Student criticizes those who defaced flag at Bush speech

I am writing to discuss my deep personal feelings about a certain event that occurred during this year's Fares lecture. I was saddened, shocked, and angered by the behavior of the individual or individuals who defaced the American Flag with profanity and displayed it during President Bush's speech.

I believe that the right to free speech, even of the lowest and most despicable form, is one of the elements that makes our country great. However, while the students' actions in regard to the Flag may have been technically legal, they were immature and childish. Furthermore, in my mind they demonstrated an utter disregard for the many individuals that, through countless generations, have fought and died in order that this nation might still stand as a beacon of hope and opportunity even in these tumultuous times.

In particular, when I see the Stars and Stripes, I am reminded of the hundreds of thousands of soldiers, men and women of all political backgrounds, whom this very day are making enormous sacrifices abroad in order to ensure that we can continue our cushy academic discourse in an environment without fear. On an even more personal level, many of us have close relatives who have served or are currently serving in the armed forces, or perhaps friends involved in an ROTC program that has all too often gone unrecognized.

Maybe I simply place too much faith in "old-fashioned" values such as respect for elders and love of country, but it is for these reasons that I cannot sit idly by as a small group makes an utter mockery of the institutions that so many have paid the ultimate price in order to defend. I know there are other folks, perhaps the silent majority, that feel the same way, and I hope that these individuals will join me in condemning this particular, cowardly and unpatriotic act.



Sean Safdi

LA '04