His crime of vandalism still doesn't justify tying him up like that. They should have turned him over to the police and had him charged with trespassing, vandalism, etc. Would arson stick or does that have to be a building?
His own flag on his own property would have fallen under free speech. I would fight for his right to do that, although avoiding the temptation to punch him would be a challenge...
Freedom is a right. It's not a privilege granted to us by nice soldiers and politicians. Power is not granted to our government to take away our freedom of speech, even speech we despise. If we let the government tell us we can't burn an American flag, what's next? They start deciding what clothes we wear, what color we paint our houses, or what church to go to?
We salute the brave men and women who ensure that we have such freedoms, but they don't grant those freedoms.