Joe Conason on the “burning issue” of flag desecration
Joe Conason writes at the New York Observer about the predictable pandering of the Right on the pseudo-issue of flag “desecration.” (Need I even make the point that, as a secular symbol, the American flag is technically not “sacred?”)
Noting that the House and the various state legislatures cannot be depended upon to defend the Constitution, Conason points out that
the final bulwark against this historic assault on freedom of speech consists of 34 Senators with enough courage to stand up for the substance of the nation’s ideals—and to resist transforming the beloved symbol of those ideals into an authoritarian fetish. That is the real danger to the flag, whose spirit the Republican majority is desecrating with a cynical partisan zeal.
After launching into Democratic minority leader Harry Reid for his support of the proposed amendment, Conason observes:
Fortunately, there is someone else in power who is willing to stand up for free speech, even at the risk of his own future prospects. If the Senate rejects the flag amendment and preserves the Bill of Rights from unprecedented disfigurement, a full measure of thanks will be owed to Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican whip and prospective leader. He has vowed to vote “nay,” even though his party plans to use the amendment to preserve their majority.
Conason concludes:
Like so many resolutions and acts of Congress—and like the proposed statutes to prohibit flag desecration—this misguided amendment is a “solution” without a problem. But unlike many of the stupid things that politicians do, this one is important. It is a statement of contempt for the First Amendment and a dangerous step toward further restrictions on speech and expression. Let’s hope that Mr. McConnell and at least 33 of his colleagues can resist the entreaties of those in both parties who would protect the flag by torching the Constitution.
Let us hope.