(May 13, 2015 at 10:04 pm)AFTT47 Wrote:(May 13, 2015 at 10:00 pm)Pyrrho Wrote: I feel quite differently about "He's a jolly good fellow" and the pledge of allegiance. I have never felt forced by authority figures to say the former. Encouraged, yes, but not at all the way the pledge of allegiance was expected of one.
It is, as you say, "We should never be compelled to speak someone else's words..." That is enough, and the rest of your sentence can be dropped.
The next time a group is singing, "He's a jolly good fellow", be silent. See how the rest of the group regards you.
It has been a while, but I have done that. There were no problems that I observed. That contrasts with the pledge, where I had to mouth the words to avoid having a teacher say something to me.
However, we agree on the broader point, that people should not be compelled to recite things, at least not without some particular reason for having such a requirement.
"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.
