And now, there appears to be a flap over a call to fly the flags of the city at half-staff to honor slain Police Sgt. Stephen Liczbinksi. On Saturday, when the officer was shot, Mayor Nutter called for a 30-day period of mourning and for city flags to be flown at half-staff. On Monday, Fire Chief Lloyd Ayers said he wasn't flying the national flags at half-staff, since only the president and the governor can make that call, giving the impression he was defying the mayor. But Nutter says he's well-aware of the protocol, and his call was for the city flags to be half-staffed.

Since Liczbinski's slaying, the mayor has been a strong presence on the streets, at rallies and gatherings in Liczbinski's honor. He has been rightly acting as the symbol of the city, expressing the kind of emotion and heartache so many feel over this tragedy. As far as we're concerned, even if he called for national flags to be flown at half-staff, we would have cheered him on. Maybe it would have been an illegal call, but it would have been a fitting response and a show of respect to

Liczbinski and other officers killed in the line of duty. (Besides, the U.S. Flag Code is rarely enforced, since strict enforcement could conflict with First Amendment rights.)

Ayers says flying the flag at half-staff "is not something you can do based on emotion." We disagree. The death of a police officer, and our response, is emotional. We should remember that our nation's flag symbolizes not only unity and freedom, but also the blood of all who have died defending and protecting those of us who live under it. *