Freedom to Choose

IT WAS ONE OF THE  most stupid, surrealistic arguments i have ever been involved in, which is mainly whi i avoid arguing; the opponent always seems like an idiot, and i don't like that feeling.

This time it was about the american flag, and once again, i strongly felt i was right, surprisingly., my roommate, there in the singel wide trailor just outside aspen, fancied himself a staunch patriot, as do conservatives generally, and vehemently and vociferously maintained that there ought to be a law against burning the american flag, which at the time there wasn't, and still isn't.

I explained to him that the flag stands for freedom, which he was trying to limit, and that the moment somebody burns a flag, he can simply make a new one, and that property rights required the right to burn whatever one owns, and so forth.

all perfectly good, conservative arguments.but to no avail.

our legalistic, propietary society already has enough laws; let's avoid, to whatever extent possible, creating more.

let's get rid of some that we already have. such as laws pertaining to sex. may we someday abandon the insane notion that morality can be legislated.

you can legislate minimum, maximum wage, you can legislate all kinds of economic laws, if you want to. to maintain a sensible economy, but not to hurt people, or "steal" their wealth.

but if you try to legislate morality, as we often do in america, you're only asking for trouble. you simply cannot do it. may future americans have the freedom to burn the flag, and the freedom to put drugs or whatever else they want to inside their bodies.
we can always hope that they choose not to.