I agree with Scalia 99% of the time. However, given the choice of calling myself a Reagan Conservative or a Scalia Conservative, I'll pick Reagan. Since our beloved leader has left us, I've taken to looking to Newt Gingrich for my cues. Want to guess which way he leans? The point is, we need to accept the fact that soldiers have died for the American Flag. It is more than the sum of its fabrics. Many of our soldiers have laid down their lives for it. As such, it deserves special protection. In your learned opinion, I'm guessing that a guy blowing up a pile of copper would deserve exactly the same penalty as some raghead blowing up the Statue of Liberty. "Free Speech," right? Not in mine.
Nonsense. Soldiers have died for the American Republic, but only an idiot would die for a piece of dyed cloth as such.
Well, then, I trust that your spouse, if you have one, has taken the precaution of securing independent means of support in case of serious illness.
Blowing up a Statue of Liberty (of the sort anybody can buy in a knickknack shop) does indeed carry the same penalty as blowing up the same quantity of unsculpted copper (i.e. you might get in trouble for reckless use of explosives, polluting the environment with metal dust, etc).
This is as it should be, and is an exact analogy for burning a generic flag (as opposed to, say, a specific historical specimen such as the Fort McHenry War of 1812 flag).
I identify with Reagan more than Scalia as well. My point is that this is not an issue that defines your ideology. While most in favor of the amendment are "conservative", reasonable conservatives disagree on the issue - like Scalia and (likely) Alito. What defines you as "conservative" is the rationale behind your stance. And yes, some "libertarians" (like Dick Armey for example) are decidedly conservative.