They thought it is his right whether or not to pledge to the flag and give respect for those who fight for him to have his freedom. We don’t know his reasoning behind why he doesn’t pledge to the flag. It really doesn’t matter though. If you are going to live in this great country, it is your obligation to pledge the flag and give respect to those who make this country so great. With the First Amendment you have to use your best judgement. For example, having freedom of speech doesn’t mean you can walk around saying you're going to assassinate the president. More than likely if you go around saying that you are going to get accused of terrorism and get taken to prison. It’s like the old saying, “With great power, comes great responsibility.” With the great power of freedom comes the great responsibility of knowing when to use it. You have to use your head on when to use the freedom of speech and when not to use it depending on the circumstance that you are