The ThinkProgress title
sums this one up nicely.
Virginia State Legislature Bans American Flags On Sticks, But Lets Guns In
And no, it isn't a joke. You can bring your loaded AR-15 to the Virginia capitol, but you can't bring a flag stapled to a 12-inch dowel because that would be far, far too dangerous.
According to Virginia Capitol Police, the groups were informed beforehand of the restriction barring sticks at permitted rallies, because they can be used as weapons.
Other things that can be used as weapons: actual weapons.
While the moms tore out the dowels of their flags, capitol grounds visitors with firearms were ushered through the entrance. That day, Virginia Citizens Defense League and other gun rights groups organized a “Guns Save Lives” day. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that about half of the crowd was armed, packing weapons that ranged from handguns to assault rifles.
The lesson of all of this is that we really are that insane. You are not allowed to carry anything in certain portions of the public square that someone might suspect could be used as a weapon, but the almighty gun is sacrosanct, and trumps all other public safety laws. It is not a weapon, so say we all, it is shiny metal Freedom. The reason that the 2nd amendment does not allow axes to be carried into the capitol is solely because axe manufacturers have not paid great gobs of money into political coffers in order to make it happen. There is no National Pointed Stick Association, no glossy magazines suggesting you cannot possibly defend your family unless you own a custom-designed pointed stick, and so they too are left out. The amount of public assaults involving 12-inch dowels is, I would wager, a very small number, but every true Patriot needs to be able to carry around their own little arsenal of guns just in case someone tries to sneak a 12-inch dowel into the building.
There's no possible defense here. It's just fetishism.