EDMOND — The bright blaze emitted by the hot flames illuminated the entire street, previously lit only by the ominous glow of the moon. A small group of men was huddled around what appeared to be a campfire. Upon closer investigation, one could see that this was not the case at all. There was indeed a small group of men, but they certainly weren’t lingering around a warm campfire on this chilly winter evening. They were burning an American flag.

The 13 stripes and the 50 stars slowly faded into the smoke as one man, screaming obscenities at the flag as if it could hear him, began to pour gasoline onto the flaming cloth. The flag erupted into an explosion of light and heat, and then only scorched pieces remained.

From far above the clouds, a man watched the scene below him unfold. This man’s name was Thomas Jefferson. He was smiling. He was chuckling over the irony of what was taking place. Jefferson loved America. He realized that by burning his nation’s flag, they were demonstrating that the United States truly is a land of freedom. Only here could one burn his own nation’s flag and not spend the rest of his life in jail, or worse. Jefferson wondered if eventually the men would realize that by burning that flag they were supporting everything the flag stands for. They were committing the ultimate act of freedom.

The United States is a great nation. Here we have two major political parties, and unlike some places, they both have the betterment of their nation in mind. This being said, I have read some articles recently that very much frustrated me. They were featured on conservative Web pages. They claimed that liberalism would have the United States become a land of moral decadence and they exaggerate to such extremes as suggesting that liberals would want ads for the Playboy Channel running during children’s programming. I think that for someone to say something that out of line, it would take a large amount of closed mindedness. To make up false objectives for the other side and attack them is great if you’re playing make believe with your toy soldiers with your friends in pre-school, but in the real world I don’t believe that this is an acceptable way of behaving.

All that liberals are trying to do is remind us that our First Amendment gives us a right to free speech even if (more accurately, especially if) that speech offends someone. There is indeed a time and a place for everything. No one is suggesting that Teletubbies and hard core porn should air together. Censorship is great for protecting the nation’s youth and for allowing religious and morally conscious families to protect their offspring. However, censorship is not great for prohibiting U.S. citizens from saying what they need to say.

If this country were run by the Bible, then perhaps censorship in all aspects of life would be warranted as would be stoning of homosexuals. But since it is not governed according to the Bible, but rather governed according to the Constitution of the United States, it is fitting that we allow people to say what they want to say, instead of what we want them to say.

For example, I would never dare to condone racial hatred. But, if you want to be an ignorant bigot, I think that here in the United States you should have every right to do so. If you want to make a fool of yourself and express how much you hate another race, go ahead. Thousands of patriots have died in the past few centuries so that you can have your free speech, and I don’t believe that modern politicians should be able to take that away from you.



CALVIN WARNER, an Edmond resident, is a senior at Oklahoma Christian School.