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Stop Flag Amendment in Senate
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Progressive Portal
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Jun 22, 2005 18:05 PDT
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MEASURE PASSES IN HOUSE ON 22 JUN 2005; FOR THE FIRST TIME,
SENATE IS WITHIN A COUPLE OF VOTES OF SENDING IT TO STATES
[From ProgressivePortal.org and People for the American Way
<http://www.pfaw.org>]
The House of Representatives on Wed., 22 Jun 2005 passed a proposal to
amend the U.S. Constitution to ban "desecration" of the U.S. flag.
The amendment is a slap at the free-speech rights represented by that
very flag. Since its adoption 214 years ago (Dec. 15, 1791), the First
Amendment, guaranteeing free speech and other freedoms, has never been
scaled back. This unprecedented measure is a big step away from
democracy and freedom and toward repressive state power -- the
antithesis of the "patriotism" its backers claim (as do most
authoritarian movements).
For the first time, the U.S. Senate is within about two votes of
approving the amendment and sending it on to the states for
ratification. While an Associated Press survey on 22 Jun projects that
the amendment might fall just shy of passage in the Senate, the margin
is far from comfortable, and the far right will be pulling out all the
stops to win passage when the Senate votes on the amendment, expected to
occur after the July 4 recess. Pseudo-liberal Senator Hillary Rodham
Clinton took until 22 Jun to declare her opposition, and when she did,
gave a milquetoast statement, "I don't believe a constitutional
amendment is the answer." (What is the question?) And even leftish icon
Rep. Dennis Kucinich has voted for the amendment in the past, though he
opposed it in 2005.
CONTINUED BELOW ...
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* "Real Patriots Defend the Constitution" buttons ...
* Peace flags and U.S.-Peace flags; U.S.-Peace patches ...
* Big Brother, U.S.-Peace, and Peace Is Patriotic posters; and more!
* http://www.progressiveportal.org/store/
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In Progressive Portal's judgment, this amendment, like the attack on
medical marijuana and other causes, is part of a frenetic totalitarian
backlash against the 1960s -- never mind that 40 years have passed.
During the Vietnam War, an officer was said to have remarked, "We had to
destroy the village in order to save it." Passing a constitutional
amendment to curtail free speech in order to "protect" the symbol of
that freedom is a similar example of such Orwellian logic.
Now's the time for real freedom-lovers (versus the ersatz "patriots"
behind this repressive amendment) to demand the Senate kill the
flag-desecration (and flag-desecrating) amendment.
Take Action
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Send a message to your Senators. Find their contact information at:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
More Information
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AP story: House Approves Move To Ban Flag Burning:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050622/ap_on_go_co/flag_burning
L.A. Times: Amendment advocates count nearly enough Senate votes:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-062205flag_lat,0,733821.story?coll=la-home-headlines
People for the American Way resources on this issue:
http://www.flagamendment.org
ACLU statement on House vote:
http://www.aclu.org/FreeSpeech/FreeSpeech.cfm?ID=18564&c=50
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