It is very disturbing for me to hear people say that the American flag is just a symbolic piece of cloth. And it bothers me when people call the burning of the flag "free speech." If there were such a thing as "hate speech," this would be it. Yet the same people who say that "hate speech" should not be protected under the First Amendment are the very ones who say that burning the flag should be. I don't hear any "speech" when the flag is burning.
The burning of the flag shows a violent form of aggression against America. The flag is a possession of America's citizens. What a citizen does in the privacy of his own home is his own business, true, but what you do out in public is everyone's business. If I were to go into your private home and start burning your property, you would view my actions as violent and hostile. You would also view it that way if it were a sibling living under the same roof as you burning your stuff.
When you see someone burning the flag in your home of America, you should view it the same way. They are being violent and hostile toward your home of America. It is not a form of speech or protest but a violent and hostile act. And it should be dealt with accordingly.
Ray Richards
West Jordan