By Manila Ryce
Published Friday, August 25th, 2006, 12:24 pm
Filed under: Society/Culture: Education, Society/Culture, US Politics
Some defend it unconditionally while others vomit at the mere thought of it. No, I’m not talking about Desperate Housewives. I’m talking about flag burning. Dan Holden, a social studies teacher at Stuart Middle School in Kentucky, was suspended from teaching duties for burning 2 American flags as a demonstration during a freedom of speech lesson. As part of the assignment, Holden then asked students to write their opinion regarding flag burning. According to a spokeswoman, the burning was not “politically motivated”. Still, one parent complained to authorities, prompting Holden’s suspension until an “investigation” into the matter had been completed. Holden has been a teacher for over 26 years.
Much like evolution, global warming, and the idea that all men are created equal, flag burning is a hot political issue in the United States. Republicans want to ban the right to burn flags because they somehow believe the restriction of our freedoms will promote patriotism. A recent proposal to ban flag burning was narrowly defeated in the US Senate.
2 Responses to “Flag Hags Get Hot & Bothered Over Flaming Teacher”
Leave a Reply
Recent Comments
- Linda on Wilford Brimley's Diabetes Dance Mix -…
- Michael on Tom Waits and the Return of the Politi…
- sancho on Barack Obama is a Pussy
- lyford on Barack Obama is a War Criminal
- CATHY MASSAU on Jesse Ventura for President?
Recent Posts
- Haitian earthquake victims need our help, not misplaced pity or scorn: By Richard H. Watts
- Stand with the people of Haiti - What the U.S. government isn’t telling you: By the ANSWER Coalition
- New Year’s Resolution - Don’t Apologize for Democrats: By Jeff Cohen
- Carnival of the People - KmB’s 10-year Anniversary
- Like Jim Crow and South Africa Before it, Israel Must be Pressured to Abandon Apartheid: By Bill Fletcher Jr.
Blogroll
- Allison Kilkenny
- Anarkismo
- Antifascist Calling
- Bill Noxid: Paying Attention
- Blue man in a Red district
- BoRev.Net
- Broad Left Blog
- BuelahMan's Redstate Revolt
- Creative-i
- Dandelion Salad
- DC's Digression
- deadissue
- Dissident Voice
- Flumesday
- Freida Bee
- Intifada: Voice of Palestine
- Just Left
- KABOBfest
- Left I on the News
- Lenin's Tomb
- Luna17
- MeInAction
- Mock, Paper, Scissors
- Mondoweiss
- Naeem's Blog
- News of the Restless
- Operation Itch
- Penny Red
- Phydeaux Speaks
- Politics and Anarchism
- Polycentric Order
- Raising Yousuf, Unplugged
- Rebel Reports
- Revolt Today
- Socialism or Your Money Back
- Socialist Unity
- stuff white people do
- The Barefoot Bum
- The Deconstruction of Kiwi Illafonte
- The Fatal Paradox
- The Hawblog
- The Intelligence Daily
- The Sauce
- The World According to Ash
- The World Socialist
- Treehugger
- Truthdig
- Underground Media: Reloaded
- Uprising Radio
Websites
- After Downing Street
- Alive in Baghdad
- Anarchism Today
- Anarchist Archives
- Axis of Justice
- Black Agenda Report
- Chomsky Torrents
- Chomsky.Info
- COA News
- CorpWatch
- CounterPunch
- Democracy Now!
- Electronic Intifada
- FAIR
- Fair Vote
- Free Gaza
- Free Rice
- Free Speech Radio News
- Free Speech TV Community
- From Occupied Palestine
- Gaza Siege
- Glassbooth
- Global Voices for Justice
- Greenpeace International
- If Americans Knew
- Info Shop
- Kiva - Loans that change lives
- KPFK Pacifica Radio
- Marxists Internet Archive
- OpEdNews
- Parecon
- PeaceCandidates.com
- Prison Radio
- Prison Sucks
- Ridgeway/Ng
- Socialist Party USA
- Socialist Worker
- The Global Communist
- The Palestine Chronicle
- The United States Labor Party
- They Rule
- Union of Concerned Scientists
- United Progressives
- venezuelanalysis
- Willie Nelson PRI
- ZNet
Artists
-
Search
-
Subscribe
Posts Comments Via Email 
Sponsors
-
Free Password Manager
Too many passwords? Mitto is a free safe and secure online password manager that helps web users remember and manage their passwords and logins.
-
Free Password Manager
-
Advertise
While I support the right to burn flags, I think they should be burned for a reason. It’s an acceptable way to protest the government, but to burn a flag for no apparent reason, like what this teacher did? It’s offensive and sensationalist. You better have a damned good reason to burn the flag, because it means a lot, simply doing it as part of a school lesson with no political motivation behind it is stupid and I hope the idiot gets punished (not fired though).
08/25/06 at 11:21 pm
[…] Iowa teenager Maryann Beck is being charged with second-degree arson and desecration of a flag under the state’s flag desecration law. The teenager, from the aptly named city of Independence, Iowa, set the flag on fire at a local VFW hall Tuesday night. The motive behind the act is still unclear, but I’m guessing she’s not a big fan of our current government. Police Chief Douglas Rasmussen says the desecration was “a pure act of vandalism”. Under Iowa law it is illegal to mutilate, deface, defile, or defy the American flag. Maryann was charged as a juvenile and released to her parents. […]
10/27/06 at 4:32 am