Please provide reasons
If you feel it should be illegal, please provide the punishment you feel is necessary
(Note: I'm not taking a stance either way, I just want to find the most compelling reason, regardless of the stance you take)
2006-11-17 03:36:27 · 33 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Politics
I am speaking of course in the sense that it is being burned in protest
2006-11-17 03:41:11 · update #1
I do not think flag-burning should be illegal. I also think it should be legal to shoot flag-burners.
Until they are both legal, neither should be.
2006-11-17 03:39:06 · answer #1 · answered by ? 7 · 8⤊ 9⤋
Personally, I do not think flag burning should be illegal. Immoral as it is, freedom of speech is one of the things this country stands for. Some time ago, several neo-Nazis marched down a majorly black-ethnic street. All the while, they were protected by police officers. Now, with this stated, they deserved whatever they got, but they did the march and then ran off unscathed and unharmed. Now, if we can allow hate marches to take place out of the sanctity of free speech, why should protest be any less welcome?
2006-11-17 06:52:44 · answer #2 · answered by Huey Freeman 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It should not be illegal.
Expressions of protest and dissent that we find unpleasant or offensive are exactly what our First Amendment was expressly designed to protect.
Popular speech needs no protection.
The irony is that if we criminalize this behavior, because it's wrong to make that statement against our flag which represents our freedom and liberty, we've diminished what the flag stands for, and have made it more unworthy and more deserving to be burned.
While it might upset someone, hurting someone's feelings isn't the same as causing them harm.
2006-11-17 14:31:32 · answer #3 · answered by ? 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It seems that burning any object in effigy is not a non-violent protest. There are alternatives to burning things to protest. The punishment should be the same as any mild form of endangering the public would be. I think harsh punishments for protest only create more divisions and are silly. Honestly, people who burn flags shouldn't be taken that seriously.
2006-11-17 03:50:30 · answer #4 · answered by Boilerfan 5 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Let's say for argument sake that the US Govt. started looking more like a dictatorship than a Republic. The President started to blatantly ignore the Constitution, illegally listened in on American citizens phone calls, threw American citizens in jail without trial, used torture on anyone who opposed the President/dictator. And some Americans wanted to protest all of this, because they didn't want a dictator, so they decided to burn an American flag because that flag was now representing a US dictatorial govt. not a democracy. Would you consider that burning of the US flag justified? I certainly would because I never want a dictator running the USA. Would you?
2006-11-17 04:10:40 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 2⤋
Illegal, with no exceptions or questions asked.
The banning of the destruction or defacement of American symbols, icons or architecture has always been and still is one of the qualities that most distinctly separates our great country from other countries around the world, even other democracies.
The punishment for those who do this should be community service that involves cleaning up and renovating national monuments or serving probation time with a company or charity that produces or promotes patriotic products and services.
2006-11-17 08:27:46 · answer #6 · answered by STILL standing 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
If it's in privacy, not out in public or in a riot, HOW does it effect anyone but them? That shouldn't be illegal. It should just be frowned upon.
HOWEVER
If someone starts a riot out in the streets where flags would be burned, that should not be tolerated.
I wouldn't burn a flag. I just don't have the desire. I display them. But other people should have the freedom to do so if it's not out in public.
2006-11-17 14:02:00 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
It should be illegal. Flag burning is disrespectful & incites hate, which unfortunately you see allot of that these days in America, among our own.... Who can we trust any more..
2006-11-17 04:45:56 · answer #8 · answered by Bob 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I dont think there is anyway to make this illegal. It is our freedom of expression that allows us to be able to do things like this in our country. It would be very difficult to pass legislation against burning a piece of fabric because of the color arangement. People could just manufacture a flag that is 99.9% like the american flag. Could you then punish them for burning something that resembles it? Would you have to punish people for burning fabric that resembles any flag that has ever represented the American flag? What about state flags? How could you prove, after the flag is partially burned, that it was in fact 100% the American flag? Impossible. I myself am against burning the American flag, I think it is disrespectful to our country. However, I feel it is nearly impossible to pass legislation on this issue.
2006-11-17 03:59:15 · answer #9 · answered by E 5 · 6⤊ 3⤋
I hate to see someone burning the flag, but....it is only a symbol not our actuall liberty. just as burning it is only a symbol and not the destruction of our liberty
Besides Congress has real work and real problems they need to address and if we bring up this hot button topic those boobs will dither around with it for the next year and not get any real work done
2006-11-17 03:56:30 · answer #10 · answered by gdeach 3 · 5⤊ 1⤋
It is legal now. All damaged and worn out flags are supposed to be burned.
It is illegal to display a damaged flag. Many Boyscout troops have a flag burning on Memorial for the proper disposal of a flag.
Go big Red Go
2006-11-17 03:46:17 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 4⤋