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I Pledge Allegiance...
Submitted by The Dissident Dad via Mike Krieger's Liberty Blitzkrieg blog,
Remember those weird kids who didn’t say the Pledge of Allegiance in school? They either sat down or just stood up silently. I sure do. Most likely for religious reasons, but I remember thinking to myself as a kid that it was wrong not to say the pledge aloud with the rest of us. As I got older in my teenage years, I even felt that those kids were not being respectful.
Some adults may even give them the old, “well, if you don’t like it then you can leave” routine that is mentioned every time a minority opts out of the majority’s way of doing things.
Homeschooling my children will really make this a non-issue; however, my nieces were reciting the American Pledge of Allegiance the other day while playing with my children. In fact, here in Texas the kids recite both the American and Texas Pledge of Allegiance before class.
After hearing them recite it, and of course remembering the 2,500 or so times I said it in my lifetime, I started to think about the purpose and real meaning of this pledge that millions of school-aged children recite every morning Monday through Friday.
A pledge, of course, is a vow, an oath, or a commitment. Allegiance is defined as loyalty, devotion, and obedience. In fact, the antonyms for allegiance are treachery and disloyalty.
Crazy when you think about it, right? Do we really want our kids pledging obedience and loyalty to the U.S. federal government? Especially when the pledge itself is masked with a lie. I mean, it ends with, “with liberty and justice for all.” Now that’s a crock of shit right there. Not one arrest in the financial sector for the 2008 crisis, not one investigation into the 2003 Iraq invasion where no WMDs were found, and a complete cover-up of the events on 9/11, i.e., Building 7. Liberty and justice for all… how about we ask Edward Snowden about that? His patriotic actions were described as treachery and disloyalty.
Nationalism and blind patriotism is crucial in keeping a population dumbed-down and ignorant, which is why if you think about it, pledging allegiance to the government we have today is truly a backwards thing to do. Teaching it to a small child is particularly degrading.
As a dad who is proud of my own liberty, this makes life tough sometimes. Do I teach my kids the truth or go with the flow?
On the surface it seems black and white, but it’s not. Teaching your children about certain truths that make them the odd kid out is not exactly what a parent wants for their child. My wife and I are constantly turning to each other and asking ourselves, should we make a stand on this? Because if we do, it might make it hard for the kids.
A great example comes from a friend of mine with an 11-year-old son who stood up on 9/11 at school and countered the teacher’s lesson for the anniversary and told her about the Loose Change version. It was awkward to say the least. To simply question the events of 9/11 go against the state’s religion of nationalism, so for an 11-year-old boy to bring it up in a classroom…you can imagine the trouble it caused.
Teaching my children about the oligarchs and the current state of our leaders in government is not something that I take lightly. I realize that some of our core values, like the belief in liberty, respect for all life, and individual sovereignty will make them the odd kid out sometimes.
Being surrounded by people who have been taught, just as I was, to pledge allegiance to the state, is the unfortunate reality we are all confronted with. something that is so deeply engrained that the best I can do is teach my children to think for themselves and decide on their own. Figuring out how to best teach my children the danger of such blind allegiance is without a doubt the most difficult task I face as a father.
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I read all about democracy while reading the United States Constitution. I am sure that I am not the only one who has around here. It only takes zero seconds to read something that is not written in a given document.
What else do you have?
When they ditch the PofA, I guarantee it will be replaced with an oath to a man. The US is ripe for it.
Bring it on. Don't mistake neutrality for pacifism. A good fight is always relished...even if it's in the courtroom.
Exactly. The Founders weren't out to conquer the world, but if the world came looking for a fight, then look out.
Remember this? Buch of hollyweirds pledge for Obama.
I Pledge Video Exposed! (I Pledge To Serve King Obama)It's cultish.
My kid goes to first grade,they say the pledge at 8:55 am,we walk in at 8:59. At this point no one notices,I imagine later on it will be.
As an aware human it will be an interesting balance between helping the kid feel like he belongs without losing his soul to group think.
Honestly I dispare.
BTW,go fuck yourself oldwood,more like peckerwood.
Honestly,it's gotten a bit to easy. My youngest is in third grade and no one dares hassle her for not saying the pledge. They'd be sent to the principals office and we'd be getting a personal apology.
I think theteachers and administrators are fed up with the bullshit pledge and are working to have it pulled.
Not sure if that's a good or bad thing? Kinda like the draft gave you a clear chance to tell the govt f off. Too easy now to take for granted the rights that were won in the face of brutal opposition.
OW, the entire premise of thinking it's so cool to pledge to nothing reminds me a lot of the narcissistic liberal elite - in the end, neither really believes in anything at all; it's a pretty sad fucking existence and a dangerous one. Yeah, our country does some nasty shit, but it's balanced out by plenty of good same as the rest. No ritual any more - no culture to unify a discordant body of competing egos. Gonna be strange times ahead for sure.
I was disappointed that the pledge of allegiance was forced to be recited at a friend's of the bra banqueting i was at. I just stood silently with my arms folded on the front row.
"i'm very superficial, i hate
anything official.." c.h.
.
pretenders - Private Life - Pretenders
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir0SNbx2Jbs
Folks, look up "Bellamy Salute" and the Bellamy Pledge of Allegiance.......you will all be stunned.
Ecc 1:9
What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
‘I pledge Allegiance to the flag’
Is really a testament to the manufacturing might of the Chinese.
When planes were, cough, crashing into the pentagon, America had already offshore all their flag manufacturing machines. The Chinese came through in a pinch.
who cares proles...havent you heard ...the family and nationalism is passe...its all about globalism...and global citizenship...old European cabals and their big dreams for humanity....personhood and a new order...not the law of the jungle.....as for me ...its me..me and mine...than folks who share my acculturated values...and DNA....tribal minded...fuck the weak and the muddle minded semetic religion lovers
Brainwash....rinse....repeat....brainwash....rinse....repeat...
brainwash....rinse....repeat....brainwash....rinse....repeat....
brainwash.... .... .... .....
When I was in school, wait a minute that was less than 8 hours ago, anyhow, when I was in school as a kid we would pledge alliegiance and a half hour later be practicing the duck and cover because of Russians. Now that so many of the world's governments have nukes kids don't practice that anymore. Maybe they should start up the ole duck and cover for ebola in case the kids see an African American unless of course it is their teacher.
Interesting.
http://www.jw.org/en/news/releases/by-region/united-states/lillian-gobit...
After leaving the states, my kid doesn't recite a pledge to any flag. Problem solved.
"My kind of loyalty was loyalty to one's country, not to its institutions or its officeholders. The country is the real thing, the substantial thing, the eternal thing; it is the thing to watch over, and care for, and be loyal to; institutions are extraneous, they are its mere clothing, and clothing can wear out, become ragged, cease to be comfortable, cease to protect the body from winter, disease, and death." - A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
"I pledge allegiance to the flag" - To a fucking flag? Are you fucking kidding me? How about The Constitution? How about the ideals of the people who fought the British for independence from tyranny?
It's pointless to even say "fuck the flag", because the people running the government for the last 50+ years have been wiping their asses with the flag. Like The Constitution, it's nothing but a joke to them. The flag has become a meaningless symbol of a country that was great, once upon a time.
No one knows how to properly fold a flag any more. Why back in Oklahoma, if you were in 6th grade, you could be chosen at ramdom to raise and take down the American flag and learn to properly fold and store it. man i'm tellin' you
That's how I was raised. I had to raise/lower the flag outside the school on any given day.
Good luck finding any kid today that understands the symbology and history of the flag, much less the proper handling of it.
Good luck finding anyone in Congress today that understands the symbology and history of the flag, much less the proper handling of it.
Good luck finding anyone on Wall Street today that understands the symbology and history of the flag, much less the proper handling of it. (unless, of course, it is the flag of Israel)
We are taught to care for things of value. When anything loses value it is ignored.
And Lawton, OK was a segregated city to boot! I seen it as a kid...don't drink from that water fountain..."Why not?" just because...
I was the kid standing there, saying nothing. And now I have to teach my daughter to be the outcast. Oh well..
Agreed on not saying the pledge, for the reasons other ZHer's have already given.
That said, I am sick of hearing "dissident dad" whine about "how tough it is to raise my children." This guy's a pussy.
Hey jackass, try getting off the interwebs and just spend time with your kids.
I find talk of not saying the Pledge of Allegiance repuslive. You can lament and rail about the direction the country is going and dedicate yourself to changing it. Are you saying you DON'T want a Republic? You DON'T want Liberty? You DON'T want Justice? If not, then get the hell out of the USA! If you plan on staying, then change the country back to the ideals we had always stood for!
What you should do is hold our elected officials to the Standard of the Pledge of Allegiance. And as for all of the Federal Employees, CUT THE BUDGET AND LET THEM FLOAT!
Sometimes I just am tired of the cynicism on this website. I can't stand it.
I find the terms "indivisible" and "with Liberty and Justice for all" to be in eternal, unreconcialable conflict. Therein lies my problem with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Oligarchy.
Dear Dissident Dad,
LEARN TO READ.
Or: get help for your Alzheimers.
WHAT ARE THE WORDS that follow, "I pledge allegiance"...eh?!
TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS.
Now: unless you're a gooey-eyed anarchist, there is much to praise in the political structure America's Founders created,
as well as its symbolic representation (flag).
So, GROW UP, and give up that pseudo-libertarian guilt-ridden hand-wringing.
You are perpetuating a delusion. This is not the political structure America's Founders created. The tattered remnant of that died in 1865 when the statist, mercantilist and protoprogressive sectionalists illegally forced a union on the dissenting and secession-minded sectionalists by the sword. Since then they have been expanding, consolidating and refining their control and command structure even as they propagandize (brainwash) the masses to redefine what is construed to be "patriotic". I suggest a return to the ideology that maximizes the opportunities and liberty of the greatest numbers of the citizenry to restore a vibrant middle class, laissez faire free enterprise.
so much stupid, so little time. Enjoy your bliss.
Great article. We addressed the points in your article in a video we released earlier this year called "Does Your Gang Affiliation Prevent You From Thinking Clearly", discussing how blind allegiances to state, race, political parties, sports teams, etc. all clouds logic and reason. In fact, we specifically even addressed how the "Pledge of Allegiance" dumbs down students. For anyone interested, here's the link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jADbngLV64
No one wants to be "under God" so God as the founders knew Him will allow other gods of devious natures to lead Americans into regrettable situations and misfortune.
The Hitler Jugend pledged allegience also....
The filthy rotten HGCA of 1968 was plagarized from Hitler-era Germany's gun control laws.
That pesky word Republic interfered with the replacement of Democracy.
Teach your children correctly. United States is a Republic for which it stands!
Tyler, I don't think much of you on a good day...but really, you traitorous little shit. Get the fk out of my country, why dont you give up your citizenship and move to switzerland? Your treasonous sedition is getting old.
Here's where we part company I'm afraid...We weren't taught to pledge allegiance to the "state". We were taught to pledge allegiance to the Flag and all that she represents. Where I think we agree is in the understanding that what she stands for has been usurped by those who claim to represent her and us. When I pledge allegiance these days it is equally a prayer that, with God's help, we restore this once great nation to the legitimate Republic of First Principles she was born with...
You pledged allegiance to the flag of a republic, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. The dream of that republic no longer exists. We have driven God from the public forum. We have fractured along sectarian lines. There is no liberty, and justice is just us. Greed is our god. You might as well take down the flag and turn out the lights and let the cannibalism commence.
Gee, a wee bit fatalistic...I'm simply saying that you don't condemn the architect because the current occupants let it go to pot. It seems you are wanting to throw the baby out with the bathwater...to "take down the flag" is to abandon the values...the blueprint...and replace it with what?
I love this shit. We're talking about the pledge of allegiance while 4 trillion just got printed. Fucking unbelievable. What's next, global warming, er i mean climate change, ISIS, ebola, or God forbid racist police shootings in Ferguson. Don't ever think propaganda doesn't have it's effect.
Your kids must be pretty young (and healthy) if your hardest job as a father is dealing with the pledge of allegiance at school.... trust me it will get harder.
Consider the lyrics of the song Chicken Fried by the Zac Brown Band
While the song is catchy and the sentiment is fun, is this really what America is about? Did the founders sacrifice to keep us from having to sacrifice all the things we love? Did they envision a government capable of providing fried chicken and cold beer for everyone? Or is America about freedom, liberty, and rights that God gives which no man nor government has the right to take away?
If I pledge my allegiance to a flag with stars and stripes, then I owe my undying and unquestioning devotion to the government which holds that flag up high.
If I pledge my allegiance to those who give their lives in battle, then I will owe my undying and unquestioning devotion to whoever directs our troops into battle, be it heroic or criminal battle.
If I pledge my allegiance to apple pie and fried chicken then I can be enslaved by anyone with a printing press and a handful of promises.
Abraham Lincoln said The philosophy of the classroom in one generation will be the philosophy of the government in the next. But our classrooms have been infiltrated. The pledge of allegiance was written by an avowed socialist whose dream was to see America transformed into a command and control economy where income distribution was equal and jobs were assigned by the government.
Is it any wonder that Americans are confused about what the flag represents?
Soon they will be teaching that Ronald Reagan and John Wayne were fags.
B'lieve all that bullshit they teach if you want to.
Teaching your children blind alleggiance should never be done. Those who look closely understand that it is not the 1% at the top stealing the icing off the cake, but the much smaller .1% or .01% that are skewing the numbers and overreaching.
I contend the biggest problem is the massive growth in crony capitalism and corruption in Washington. Much of this can be attributed to the ability of those in control "changing the rules" and positioning themselves to benefit at every corner. In our busy and complex world we have found it impossible to watch all the moving parts. More on how this leads to collapse in the article below.
http://brucewilds.blogspot.com/2014/05/how-empires-collapse.html
I pledge allegiance to the Great Escape from the mutha fuckas that America once was.
The author obviously is either too stupid to understand or doesn't want to admit that AMerica != the Federal Government.
America is the Idea.........................America is what you're pledging allegiance to.
The federal government is a goliath sized parasite which is killing the dream ( right there alongside the undereducated , America-denigrating, fools Like the author of this trash )
Regardless of legislation, Rethugs and Demcraps are both nationalist.
Here we go:
I pledge allegiance,
to no one at all,
in this God forsaken country,
and to the scam, for which it stands,
one nation, under ponzi, inescapable,
with liberty and justice for those in charge.
That is just irritating. I pledge allegiance to a Republic (not a socialist state), that is under God (not Washington bimbos), and I support liberty and justice for all (not a military police state). How Dissident Dad could get this so wrong is beyond me.
It is. The Republic is not the collection of idiots who occupy the halls of political power. It is us. No, I do not know how he could get it so wrong. Suggestion to him: Take a long walk. Take a look at some children playing in a school yard. Shake the hand of a soldier or a cop and think him or her. Walk into a poor neighborhood and give some cash away to someone who looks like they need it. Then say out loud or write to anyone at all, including those idiots mentioned above, whatever you want to say. And then think about this again.
In reality, in the real world of implied, unconscious meaning, that tends to drive [unexamined] motivation, your idealized meaning for the Pledge has been coopted by the arbitrary State and its prerogatives. That is I think what the Dad is speaking to. Your hallowed words are long dead to the population you may wish to die giving for. By example, the schools performing the Pledge, apparently never delineate the distinctions you point to, to an objective higher than the State; [rhetorically] what's up with that. And "under God", how subjective is that for any age in the US population? So here we have schools that cannot talk about one's belief in God ('cepting maybe Allah), pandering to an "under God" in the supposedly defining Pledge. The young mind reels (not).
I've posted this before, but it bears repeating here.
As a Canadian, I have seen the decline the US from up close over the last 50 years. As a kid, I was always kind of thrilled by the three-part question in the last lines of the "Star-spangled banner":
"Oh say does that star-spangled banner yet wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?"
From my perspective, the piece of cloth is still up there, but you are becoming less and less the land of the free, and while I don't doubt the individual courage of many Americans, a nation that consciously, callously, and cavalierly sends drones to kill innocent women and children (and have Obola brag about it, no less!) is hardly the home of the brave.
America would be a better country if it lived up to its anthem.
(Note: I'm not saying Canada's a whole lot better; we're not quite as far down the rabbit hole, IMHO, but our head is definitely in the ground with our ass in the air!)
Harper SUCKS, and is destroying all respect for Canada-that recently commanded world respect as one of the very few honorable nations of the world
Pledge has turned into bullshit, however we have let it.
Maybe someday we'll actually grow a pair, take back our country and recite the pledge with pride.
We are pledging but we ain't doing shit to live up to our pledge.
The plege is not a problem....the problem is that WE ALL ARE A BUNCH OF FUCKING PUSSIES!
The pledge was written by a socialist, for socialists. I haven't said it in years.
Statists, fascists, "progressives"......they're all just central-planning, individual-hating collectivists.
I pledge allegiance to my White Race.
Like they have never sold you out before.
How about that National Anthem before sports games ????
Try sitting that one out while looking for all the glares.
At a vintage car event, they started with the Anthem. I pointed at the flag and gave a discrete thumbs down, and got a bunch of not so discrete one finger salutes in return.
Don't be retarded.
It's only shitty vinyl on a pole.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=618U-_8o31k