me proud to be an American. It is your proper display of the flag that keeps me from burning it like a rag.
To the people that fly the frayed rags from your cars. To those who fly the symbol of freedom from oppression improperly. You make my gut crawl. You may as well burn it. You don't deserve the freedoms that you so proudly boast of.
It is the improper flying of the flag which is an act of desecration. It is these acts that should be punished, not the voicing of ones opinion.
The flag of the United States of America is probably the largest symbol on the planet. It stands for the freedoms that we are, as a people, promised. It stands for not being subjected to government abuses. It stands for speaking ones mind without retribution. It stands for praying to a god that I choose or not praying to any god, without being told that I am wrong.
The flag, like many symbols, is not destroyed by burning. In fact the Constitution of the United States is strengthened every time that someone decides to say his/her piece by burning the flag. The 'right' to burn the flag allows me to feel free. This doesn't mean that I should run around burning flags willy nilly. No if it is done, it has to be done with the knowledge of which it represents.
Burning the flag would seem to be easier today than yesterday. This is because the things that it stands for are eroding as our rights are stripped away. I can no longer buy cough medicine without showing a government approved photo I.D. and signing a log. Books I check out of the library are subject to review by government agents. To board an airplane I have to subject myself to a pat-down. These actions are unacceptable in a free society.
If the government wants to stop people from burning the flag then the government needs to restore the rights of the citizen. Making it illegal will not make me proud to be an American. It is pride in our country that protects the symbol of freedom from burning, not laws to throw us in jail for speaking our mind.
If the government is so obsessed by the desecration of the flag maybe they should look at how people treat it on a daily basis.
Fair weather flags are flown in the rain.
Flags are flown all night without being lighted.
They are flown frayed all the way to the jack on cars and pickups.
They are allowed to not only drag the ground, but to sit in flower beds absorbing the soil that wicks up.
They are flown upside down because someones staff broke, and allowed to drape bushes and trash cans while doing so.
These actions are all done by people that claim to be patriotic. Sorry people, owning and flying a flag does not make a person patriotic.
I have only seen one flag flown off of a military installation, that was consistently flown properly. That includes government buildings, schools, car lots, patriotic rallies, et al. This place is at a house down the street from me. It is flown 24/7/365. It is dipped when appropriate. It is lighted at night. It is of the proper materials for all weather flying. To the person who flies this flag in my honor, and the honor of all that have served this country, I salute you. YOU have made me proud to be an American. It is your proper display of the flag that keeps me from burning it like a rag.
To the people that fly the frayed rags from your cars. To those who fly the symbol of freedom from oppression improperly. You make my gut crawl. You may as well burn it. You don't deserve the freedoms that you so proudly boast of.
It is the improper flying of the flag which is an act of desecration. It is these acts that should be punished, not the voicing of ones opinion.
posted by Dilligaf ? at 10:22 AM
1 Comments:
GREAT points, all of them!
You can add my father-in-law to the short list of those who know how to properly display our flag. :-)
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