Many of my friends died under that flag,
Most of my fathers friends also died under that flag.
When someone burns our flag, for whatever reason, I see my friends and my father sees his.
I want to make something very clear.
I do not agree with burning the flag as a protest. I also don't agree with burning people in effigy.
To me, too many people have put their life, their liberty, and their own freedom at hazard so that we at home can enjoy the privileges of freedom and liberty. Whatever your opinion of the current government (ours does change with great frequency) -- I believe those men and women, and their sacrifices, deserve respect. And, by extension, the country that provides those liberties to us deserves respect.
But I fear what follows if we place the symbol above what that symbol stands for; a nation founded on the ideals of equality and freedom. The first nation to truly spell out the relationship between the government and governed, and to place limits on the power of the government. One of the very first amendments addressed not only the right to speak out, as well as the right to gather to do so, but also the right to confront the government when you believe it is wrong. So long as the methods chosen are within broad, but reasonable bounds of civilized conduct -- I can't say I want to see them restricted. I'd rather error on the side of accepting something uncivilized than restricting speech, especially speech against the government.
Multiple courts, in many different states, have held that I, as a police officer, have to accept words, insults, and actions directed at me which would ordinarily be seen as offensive enough to justify a breach of the peace or assault. I don't like this -- but I see what I believe is the underlying principle; a police officer is the hand of government. We have the unique authority and ability to deprive someone of their liberty, up to the extreme of using lethal force against them, solely on our instant judgement. That is, literally, awesome power, and it must be carefully restricted. (I leave it as an exercise for the student to consider that the courts have not restricted themselves nearly so tightly... Contempt of court is a wide & loose charge.) In a similar manner, infringement upon speech must be carefully weighed, and only imposed against the most extreme measures.
(Of course -- none of these ideals would prevent me from, for example, charging someone silly enough to burn a flag in my presence with an unauthorized open fire, or throwing injurious materials upon the roadway, or littering, or some other appropriate charge for their actions.)
