Just ask
permission….
Does the first Amendment gives us the right to
desecrate the American flag? Or is the flag a sacred
symbol of our nation, deserving protection by law?
Tough call?
"The Solution"
For those who want to light Old Glory on fire, stomp
all over it, or spit on it to make some sort of
"statement," I say let them do it.
But under one condition: they MUST get permission from
three sponsors.
First, you need permission of a war veteran. Perhaps a
Marine who fought at Iwo Jima? The American flag was
raised over Mount Surabachi upon the bodies of
thousands of dead buddies. Each night spent on Iwo
meant half of everyone you knew would be dead
tomorrow, a coin flip away from a bloody end upon a
patch of sand your mother couldn't find on a map.
Or maybe ask a Vietnam vet who spent years tortured in
a small, filthy cell unfit for a dog. Or a Korean War
soldier who helped rescue half a nation from
Communism, or a Desert Storm warrior who repulsed a
bloody dictator from raping and pillaging an innocent
country.
That flag represented your mother and father, your
sister and brother, your friends, neighbors, and
everyone at home. I wonder what they would say if
someone asked them permission to burn the American
flag?
Next, you need a signature from an immigrant. Their
brothers and sisters may still languish in their
native land, often under tyranny, poverty and misery.
Or maybe they died on the way here, never to touch our
shores. Some have seen friends and family get tortured
and murdered by their own government for daring to do
things we take for granted every day. For those who
risked everything simply for the chance to become an
American ... what kind of feelings do they have for
the flag when they Pledge Allegiance the first time?
Go to a naturalization ceremony and see for yourself,
the tears of pride, the thanks, the love and respect
of this nation, as they finally embrace the American
flag as their own. Ask one of them if it would be OK
to tear up the flag.
Last, you should get the signature of a mother. Not
just any mother. You need a mother of someone who gave
their life for America. It doesn't even have to be
from a war. It could be a cop. Or a fireman. Maybe a
Secret Service or FBI agent. Then again, it could be a
common foot soldier as well. When that son or daughter
is laid to rest, their family is given one gift by the
American people; an American flag. Go on. I dare you.
Ask that mother to spit on her flag.
I wonder what the founding fathers thought of the
American flag as they drafted the Declaration of
Independence? They knew this act would drag young
America into war with England, the greatest power on
earth. They also knew failure meant more than just a
disappointment. It meant a noose snugly stretched
around their necks. But they needed a symbol,
something to inspire the new nation. Something to
represent the seriousness, the purpose and conviction
that we held our new idea of individual freedom.
Something worth living for. Something worth dying for.
I wonder how they'd feel if someone asked them
permission to toss their flag in a mud puddle?
Away from family, away from the precious shores of
home, in the face of overwhelming odds and often in
the face of death, the American flag inspires those
who believe in the American dream, the American
promise, the American vision.
Americans who don't appreciate the flag don't
appreciate this nation. And those who appreciate this
nation appreciate the American flag. Those who fought,
fought for that flag. Those who died, died for that
flag. And those who love America love that flag. And
defend it.
So if you want to desecrate the American flag, before
you spit on it or before you burn it ...
I have a simple request. Just ask permission. Not from
the Constitution. Not from some obscure law. Not from
the politicians or the pundits. Instead, ask those who
defended our nation so that we may be free today. Ask
those who struggled to reach our shores so that they
may join us in the American dream. And ask those who
clutch a flag in place of their sacrificed sons and
daughters, given to this nation so that others may be
free.
For we cannot ask permission from those who died
wishing they could, just once ... or once again ...
see, touch or kiss the flag that stands for our
nation, the United States of America ...
Unknown Author
If anyone
reading this knows who the author is of this message,
please email me asap so I can credit the author & seek
his permission
to use this. Thank you!
