A True American

[unaris]

"It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the agitator, who has given us the freedom to protest. It is the soldier who salutes the flag, serves beneath the flag, whose coffin is draped by the flag, who gives that protester the freedom he abuses to burn that flag." - Senator Zell Miller (D-GA)

Comments

slight revision

[anonymous]

It is the soldier who most needs to use his freedom of speech, it is the soldier who most needs to use his freedom to protest, it is the soldier who most needs to contemplate why he is salutes, serves beneath, and is draped with the flag, and finally it is the soldier who most needs to exercise his right to burn the flag. Simply to demonstrate that he has indeed preserved these things that he fights for.

-Matt

Re: slight revision

[unaris]

While I did not intend this to become a political debate of any kind I suppose I have brought it upon myself by posting the quote from Senator Miller. I guess my disagreement arises from the personal opinion that just because someone is able to do something it isn't necessary to do that thing simply to show that one can. While soldiers are surely able to use all of the freedoms that have been listed in the above quote and response, I believe that it is not necessary to demonstrate these things simply to prove that they exist. In my humble opinion it is the mere action of doing something that someone can simply because one can, and for no other purpose, that constitutes an abuse of that power. That probably doesn't make much sense but than again I have never been very good at speaking my mind...

Re: slight revision

[anonymous]

I agree that to take an action simply because one can risks falling into the trap of abuse of power. However, if a right goes for too long without being exercised then common perception shifts away from believing that it is, in fact, a right, instead of a privilege. I’m not trying to say that all soldiers should go out and have a giant flag bonfire, but on the other hand, if we are honoring our dead soldiers with a flag over their coffins, shouldn’t we be allowed to see them being taken off of the plane that they returned to the country in? This is much more of a disgrace to the service these men and women performed for this country (however misguided it may be, but let’s not go into that now). Compared to not letting the nation pay their last respects to those who died in service to the country, burning a flag is like jaywalking during a riot.

- Matt Aggleton