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June 29, 2006

Notes from Ferdy - Clarifying Thoughts on Flag-Burning

by Ferdinand T Cat

Our good friend Dumb Ox is seriously riled about the defeat of a constitutional amendment that would have allowed Congress to regulate treatment of the American flag. The problem here is that many years before I was born, the Supreme Court ruled that burning the American flag was political speech, and political speech is protected by the First Amendment.

Of course, the real solution to this problem is not a constitutional amendment. Instead, we need to get the Supreme Court to agree that deploying a high-pressure water hose is also a form of political speech.

Once upon a time, a flag was a symbol with all sorts of sacred rituals applied to it, but nowadays, it's a mass-produced consumer item made in China. It's just not something to get worked up about it any more. Peg-Eye Nate, however, tells an interesting story on this subject. Many years ago, he went to a school assembly with Bruce, and it started off with a pledge of allegiance to the flag. When they sat down afterward, Nate turned to his father and said "Why do you say it like that?" "Like what?" Bruce replied, and Nate said "All dramatic and serious and stuff." Bruce pointed to the flag and said "That flag symbolizes something very important to me."

It's important to me, too. And no amount of desecration is going to change the ideals behind those stars and stripes. The people whose disgust is so great that they feel it necessary to set it on fire have no idea what it's really about.

I think a high-pressure water hose will help clarify their thoughts.

Respectfully submitted,

Ferdinand T. Cat

Trackposted to Blue Star Water Hose. The Pirate's Fire Extinguisher, TMH's Flag Bits, ImagineWater Magazine, Jo's Firehouse, and Basil's Application of Extreme Cold to Tender Portions of the Human Anatomy.

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Comments

I spent time in the military defending the flag and what it stands for. And one of the things it stands for is the freedom to burn your own personal flag. Also the freedom to burn a cross in your own back yard if you choose. Plus a lot of other personal liberty.

Alas, what the Framers have given the Commerce clause taketh away. Burning the flag is the least of what is being done to the republic.


Posted by: gary cruse [TypeKey Profile Page] at June 29, 2006 2:36 PM

I agree entirely - flag burning is unacceptable, even if the flag itself is a cheap piece of consumer tat.

I've come up with a way to put a permanent stop to this behaviour. It is a drastic step, but with your help, I am confident we can put an end to this unpleasantness.


Posted by: Flying Rodent at July 3, 2006 12:47 AM

HTML is not allowed in comments; however, if you put in a raw URL (http://www.somewhere.com/page.html) it will automatically be converted to a link.. Also, it is likely your comment will not appear unless you refresh the page manually after posting it.

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