1 & 2) I believe we should stop reciting the pledge of allegiance in schools simply because: a- when I was a kid I and all my classmates hated doing it and saw no purpose in it and b- because as an adult, I still see no purpose in it, other than as a sort of brainwashing of patriotism. It's pretty disturbing to me...
If we're not going to take the ... See Morewhole thing out of school, I'm definitely a proponent of removing the god terminology. I understand that when it was written, it was a different time, and the Founders held a different set of beliefs than we do now about religion and its purposes perhaps...but I know when I was a little kid reciting the Pledge, I had no concept at the time of what God was, and it was actually the first time that a God-morality was instilled in me and I do not like that that happened in school -- a public, non-religious institution.
3) I'm not necessarily offended though I am highly perturbed that it is norm to include any references to any gods in school in America. As a country founded on the notion of freedom from persecution based in religion, it disturbs me that religion has become so normalized in schools that it is considered liberal -- even crazy -- to suggest that religious subjects not be incorporated in the public school system.
1. i think it should be a choice weather a kid says the pledge in school or not... i do not think it should be forced not to or to either way, The option should be their daily to say it however after all is this country not about freedom and freedom of speach? if we dont allow it to be said or force it to be said either way it is taking away what ... See Morethe intent of the pledge and of the constitution. and i feel is a cause of concern.
i do believe that this country was built around god and a creator and the words should stay. weather pepole say them or not is up to them.
removing the pledge or changing it does offend me. to me it is unpatriotic... it is taking away what my uncle and hero along with several friends who have been to war and died in war representing our flag and the pledge to it. if you are that distraught by waht the country you live in and what it was built and formed off of. move. go to another country. cos i will fight tell the day i die to keep this country and what it stands for.
1) I've yet to take a real stance on this, but since you are asking....here goes. I believe we should stop reciting the pledge in school. I think it's an unfair integration of religion/government influence, and it could be construed as prejudice based off of the various religions across the world, many of which are are not god-centered. As America ... See Moreis known as the melting pot for a good reason, it should not cater to any known religion on principal of its foundation. It was built and structured in a time that was preparing us for more religious and individual freedoms than our founding fathers ever thought possible. Basically they laid the groundwork for the types of freedoms we enjoy today, without knowing what they would be. While it was completely fitting at the birth of this country, we have evolved as a people and as a government. In combination I believe basically the same things regarding treatment of religion & government. A really basic way of looking at government and religion is this: We upgrade phones every 6 months to keep up with the most up to date functionability as possible, so shouldn't we be evolving as a government system as well? I'm not saying everything, but some things are not as relevant and others have never even been addressed. It's time this changed.
2) See above.
3) I am not so easily offended, and this doesn't offend me. Nor does the fact that I know many people feel very differently than I do. Things are set up the way they are because that's how it had to happen, that's how the foundation for the future had to be laid.
"mutantur omnia nos et mutamur in illis."
(All things change, and we change with them.)
1&2) I believe we should keep the Pledge of Allegiance the way it is, for a few reasons. The document is a part of our national history and reminds us of that history. This nation was founded because people were unable to worship the God they believed in. That they founded this nation under God, illustrates that there was a new liberty founded, a ... See Morenew and real justice for them and for us... for all who live here. It is because of that phrase that we remember why they fought with all their strength for their freedom, and that it wasn't just because they had new land far from England. America's fight and victory for freedom influenced the gain of rights and freedoms in other lands and for millions of people. The fight for rights and freedom increases as people across the globe have seen that freedom is a prize, a prize worth fighting for, and worth dying for. Some may now find the mention of God offensive. It is my belief that in addition to it being a part of the history of the founding of this great nation, the mention of God should not be found offensive to those who do not neccessarily believe in God because the pledge is not a pledge of alleigance to God, to any God, but to the flag of the United States of America, and allegiance to the Republic for which it stands. As a person who does believe in the same God the founding fathers believed in, I personally appreciate the reminder of the divinity of this nations' creation, the courage and valor of the men who gave their lives and sacrificed more than we will ever fully know, to bring about a nation in which we may all have the freedom to worship any God we want, or none at all. This was not possible in any other land previously and seems to be easily forgotten. Many people were murdered for no other reasons than their personal beliefs before America allowed the freedom to worship how, where, or what we choose. I believe that the Pledge of Alllegiance should continue to be recited in schools because it is likely to be the only place many children would ever hear it with the ever-increasing indifference to the foundation of and history of this, the greatest nation the world has ever known.
3) I am offended by those who devalue this nation by disregarding the purpose for its creation, and the ideals under which it was formed. To teach the youth of this nation that we as a nation hold no responsibility to it, no respect for those who sacrificed all they had and all they are simply because they have long since died, is a direct and blatant insult to them and their sacrifices. They formed this nation under God, and it is the belief of many in this land that God protects and prospers us as a nation. To remove God from the Pledge of Allegiance is spitting in the faces of those who have gone before, and those who currently believe in God. I am offended by those who wish to spit in my face and more importantly, the face of those who gave them what they currently enjoy.
So ya'll know, the "under God" wasn't added until the 1954 during the commie red scare. The pledge itself was written in 1892, long after the founding fathers died so they would certainly have had no opinion on the matter.
Considering these facts... well, even not considering these facts (2) I think it's a big bunch of baloney to force kids to ... See Morerecite this kind of propaganda without thinking about it. I don't think it qualifies as brainwashing per se but it certainly encourages obedience without thought (great for the military, not so much for citizenry who are supposed to dissent as they feel necessary).
(1) Real point here--it isn't necessary, it doesn't have the roots a bunch of supporters claim it does and it wastes time better spent on learning math or something.
(3)I'm not offended by the inclusion of god in it's own right so much as I'm annoyed at the implications that the government supports/believes in monotheism--simply not acceptable.
I usually avoid debates since multiple people end up parroting the same thing and it usually turns ad hominem on the internet. Since this isn't a debate, I figure 'what the hey'.
If I recall correctly, the pledge was written around 1892 and "...under God..." was added in the 1950s. It has been postulated by Geoffrey Nunberg (the big kahuna of the... See More American Heritage Dictionary) that the phrase "under God" was quoted from something Washington wrote and meant something different back then - something like "God willing" or perhaps "under God in importance".
Those things, coupled with the whole sep. of church/state thing (which is kinda more important), lead me to feeling that "under God" is not a necessary inclusion. It's my feeling that its possible removal should not be taken as another step toward a God-hating America - just a more inclusive America. Supporting the legality of marijuana or abortion does not mean you smoke dope and kill babies; similarly, allowing people to pledge to the U.S. flag without pledging to a specific Creator does not mean you disregard that Creator.
works cited (haha): http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/001090.html
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