Do you agree that the first amendment protects the right to desecrate the American flag?

I hate seeing it, but at least it reminds me we live in a free country.

You probably can't burn the North Korean flag in North Korea. That's not something we need to copy from them.

I agree in so much as to their right burn it doesn't affect my right to stop them from doing so!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrV8QPQAhxo

Flag burning doesn't bother me in the least. Because no rights or principles actually reside in that cloth symbol. And the values and rights that are represented are those found in the constituiton. And one of the most important rights in the constitution is the right to openly express political opinion without government reprecussions. So when I see a flag burning, I see someone exercising the rights that make this country great. Maybe they are doing it because they don't believe in the "America- love it or leave it" but rather in the "America-love it and change it" when they feel the country is doing something wrong.

Take this website as an example. Even though it is full of active duty military and veterans, there are many many posts that say the country is fucked up, the president is fucked up,the government is fucked up, etc etc and it needs to change. Well why is it OK for those people to express that disdain for the government by publically saying those things, but not by burning a flag? Maybe they are burning it because they believe that the government is violating the principles that the flag represents and want to call attention to it.

So count me as the cynical one. I am not impressed by all the military and former military who say they want to kick someones ass for burning the flag. Unless we are also going to kick everyones ass who talks negatively about our government as well. If it ever becomes "antiAmerican" to criticize the government, we are in a world of hurt. And it would mean we have an awful lot of antiAmerican people posting on this site.

Isn't it odd that so many people shake their heads and wag their fingers and say they just can't understand why certain muslims get upset if someone burns a Koran or depicts Mohammed in political cartoons ? They say it's only freedom of speech and they shouldn't get upset about it. Yet they say they will attack and do bodily harm to someone burning the US flag and want the government to throw them in jail for it. Hmmmm...