Letter: Flag desecration legislation not thought through enough

Many times the best interests of "we, the people" are not a priority to our representatives. One form of demonstrating the lack of satisfaction is to burn the flag; it is a symbolic gesture that displays the message "get a clue."

So much for ideology, now for reality. Unlike many other matters, flag burning is not an urgently pressing issue. Such an errant amendment would just create more gray areas.

Any form of benevolent government should work when our representatives do their job and that is cause to fly the flag proudly. But far too often they are all too human and we are betrayed. And if a citizen expresses disapproval in a blaze of Old Glory, well, that's his or her right!

It is a sad day when the government creates a political prisoner out of someone expressing an opinion. Suppose the flag is accidentally set on fire by a careless cigarette smoker. There is an untold number of fires, injuries and death caused by careless smokers, so if you want to save lives and stop something from burning, start there.

Many well intended laws are not thought through and projected to their logical conclusion. If someone is prosecuted for burning the flag it is akin to running over dissidents with tanks!

It is a representative action that only serves to squelch those who commit a subversive action (subversive by your definition, not mine).

J.L. Kennedy

archive