BY ROBERT STEINBACK  
America: Love it or leave it.

A declaration of patriotism? I call it advocacy of tyranny.

Two local stories have tested our understanding of American values in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Michael Italie, a candidate for mayor of Miami, was fired from his job at Goodwill Industries a week ago because he represents the extreme-left Socialist Workers Party.

Three Miami-Dade County firefighters who expressed their view that the American flag symbolizes oppression of black people have been so vilified by the public that they might be unable to resume their careers.

The recent surge in flag-waving and anthem-singing has stirred a patriotic fervor in Americans unmatched since World War II.

But this caffeine jolt of nationalism has obscured a more complex dimension of Americanism--that our special brand of freedom requires restraint, wisdom and courage, and not just rah-rah boosterism.

Patriotism American style can't be compulsory; otherwise, it's just oppression. Dissent isn't treason.

Italie, who didn't campaign vigorously, has supported Cuba's communist revolution and condemned U.S. bombing in Afghanistan. Goodwill CEO Dennis Pastrana, himself an exile from Castro's Cuba, fired Italie from his minimum-wage job sewing jackets for the military.  
 
Ideology unprotected
Italie's firing almost certainly is legal. Freedom of opinion doesn't extend inside private companies, which can discriminate on any basis other than race, sex, religion or national origin and, in some locations, age and sexual orientation. Discrimination by ideology is fair game.

But is it in keeping with the true spirit of what America represents?

Italie's firing, in a word, stinks. He wasn't accused of disrupting his workplace with his ideas, neglecting his duties or proselytizing his political views. He was fired for what he chooses to believe.

"I think the man has treasonous points of view," Miami Mayor Joe Carollo said of Italie. "He would have made Benedict Arnold seem like a patriot."

That's just plain wrong.

The Constitution states, "Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort."

That's it. There's nothing in Article III, Section 3 about political ideology, nothing about loving or honoring the flag, nothing, even, about loving or honoring America.

Similarly, I've been disappointed by the number of readers who have said the three firefighters didn't deserve to hold their jobs, given their views about the flag--even though they never failed to perform their assigned duties. Many readers felt patriotism is obligatory for government workers like firefighters.

Wrote one reader: "Disrespect to the flag of your country is tantamount to treason."

The Constitution says otherwise.

It's valid to argue that every American should love America. But this is a far cry from arguing that every American must love America.

Throughout most of human history, and in much of the world at the dawn of the 21st century, dissent has been crushed by force. If we're not careful, we Americans can lapse into this same knee-jerk instinct to crush what we don't like.

Here, dissent should be met with intellect, rhetoric and reason. Americans are free to listen to all ideologies and decide which to embrace or reject. We are strong because we hear all views and collectively choose our national course.

Call this the American version of the Serenity Prayer: Grant us the restraint to avoid strangling opposing views, the wisdom to evaluate them serenely, and the courage to continue doing the right thing even when others don't get it.  
 
 
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