[Cathy Jo1947]

My father served in WW2 stationed on Guam. He was in the Navy. He served his country with pride. I am his daughter and I happened upon a display of a torn flag and the flag used as a bandana. At ESPN internet site members use avatars in their profile and are displayed on the public message board when they post. This is the Poker Club section of ESPN. The Poker message board for the Poker Club. There are other poker boards but this is on the Poker Club board. There is a member who displays a torn flag as his avatar as well as in another name his avatar he is an older man with a flag bandana wearing sun glasses with a reflection of a part of a woman's body. It is very offensive to our flag. I understand that torn flags are not to be displayed but destroyed by burning in a solemn dignified manner.

I informed the CommunityEds at ESPN about the rules of our flag being displayed and asked them to please ask the member to replace his avatars with another choice suitable. ESPN said it was not against their rules to display a torn flag or the flag being used as clothing (this manner it is a bandana).

I asked they do so for respect of my father and all the men and women who have served our country affording all of us the freedoms we treasure.

I did s peak to them as my father would. George Edward Davis

Is there anything I can do to encourage ESPN to res pect the use of our country's flag?

Thank you

[NAVA1974]

Cathy Jo,
One of the beautiful things that the American Flag stands for is freedom of speech. Ironically, this means that the flag itself can be abused as a form of protest. I, too, am irritated by improper display of the flag, whether intentional or otherwise, but the same United States Constitution that your father swore to protect and defend, protects the right of that ESPN site member to use a torn flag as an avatar.
Nick
ps: The United Sates flag code is a code of good practice - it does not have the force of law. The various state laws that have tried to incorporate elements of the Flag Code to restrict flag desecration have been declared unconstitutional impingements on free speech by the Supreme Court.