Go on; burn it

Another strike against free speech: Senators are, right now, debating whether or not banning flag burning should be a Constitutional amendment. The amendment may pass or fail with as slim a margin as one vote, and, if it passes the Senate, it has a good chance of becoming a law. But I, for one, am one of those who do not believe in banning flag burning. (And really, consider yourselves lucky that I'm only composing a post here, rather than uploading the 15-page term paper I wrote for Mass Communications Law on the subject.)
Precedent, the First Amendment, and even the ending soliloquy of The American President understands that burning the flag is an expression of free speech, and that the right to do so should be protected. Disagreeing with the government, and demonstrating that unhappiness, is a right that Americans are duty bound to explore. How better to display your displeasure for something that to burn its flag in effigy? What better way to get someone's attention? (It is strikingly similar to the women in the 1960s burning their bras in shows of protest, yes?)
While the amendment wouldn't prevent flag desecration outright, it would give Congress the power to say how the flag can be protected and what penalties could apply to desecrating it. The House of Representatives has already passed the amendment, and indications show that every one of the 50 states would ratify it.
There were 13 instances of flag burning reported last year, and only six so far this year, according to the Citizens Flag Alliance. It seems to me that a Constitutional amendment is an extreme step to combat an act that isn't even prevalent in society. Is there a rash of flag burnings that I haven't heard about? (Well, among rallies inside our country, of course.) Have there been mass rallies where flag burning has run amok?
You know, banning flag burning within our borders will do nothing to the citizens of other countries who choose to burn the flag in shows of protest. Seriously, I've seen more flag burning overseas then I ever have here, and I suppose, because they're impotent to stop that, lawmakers feel it necessary to curtail our own rights to free speech.
Follow this train of the current lawmakers' misuse of governmental power, and soon enough, I'll be labeled a treasonous non-patriot just for spouting my own opinions on government and how its acting. It's amazing that being the kind of American that the Founding Fathers trumpeted now relegates one to being a subversive malcontent who doesn't love their country.