The U.S. House of Representatives is unfailingly predictable when it comes to one issue: the American flag.

Seven times an anti-desecration amendment has been placed before House members, and seven times they have adopted it. The most recent vote was a demonstration of what many consider an unquestionable act of patriotism.

But the patriotism envisioned by the Founding Fathers included lots of questions, debate, and dissent. Just the kind of expression protected by the First Amendment – the kind of expression that includes political demonstrations and, as offensive as the act is, the possible torching of an American flag.

James Madison hardly could have imagined that the 45 simple words he penned more than 200 years ago would cause so much frustration in the ensuing two centuries.

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the rights of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Ratified as part of the Bill of Rights in 1791, the First Amendment is perhaps the most widely known of the first 10 amendments, although an unscientific survey of folks revealed a knowledge gap about just how many rights the amendment covers. Many could cite the speech, religion and press components; assembly took some coaxing; forget about the right to petition.

The beauty of living in a free country is that “the government” doesn’t get to pick and choose which types of expression are protected while making others unacceptable. How many reports of imprisoned Christians, jailed journalists and shuttered newspapers – with datelines from Iran and China, Uzbekistan and Sierra Leone, Burundi and Azerbaijan – does one have to read before fully appreciating the protections that the First Amendment guarantees?

Granted, forms of speech do exist that can be actionable under U.S. law. You can’t threaten the president. Don’t joke about having a gun or a bomb in an airport.

The connection between speech and action is a tenuous one, and it is where the divide on the physical desecration of the flag occurs. People may not want to hear unkind things said about their government or the country’s leadership, but most recognize that, as an American, you have that right to say them.

But say the exact same words and punctuate that expression by burning an American flag, and it’s a whole different matter.

The men and women who serve in this nation’s armed forces understandably have visceral feelings about the flag. My husband, who disagrees with me on this issue to the point of often being rendered speechless lest he say something he might regret, believes it is impossible for people who never fought for their country – and watched their comrades die in the effort – to understand.

But I do understand the emotion of this debate. I, too, cherish what the Stars and Stripes symbolize. My father proudly wore them on the sleeve of his Air Force uniform during World War II as he piloted a B-29 Superfortress through the China-Burma-India triangle, where he was shot down by the Japanese.

Upon his return to the States, he wore them as a test pilot at Edwards Air Force Base. And he died wearing them in 1958 when his plane went down over the Mojave Desert.

My husband wore them on his Air Force uniform when he served as a dog handler in Vietnam in 1970-71. They flew over the police department that was his employer for 27 years as he risked his life yet again to protect others.

But emotions are an unstable basis on which to formulate laws.

Flag desecration is far from epidemic in the United States. In truth, Old Glory (complete with a little “Made in China” label) has rarely been more respected in our nation’s history.

Those red and white stripes, that blue field with its 50 stars, is a powerful symbol that’s worthy of respect. To see it damaged or destroyed is offensive, even painful.

But using that symbol of freedom as a means to curtail someone’s right to dissent undermines the very principles for which the Constitution was written.