RSS 2.0 FeedThree Flag-Burning Yalies To Face Charges
by Brad WarbianyNow, while I wouldn’t call myself in any stretch of the imagination a supporter of flag-burning, it is one of those things that should not be illegal. But these guys, who have admitted the burning, need to pay some penalty.
Yale trio charged in city flag burning incident
When detained by police a few blocks away, they allegedly acknowledged it was a “dumb thing to do,” according to a police report on the incident.
Hyder Akbar Said, 23, Nikolaos Angelopoulos, 19, and Farhad Anklesaria, also 19, were arrested on a range of charges including two counts of first-degree reckless endangerment, third-degree criminal mischief, second-degree arson, breach of peace, and conspiracy to commit second-degree arson.
Why should they be charged for doing something that I think is an acceptable, if distasteful, form of free speech? Because it wasn’t their flag, and it wasn’t their property.
Marc Suraci, 37, owner of the two-story house on Chapel Street where the flag was burned, was upset when informed of the incident by the Register.
He said he always puts flags out front of his rental properties.
“It makes me sick to my stomach to think that someone would burn the American flag,” said Suraci, who described himself as “very, very patriotic.”
Suraci said several of his relatives fought in American wars to defend the constitutional right to burn the flag as a protest.
“But, it gets to another level when it is somebody else’s flag on their own personal property,” Suraci said. He feels flag burning should be illegal.
You want to stand on your own property and burn whatever you want, that’s your right. You step on my land and burn my property, and we’ve got problems.
Now, being not so far removed from the stupidity of youth, I’m not going to advocate throwing the book at these “kids”. What they did was stupid, but I’m not going to jump out and call for actually convicting them of arson or throwing them in jail. But, having admitted their guilt, they should get enough punishment to learn a lesson. And I think it starts with financial restitution to Mr. Suraci, and a formal apology to him for damaging his property. Add some fines and maybe some community service, and we’re in business.
Setting fire to things is very dangerous. Burning thins attached to houses which might be occupied is just begging for a charge of reckless endangerment.
I’m somewhat irritated that people are making a big deal about the fact that they burned a flag. To me the pattern of inks on the fabric should be irrelevant. To me what matters is that this was a pretty serious case of vandalism that could have led to a significant loss of life.
Comment by tarran — April 5, 2007 @ 12:43 amWith two of the criminals being foreigners, I think at least they should be deported. Arson is a very serious offence, the fact that the flag was still attached to the house when they left it burning suggests they had no regard to the danger to human life they created.
Comment by Pat — April 5, 2007 @ 5:51 am“Criminal?” Are you sure you want to make such a big deal of this? Let’s face it, if they had set a curtain on fire in their dorm room, or even linens hanging on a clothesline in the neighborhood, which is both dangerous and destroying someone else’s property, it would all be chalked up to drunken stupidity, the fire department would have come, they would have been humiliated and fined and put on “social probation” or some such by the university, but nobody would be talking about deportation.
If you want to deport everyone who has burned an American flag, you can start with me and a lot of other Americans if you like. Good luck, you’ve got your work cut out for you. Back during the first Gulf War, we burned flags on the college quad every Saturday night, and I’m glad we did. If troops can wave that flag over torture chambers in foreign countries, then damn if it can’t be burned here.
If I understand the legal charges correctly, they were not arrested or charged with anything related to flag desecration, since it is not illegal. Rather they are simply charged with burning a piece of cloth that was hanging from a pole which was mounted on someone else’s house. Is that really grounds for deportation?
Comment by steve gensemer — April 6, 2007 @ 8:23 amPeace people
We love you
Comment by HelloWorld — April 18, 2007 @ 12:16 pmHello! I need to know who is this man on the pictures.
Comment by AlinaSharapova — April 21, 2007 @ 7:47 pmThis man wanted