To my amusement, I have apparently been branded as a troll by one of the good folks at TAPPED. Writing about Hillary, Matthew Yglesias stated the following:

"To restate my nuanced view on the flag-burning question, I'm not really for either an amendment or a law. On the other hand, I don't have a serious problem with either approach. Given that such measures are likely to be popular, I'd prefer Democrats to move to the right on this issue than to do so on more consequential issues like reproductive rights or gay and lesbian equality."

First of all, ick. Flag-burning is expressive conduct properly protected by the First Amendment. As the Supreme Court asserted in Texas v. Johnson (1989), a flag-burning case: “If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.” But Yglesias apparently doesn’t have a “serious problem” with Democrats discarding a “bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment” because such a move is “likely to be popular.” Wow. You don’t get much more unprincipled than that.

Second, is Yglesias really suggesting that it might be politically beneficial for Democrats to stake out positions they don’t believe in? To tack to the right, presumably in order to capture the center? What would our slogan be, “2008: Just like 1996 -- Only Better!”? How about: “The Left Knows How to Pander Right: Vote Democratic!”?

Anyway, here’s how TAPPED re-wrote my comment, which no longer exists. “Her” refers to Hillary:

"Ban flag desecration? I will never vote for her. Ever, ever, ever. I support flag burning, urinating on the flag, flag-ass-wiping, making fun of the world's ugliest flag on the internets, whatever. This bitch will never do us any good at all. She is a coward and a climber. To hell with her. Fuck these stupid gestures, fight goddamit."

Funny stuff. Completely disingenuous, but funny.