Quote Originally Posted by graymatter
I'm having a hard time with a couple points in this thread... I'd love to wave the flag and say that we stand for great things and that we should expect great things, but all I see is polorizing rants and posts from the NPR/PBS and TalkRadio/FoxNews crowds.

I respect--actually, I'll defend to the death--the right to free speech, but I also want to know more about "what the fuck" is eating someone that burns it... Maybe I'll want to smack them when I hear why they're burning it and maybe I won't. I've never bought this "my country right or wrong" crap.

Isn't that how we went from 9/11 to the Axis of Evil speach? Some goober (Bush speaking through Cheney/Rumsfeld/Wolfowitz) takes a horrible event and decides it's us against the world and goes out and creates enemies.
I know what you mean graymatter, especially about the way Bush has shamelessly used 9/11 to rally the flag waving crown to further his own agenda.

As far as what is eating flag burners is concerned, I live about 45 minutes from Berkely, the holy mecca of liberalism. I have known quite a few flag burner types including a few actual known burners. From what I've seen (although I'm not saying 100% of flag burners fall into this catagory) most do it simply to get a rise of out those who hold the flag sacred. Other's do it to jump on what I call the "cause of the week" bandwagon. You know, flag burning one week, save the rainforest the next week, anti-globalism the next, etc, etc. If someone really, really belives so strongly in something, and sees flag burning as a legitimate expression of it, than I could find it acceptable. Although still in very poor taste. If however, they're just doing it because it's the in thing to do, like wearing patchuli oil and not bathing, then they simply need a good smackin'