A bill for a Constitutional amendment to ban flag burning stampeded through the U.S. House. Now it goes to the U.S. Senate. The stereotype of how we are divided on this issue is along ideological lines, conservatives supporting the amendment while liberals oppose it, just another Democrat vs. Republican tug of war.

But is it really?

I think it's more complex than that. And if you look carefully, you can find in this issue some of the essence of our freedom.

Here is what I mean. On a TV program many years ago a hypothetical case was debated about whether a newspaper should publish secret information it had obtained that might damage the U.S.

ABC's Sam Donaldson immediately said, "Of course they should publish because the people have a right to know!"

The late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, then retired, responded this way (paraphrased): "Baloney! The Constitution says nothing of the people's right to know, and the people can't possibly know everything anyway. What the Constitution does say is, with rare exceptions, if the press has information, the government may not restrain the press from publishing. But it doesn't say the press has to publish, and it doesn't say it should."

Simple but profound words. Just because we are free to do something, that doesn't mean we must, and it doesn't mean we should. Our freedom comes with the responsibility to think, to decide on the right thing to do.

For example, we are free to desecrate the American flag, but we clearly should not. So why not make such actions criminal by amending the Constitution?

One reason is that our Constitution's primary purpose is not to define our rights, but to limit the power of the government. Our Founding Fathers were incredibly wise to seek less, not more, government power over us.

If we give our government the power to prosecute flag burners, what disagreeable behavior might we ban next?

During the Vietnam War, I watched protesters burn the American flag and wave the flag of our North Vietnamese enemy, the same enemy who killed my friends and very nearly killed me.

This was a time when my world was upside down, when American troops were insulted and spit on at home for serving their country.

In 1970 I was a training officer in the U.S. Army helicopter flight school at Ft. Rucker, a desk job for a helicopter pilot since I was still recovering from injuries sustained when I was shot down in Vietnam.

I mark the low point that year as the day my commanding officer recommended I advise my men not to wear their U.S. Army uniform off the base, for their own personal safety. Those were tough times.

At the Peachtree City 4th of July parade a few weeks ago I taught my 8-year-old daughter to stand erect and place her right hand over her heart in respectful silence as the honor guard passed with the flag, no matter that adults and children around her sat in their chairs and continued their conversations.

Like every Vietnam veteran I know, I love my country, I revere our flag, and I will not take a back seat to anyone's patriotism. But I will go against the stereotypes since I am a conservative and a veteran: I oppose a constitutional amendment to ban flag burning.

When a U.S. citizen burns our flag in protest, he insults my country and infuriates me by exercising his freedom in a despicable, disloyal and self-indulgent way. His choosing to burn the flag is part of the cost of freedom: we are free to act in ways disagreeable to others.

I would rather be furious at the egregious behavior of flag burners than have legions of lawyers split hairs over which act violates a law. I believe those who serve in our armed forces are defending our Constitution and our freedom, far more important than the symbolism of the fabric of our flag.

Those of us who have fought for our country are not monolithic: we are liberal and conservative, Democrat and Republican, and we can be found on opposing sides of the flag burning amendment debate. But most of us could surely agree on this:

We like to think with no small pride the difficult and dangerous things we were called on to do were for the sake of our country and freedom, yours and ours. We should use it wisely.

The next time you see some idiot burn our flag, or speak out in a way that encourages our enemy while we are at war, I hope you join me in looking past the despicable behavior and let it remind you of this:

We have priceless freedom to make good choices or bad ones, and though we are free to do something, that doesn't mean we must, and it doesn't mean we should.