Once again, a constitutional amendment for the protection of the US flag from descration Is before the US Congress. It has passed the House of Representatives and will soon be voted on by the Senate. I realize that patriotism may be something a lot of people lean on, but this amendment is a bigger threat to liberty than any protester with a flag and a match.

The burning of a flag may be a powerful political statement, but the right to make powerful political statements without fear of recourse is what makes our country what it is. As much as we have built up the flag as an icon, we’ve managed to develop quite an attachment to it. Even a couple overdramatized urban legends have surfaced over the years. (Example 1, Example 2) The thing that we have to remember, though, is that the while the flag is a symbol of some pretty high ideals, it is still just a symbol. Desecrating or destroying a symbol doesn’t take away what it represents.

Something that really bothers me is The Citizens flag alliance, which is an offshoot of the American Legion, uses money collected from Legion members and other US veterans for lobbying for this amendment. This organization would do better for veterans lobbying for the improvement of the lives of veterans rather than squandering their resources on this, even though it’s the vets themselves pushing this. It bothers me especially because it cheapens what these people served in the military for. When I served, I did it for for my country, my Constitution, and for the freedoms it guaranteed. It was not for a mere symbol. I feel insulted when anyone says otherwise.

I’ve sent emails to my senators asking them to vote against this amendment, because I do believe in doing something about how I feel. I used the email autoform at the ACLU website and edited it to make clear exactly how I feel. I haven’t gotten any response yet, but I am hoping this rant might inspire others to try getting involved as well.