The Flagburning Non-Issue

Acting as a cheerleader for a bill to amend the US Constitution to ban flagburning, Congressman Randy (Duke) Cunningham (R-CA) made a monumentally silly and offensive comment yesterday--par for the course for Cunningham. ''Ask the men and women who stood on top of the (World) Trade Center,'' Cunningham said. ''Ask them and they will tell you: pass this amendment.'' One assumes Cunningham means those who died in the 9/11 attack and not the people who patronized the Windows on the World restaurant atop the WTC. What a moronic statement. Is Cunningham implying that he has polled the dead and we should do likewise and that he now is their spokesman? The final count of those who died in the WTC attack is 2,749. Is Cunningham saying that these victims have turned into mindless zealots beyond the grave? I have never believed the American flag, which is merely a symbol of the USA, is in need of constitutional protection. No war has ever caused me to believe that the Constitution should be changed to protect the flag. And it's offensive that Cunningham is saying that had I been killed in the WTC attack, I would now, having come to my eternal reward, appoint him as my intercessor on earth to demand that the Senate amend the constitution re flag burning. This push to amend the Constitution to ban desecration of the flag so close to July 4th is simply another GOP attempt to turn attention away from the real issues plaguing the Bush administration: 1) The war in Iraq is a disaster 2) The US army can't bribe, intimidate, or kidnap new recruits. 3) The public wants the WH to pull our troops out of Iraq. 4) The GOP Social Security reform has tanked. 5) President Bush's approval ratings have tanked. 6) The economy has tanked. 7) Thanks to the Bush administration, respect for the US has tanked. And President Bush is showing increasing signs of being mentally unstable and over-medicated. What to do? Trot out the old Amend the Constitution and Save Our Flag issue. It's pure gold because it cranks up both pro- and con-responses. And when people object to it, they can be called traitors. But, as usual the GOP doesn't know when to quit. Congressman Cunningham, who said he would have no problem with lining up Vietnam protesters and shooting them, has polled the dead. California Democrats had best keep an eye on Cunningham. He may try to claim those 2,749 votes as his constituents.