burning the flag (yanks only)

[The Black Whirlwind]

many liberals consider burning the flag to be "free speech", and "perfectly permissable". many americans and conservatives consider it to be treason and not free speech.What do you al think about this? Personally, i think it is wrong and not free speech at all, but treason.

 

[Jaymes]

Is burning a Bible free speech?
Is burning a company logo free speech?
What makes burning one symbol free speech and another treason?

 

[The Black Whirlwind]

because the flag represents all the people who have fought and died for this country, all who have sacrificed in the name of Uncle Sam. That is why it is special.

 

[jonny]

Buring the flag is an appropriate ceremony in many circumstances.

Personally, I think it is in poor taste when used for protesting, but I would hate to start putting unneccessarily limitations on our first ammendment rights.

 

[Jaymes]

Did they not fight and die for the right to protest as well?

 

[retrorich]

A flag is a piece of cloth. It is not a country. Burning a flag does not harm the country it represents. Burning a flag is NOT treason. In a truly free country, if a person owns a flag, it is that person's right to do what he/she wants with it. Personally, I would never burn or desecrate a flag of any country. I think doing so is an offensive and ineffective way of protesting. It immediately turns most people against the protestor.

 

[jamaesi]

Actually, I sort of see it as a piece of cloth with pretty colours.

I think the rights we have- burning the flag included- are a much better symbol of what those men and women fought and died for.


You know, I really really love it when people get all worked up over burning the flag when it´s against the flag code to use the flag in advertising or on things that will be thrown away like napkins or plates. Burning the flag is not against the flag code- it´s actually a way to retire the flag.


Mm, hypocrisy.

 

[Darkdale]

many liberals consider burning the flag to be "free speech", and "perfectly permissable". many americans and conservatives consider it to be treason and not free speech.What do you al think about this? Personally, i think it is wrong and not free speech at all, but treason.

I think burning the flag should be legal, of course, I also think citizens beating the living crap out of someone who burns the flag should be legal too, or at least decriminalized.

 

[Sunstone]

It's not something I would ever personally do, but burning the flag is protected free speech. The other day I saw some ultra conservative protestors standing on a flag that they had laid on the sidewalk (they were members of Rev. Phelp's church). I thought it was uncalled for, tacky, offensive, and irrational, but I wouldn't call it treasonous.

 

[robtex]

Maybe we can work this through backwards. Say we, as a nation decide to make the burning of state or federal flags illegal. How would you word such laws and how would than justify such?

 

[jamaesi]

I think burning the flag should be legal, of course, I also think citizens beating the living crap out of someone who burns the flag should be legal too, or at least decriminalized.

Because burning the flag physically harms people, right?

 

[Sunstone]

Maybe we can work this through backwards. Say we, as a nation decide to make the burning of state or federal flags illegal. How would you word such laws and how would than justify such?

It seems to me that it would be very hard to make a law against the desecration of the flag that would not create a great deal of confusion about such things as whether it was illegal to throw away a paper plate on which the flag was printed.

 

[Ryan2065]

You know, I really really love it when people get all worked up over burning the flag when it´s against the flag code to use the flag in advertising or on things that will be thrown away like napkins or plates. Burning the flag is not against the flag code- it´s actually a way to retire the flag.

Yes, but there is also something called a "flag burning ceremony" and to burn it any other way is against the flags code. I am not sure, but I doubt protestors follow the flags code when they burn it =)

As far as should it be legal? Sure! why not?

 

[Sunstone]

BTW, why is this thread "yanks only"? Don't people from other countries have flags and flag burners? Isn't the question relevant to more than one nationality. Seems silly to limit this thread to yanks only.

 

[Green Gaia]

Personally, I think it is in poor taste when used for protesting, but I would hate to start putting unneccessarily limitations on our first ammendment rights.

I agree with jonny....

There may be lot of things protected by the 1st amendment that I don't necessarily like, but I that doesn't mean I want them outlawed.

 

[Darkdale]

Because burning the flag physically harms people, right?

No, because people who burn the flag of their own country deserve to have the crap kicked out of them lol. It has nothing to do with an equality of harm; just an equity of reprisal. My official position is that people should be able to burn flags and the rest of us should follow the "law" and behave ourselves, but if the congress legalized the beating of flag-burners, I wouldn't take a position against it.

 

[Ormiston]

Personnally, I think the very idea of criminalizing a symbolic act to be insane (treason!?). What if I didn't burn it, but just sort of scribbled all over it with a crayon or stuffed it in a garbage disposal or simply threw it away? It's clear I should be imprisoned, right? However, arn't there laws protecting government owned property like mailboxes? I don't know if all of the flags fall into this category, but I definately think it should be illegal to burn say a flag that belongs to the White House or any other citizens flag just like you can't burn your neighbor's house down.

 

[Valjean]

The flag represents the liberty and freedom of expression that Americans pride themselves in.

Prohibiting flag burning desecrates the freedom that makes America great in an effort to protect its symbol. Protecting a symbol by destroying the actual thing symbolized is absurd.

 

[EnhancedSpirit]

What if I wanted a Viking funeral and I wanted my body wrapped in a Flag. Would that burning be considered illegal? I think it's not about the act of burning the flag, but more about the intention behind it. If someone is doing it out of anger or hate it is a bad thing, but I do not see why the government has to make it a criminal act. I wonder, do the same laws and consequences hold true for burning crosses?

 

[NoName]

many liberals consider burning the flag to be "free speech", and "perfectly permissable". many americans and conservatives consider it to be treason and not free speech.What do you al think about this? Personally, i think it is wrong and not free speech at all, but treason.

I don't think it's treason. I think it's really stupid to burn a flag of your country, but that's their right to do it. I don't to see the government take away anybody's rights, even the people who don't like the government that gives them those rights.

Which remindes me. How stupid is it to see someone burning the flag of a country, in protest of that country, when that is one of the only countries that will let it burn that flag in the first place?! (did that make sense?)