Not saying pledge of allegiance destroys America

[Chad32]

Essays on What the First Amendment Means to Me would be educational.

[downbeatplumb]

In North Carolina, the Hendersonville Elks Lodge held a contest for kids in which they had to explain “What the Pledge of Allegiance Means to Me.”

And the winner of her age bracket was an eighth-grade student named Madison who had this to say about the Pledge:

“’America will never be destroyed from the outside,’” Ogden read from her essay. “’If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.’ So if you do not say the Pledge of Allegiance to this nation and support America, you will be a part of that destruction.”


… the fuck?

First of all, how does that win a contest?! How bad were the other entries?

Second, it’s just factually untrue. There are people who don’t say the Pledge for religious reasons or personal reasons, and they’re no less patriotic than anybody else.

Third, who are the adults who read that essay and said, “That belief needs to be rewarded”?

The Elks Lodge is a group that promotes belief in God, as if that’s a virtue, so I guess this isn’t all that surprising. But it’s still appalling that anyone would be rewarded for saying that people who don’t stand up for the Pledge are ruining the country.

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyath...g-america/

I find the pledge of allegiance really creepy.
It's like something they'd do in North Korea.

[abaris]

Children standing at their desks, all faced in the same direction (facing the flag), all doing the same thing (right hand over heart), and chanting the same thing...

I know it's not the same, but it's kind of alien for a european to see things like that. The only ones doing it were the fascist dictatorships in our history. As has been said, it's all about drilling blind obedience into children. To make them feel special because of their country. And when this same country asks something despicable of them, they're less likely to refuse.

[Norman Humann]

I know it's not the same, but it's kind of alien for a european to see things like that. The only ones doing it were the fascist dictatorships in our history. As has been said, it's all about drilling blind obedience into children. To make them feel special because of their country. And when this same country asks something despicable of them, they're less likely to refuse.

Exactly. Hitlerjugend.

[Crossless2.0]

Essays on What the First Amendment Means to Me would be educational.

Absolutely, yes. And more to the point, given the subject of this thread, perhaps an essay on why the Jehovah's Witness pledge case was a good example of protecting First Amendment liberties, as Vorlon pointed out earlier. However, I assume the topic would have sailed miles over the heads of the super patriots judging the results.