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Originally Posted by Daniel_
This is something that as a Brit confuses me - it's a flag. It's a SYMBOL.
Whether you love or merely tolerate the thing it's a symbol OF (i.e. your great nation) the flag is not the nation.
I know from observation that most Americans I've met and talked to about this are passionate about the flag itself as an object of veneration - but I don't understand it at a visceral level.
Can anyone explain to me WHY the flag matters so much in itself - not what it stands for, but the actual physical cloth?
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We're indoctrinated very early on into the Founding Father mythos here in America. We spend so much time discussing the great things these great men did that we fail to mention and subsequently tend to forget the flaws and overlook the minor details that comprised their lives. They were Patriots (with a capital P, no less) instead of rebels, or terrorists, if you like. Jefferson was great and noble man instead of a slave owner who lived a life stuck in substantial debt and was quite the busybody. Franklin was an electic genius who discovered electricity rather than a lecherous old fart who spent quite a bit of time during the Revolutionary War on holiday in France. Washington is heralded as this great military mind rather than what he was, an unseasoned officer from Virginia. Right after the Revolutionary War, artists like Horatio Greenough were putting the Founding Fathers in togas and laurel leaves reminiscent of the old Greek God statuary from the Mediterranean. The flag falls in the same category. It's 'untouchable' by proxy. It's borderline idolatrous.
However, like it's been mentioned that doesn't seem to be the case here. The kid got in trouble for burning someone else's flag not burning
the flag. Although, I couldn't say for certain that the severity of the punishment didn't have something to with the fact that it
was a flag.... 9 days?