Liberal Media Outlet NBC Outs Flag-Burning War-Protesters

COMMEMORATION OF THIRTIETH ANNNERSARY [sic] OF SELFLESS ACTIONS BY CHICAGO CUBS CENTER FIELDER RICK MONDAY IN PREVENTING AMERICAN FLAG BURNING INCIDENT.

WHEREAS, On April 25, 1976, the Chicago Cubs were playing the Dodgers in Los Angeles, California when two protesters ran onto the baseball field with an American flag; and
WHEREAS, The protesters doused the American flag with lighter fluid and then attempted to light it on fire with a match, but the wind blew it out; and
WHEREAS, Just as one of the protesters reached for a second match, Rick Monday, the Cubs' center fielder, raced towards the protesters in left field and scooped up the flag; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Monday then sprinted towards the infield with the flag safely in his arms; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Monday was heralded as a hero for saving the flag, earning a standing ovation at his next at-bat, and receiving a hero's welcome wherever the Cubs played the rest of the season; and
WHEREAS, Former Mayor Richard J. Daley asked Mr. Monday to serve as Grand Marshal for Chicago's "Annual Salute to the American Flag" in June of 1976; and
WHEREAS, The Baseball Hall of Fame recently named Mr. Monday's quickthinking act as one of the one hundred classic moments in the history of the game; and
WHEREAS, Thirty years later, Mr. Monday's act continues to inspire baseball fans across the country, from Pearl Harbor survivors to people who were not yet born in 1976; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Monday has earned the respect and admiration of all Chicagoans for rescuing the American flag, which embodies the most cherished rights and freedoms central to our cultural identity; now, therefore, Be It Resolved, That we, the Mayor and the members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this twenty-sixth day of April, 2006, do hereby honor Rick Monday on the thirty year anniversary of his selfless act to save the American Flag; and
Be It Further Resolved, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to Mr. Monday as a token of our esteem and good wishes.

why does this patriot actor care about this declaration of whatever or other? because whereas a baseball player rushed to get a flag off the ground out of respect for what it stands for (a scene i've witnessed numerous times at peace marches and immigration rallies when a flag inadvertently touched the ground), on tonight's local nbc newscast, the protester burning the flag was turned into a "war protester."

so, nbc, since this is the 30th anniversary of the event, howsabout pointing out what war was going on in 1976? (other than argentina's "dirty war" supported by the US in the form of henry kissinger -- no one was paying attention to that at the time and i think those details were disappeared along with 10,000 protesting argentineans..)

no, nbc, those weren't "war protestors." according to the april 30, 1976 los angeles times "The man who tried to burn the American Flag at Dodger Stadium was attempting to draw attention to what he claims is his wife's imprisonment in a Missouri mental institution, authorities say." don't know if i'd choose that particular method myself, but the guy weren't no war protester.

so don't go denigrating us true war protesters by getting your facts all screwed up. unlike 1976, there is a very real war going on right now, an illegal war. one that is being truly protested all around the world. and we have more important things to do that screw with america's favorite opiate.

i personally don't get the flag fetish. the flag is a fkng symbol. we use symbols like flags to stand in for things that are intangible, invisible, they can be amorphous and open to interpretation. i know this may be hard for some hardheaded literalists (read: fundamentalists) to understand but the flag is not what's important, it's the invisible, imaginary superpower that it stands for that's important.

and what it stands for is freedom to speak your mind and protest your government and the pursuit of life and liberty. (i think i've learned to forget about happiness - don't pursue happiness, or at least don't let the folks in power see what it is that makes you happy. as soon as they figger out what makes you happy, say stuff like letting grandma live a long life in her own home with the pension her husband earned for her and with nice comfy medical care and prescription drugs right up until the day she passes peacefully in her sleep. if they think that'll make you happy, they'll be sure to destroy it. hide your happiness -- hide! but i digress, again...)

to kick someone's ass for destroying the symbol is desecrating the ideals and actions for which it stands.

i know i'm an atheist, but my christian upbringing tells me this is worshipping false idols. to worship the flag and disdain the freedom it symbolizes is perverse. i simply don't understand it. it's like worshipping jesus and then ignoring his messages about loving your enemy and ministering to the poor and imprisoned and ... oh, nevermind.

i, personally would also rush to pick up a dropped flag. i would equally rush to protect a flag burner. they're both the right thing to do.