I hate to say anything good about politicians, but I do want to compliment the managers of the V.S. Senate for their good conduct in regard to the proposed flag-burning
amendment to the Constitution. There are few people in the world whom I detest more than people who desecrate the V.S. flag. But there are few greater political dangers, in my opinion, than the desire to amend the Constitution. Once you start amending it for reasons like this, who knows where you’re going to end up? What’s next – a Howard Stem Anti-Porn Amendment? An amendment to ensure that Social Security benefits
increase by at least 50/0 a year? For once, I believe that the Senate agreed with my view about something. Its defeat of the flag-burning amendment by one vote means one thing to me: the Democrat and Republican management decided to let the crazed fanatics vote as they pleased, on one side or the other; they extended the same privilege to the few people who might conceivably lose left-wing or right-wing money, and conceivably lose an election, if they voted “wrong,” on one side or the other; but they made sure that there would always be that one lone vote to keep the thing from happening. Ladies and gentlemen, managers of the Senate: I salute you.
