Against flag burning

In a new essay at Postliberal Order, I argue that burning the flag as an expression of contempt for one’s country is contrary to the virtue of piety, is something we therefore have no right to do under natural law, and may, in principle, therefore be outlawed by the state.  I also argue that the Supreme Court was, in Texas v. Johnson, mistaken in claiming that a right to burn the flag is implied by the U.S. constitution.