i pledge allegience...

...to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

how many times have we heard those words?  how many of you have any question as to what the straightforward words mean?  how many of you have trained your sons and daughters as to the meaning of the words and how to give proper respect to our flag and our country?

i thought about posting on flag day and time simply got away from me - so consider this my belated flag day post.

yesterday, mr. j and i went to the new kansas city power and light district to see the new sights and grab a bite to eat.  we live in the city, only about three miles from downtown and the new sprint center but this is the first opportunity we've had to just go down and stroll around.

we parked nigel, my mini cooper, and began our walk.  as we rounded our first corner at 13th and walnut we could hear loud, driving music.  then we started noticing the hundreds of harleys and the wide assortment of tattooed and pierced people (mostly youngish guys) wandering around.

we weren't really sure what was going on with the music, but it was obviously a free concert in the square - turns our miller lite was sponsoring a group called "say anything".  it's not the worst music i've heard and mostly it's pretty inoffensive in terms of lyrics.

but this post isn't about them, it's about a t-shirt i saw out of the corner of my eye as we were walking.  i was shocked by what i thought it said and i had to stop and turn around just to be certain (and hoping against hope that i was wrong) i had seen what i thought i had seen.  i still didn't have time to read the whole thing, so this morning i googled it.  and unfortunatey, i found it.

it is apparently lyrics from another band called "nofx" fron their 1999 album "the decline" called "i pledge a grievance to the flag of the united states of A and the blah blah blah..."  let me tell you, these guys are just a real class act. i wasn't able to find all of the lyrics for the song (apparently it's 18 minutes long) but from the t-shirt:

I pledge a grievance to the flag
Of the United States of America
And to the republicans whom I can't stand
One nation under smog indispicable [sic]
WITH LIBERTY
FOR JUST US NOT ALL

and from what i found, this isn't the worst of their lyrics.  these guys in the band are all from san francisco - big shock there - and nearly all of their songs excoriate america and religion.  if you're looking for something to turn your stomach, i highly recommend heading over to youtube and searching out all 33 of the videos posted there.  it's a real hate fest.

anyway, during my research, i came across this story [for children] at the portland independent media center's site.  it's from portland oregon, not maine, but that matters little.  it is written by stephen devoy who lists a link to his webiste on that page but the link is invalid.  at reading this "story" everything in me wanted to explode - i swear, if this guy had been anywhere near me i may have felt the need to beat him senslessly.  but it probably wouldn't have done any good, he is so far gone.

Every morning Elizabeth joined her classmates in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. She never thought about what it meant, she just followed through with the other students repeating the words which came out like one very long run-on sentence. It was a mechanical exercise.

Today was different. A new girl, Amy, had transferred to her school from a school in another city. When the time came for the Pledge of Allegiance, she remained sitting, drawing on her notebook. No one ever gave much thought to the process before, until that day, but it was as if someone had scraped their fingernails on the chalkboard. Everyone felt very uncomfortable and they knew it was because one student was not reciting the pledge but they did not know why this bothered them.

The students began scanning each other, looking out the corners of their eyes, with an expression of incredulity. Never, in all their years, had they seen someone sit down and draw during the pledge. Amy seemed completely unaware of the tension and happily drew upon her notebook.

As they finished, the teacher looked over towards the class and was shocked to see Amy sitting there, drawing, rather than joining in the ritual.

"Amy!" said the teacher. "Why didn't you stand up with the rest of us and say the pledge?"

Amy's head raised up from the notebook. She looked at the teacher and said, "I don't say the Pledge of Allegiance. I never have and I never will."

"Amy, you are required to say the Pledge of Allegiance in this school," the teacher stressed sternly with an intense glare.

"Actually," said Amy, very calm and content, "this school is within the United States and I am not required to say anything."

Amy had done nothing. It was her doing nothing that was in question. Nevertheless, the teacher became angry and took Amy's true and sincere statement as a challenge to her authority.

"Amy, you will stay after school," she ordered.

This incident made Elizabeth feel very torn. On the one hand, Amy seemed disruptive by not saying the pledge but on the other hand, she had done nothing - literally. How could one be punished for doing nothing?

Elizabeth decided to wait in the playground after school. She wanted to talk with Amy when Amy got out of detention. She sat on a swing and recited the Pledge of Allegiance, only this time she took the time to notice what the words were and what they meant. She found the words strange and it left her with some questions.

At about 3:30, the side door of the school opened and Amy came walking out. She turned towards the road and continued walking, not noticing Elizabeth on the swings. Elizabeth ran to catch up to Amy. A few yards before reaching her, she slowed down and then stopped.

"Hi," she said. "I'm Elizabeth. I'm in your class."

Amy turned and smiled. "Hi, Elizabeth. I'm Amy. Did you wait here for me to come out of detention?"

Elizabeth blushed, "Well, um, yeah, I was, well I was wondering about, you know, the pledge and why you didn't say it."

Amy looked down and then raised her head to Elizabeth and replied, "I'm happy to meet you and everything, but really I don't think it is anyone's business why I choose not to say the Pledge of Allegiance. It's my own business and I don't need to explain it to anyone."

"You don't have to explain it to me," said Elizabeth. "I was just hoping you would because I never met anyone before who wouldn't say it. I don't even really understand the Pledge of Allegiance. I was hoping that talking with you about it would help me learn something."

The two were silent. They began walking down the street. It was fall and the leaves were turning gold and red. A dog started following them from a distance. No one knew who he belonged to, he just showed up now and then and tagged along.

"Elizabeth," said Amy. "Do you know what flags are for?"

"I haven't really thought about it," she answered, "but I was really hoping you'd tell me about the pledge."

"I am telling you about the pledge. The pledge is a pledge to a flag and that's where we should start, with the flag." Amy became animated. She was beginning to enjoy the idea of talking about it. Her reluctance was not caused by shame, it was caused by her belief that she, as an individual, has the right to make her own personal decisions without anyone having the right to demand an explanation. In this case, she saw that it would benefit Elizabeth. Since there was a reason other than a demand for an explanation, she didn't mind sharing her thoughts.

"Flags are about war," she continued. "Flags are about blindly rallying to the call of murder. My father blindly rallied to the call of murder, behind that very flag, and now he's dead. I won't let them program me in to following like a lemming over the cliff."

She was silent for a time.

Elizabeth thought about what Amy had said. She had thought she was pledging allegiance to her country, but now that she thought about the words "I Pledge Allegiance to the Flag," she could see that Amy was right.

"What about 'to the Republic for which It Stands'," asked Elizabeth.

"Whose republic?" replied Amy? Do you vote?

"No, I'm too young, but one day I will," said Elizabeth.

"Let talk about that," Amy said with a heated voice. "First of all, they are forcing you to pledge allegiance to a republic and they don't let you vote. That smacks of slavery. Later you will vote, but for whom will you vote? Two political parties have a lock on the electoral process and both represent the same class - the rich. Are you rich, Elizabeth?"

"Well, now, I'm not rich, but I'm not poor," she replied.

"The difference between you and the rich is much bigger than the difference between you and the poor, Elizabeth. The rich don't have to worry about working. The rich have complete access to the legal system. The rich can get away with things that you cannot get away with. The rich do not go off and die in wars to protect their republic, they send the poor and they send you."

Elizabeth thought about Amy's words. She was right. Her parents were always worried about their jobs. They were stressed. They feared becoming poor but they had no expectation of ever become rich. Amy was onto something.

Amy continued, "Look at the President. Are his daughters fighting in the war? Have you heard of the son or daughter of any wealthy corporate man that has died in the war? Have you seen any soldiers living well and enjoying the things the rich enjoy? You haven't because they are not rich. The republic belongs to the rich and it is paid for with the blood of the poor. It is not your republic and pledging allegiance to it is like a slave pledging allegiance to her master or a rape victim pledging allegiance to her rapist.

"Have you ever wondered why they make you repeat that pledge, every day? When someone takes an oath of office, they do it once. They don't do it every day. Pledges are meant to be taken once. When someone has you recite something, over and over, every day of your life, they seek to program you. I bet you never thought about the words of the Pledge of Allegiance before, have you?"

"No, I haven't. I say it like it's one long word..."

"Exactly. It is a program, not a pledge. The daily recital of that pledge is indoctrination. The Nazis used indoctrination. The Soviets used indoctrination. Cults use indoctrination. Do you want to be a robot, Elizabeth?"

"No, I don't want to be a robot," she replied.

"Then think about what you let them do to you. When the call to die for the republic of the rich goes out, do you want to march blindly off like a good little robot to die in the rich man's war or do you want to have the spine to stand up and say, 'No Way!'"?

A twig falling from a tree could have broken the silence, but none fell. The two walked in silence for twenty minutes. As they passed an apartment building Amy said, "This is where I get off. I'll see you tomorrow."

Elizabeth continued walking. She reached her housing track and looked at the rows of identical houses. Something had changed within her. She felt a sense of self.

The next day in class all of the children stood up to say the pledge, except for Elizabeth and Amy. The teacher glared at the two and said, "Do we have to go through this again?"

"Yes," Elizabeth replied, "I pledge allegiance to no one."

it is amazing to me, but the responses to this post are gushing over how wonderful this story is, but in my opinion it should be nothing more than fodder for the fireplace.  seriously folks, this is the kind of crap that the liberals in the education system are teaching our children. 

however, i'll let you (my gentle readers) decide what you think on your own.

Comments

[OMMAG]

Yes it is pathetic that to justify their own sense of importance and entitlement these people need to abuse the things that are truly worthwhile.

It's a sickness that feeds upon itself and poisons the rest of society.

The worst enemies are the ones in your own house.

[heidianne jackson]

you are so right ommag - thanks for the insight!

[Goat]

To me it sounds like a piece of fiction posited as a true story, too many things don't line up. How did the writer know so much about the words said? It is despicable for sure but I doubt its veracity. We all know moonbats are capable of believing the hallucinations of their fevered drug addled imaginations.

[heidianne jackson]

it's not a true story, goat, and not presented as one. if you go to the website it's written as a children's story - it's all about brainwashing the children to have no respect for our country or our flag...

[Mustang]

Heidianne, I agree with you completely and like you, I was enraged by the “children’s story.” The last comment left at this site was in 2007, but I could not resist leaving one of my own, which was:

“I do agree no one should be forced to recite a pledge of allegiance, for the same reason I am opposed to forced or arranged marriages. At the same time, I must say that the story is appalling to me from this perspective: such a self-absorbed concept denigrates who we are within the context of family, community, and nationhood. I believe that we, individually and collectively, have a responsibility to others as much as we do to ourselves and that often, our responsibility to others may exceed that of self.

“If we are married, we are responsible to our spouse through an oath voluntarily given, and voluntarily enforced. If we are parents, we must nurture, protect, and teach our children in such a manner as to provide them a clear path to fulfillment as adults. What husband would not protect his wife? What parent would not protect their child, even at personal risk to themselves?

“Sadly, the answer is: too many – as evidenced by divorce rates, single parents, neglected children, and a ream of social statistics that suggests some where, some how, we’ve made the wrong turn. Civic virtue suggests a society in which we are all obligated to one another – and it is a concept that unsustainable through stories such as these. A refusal to join hands with loved ones, and people whom we do not even know, is as dangerous to a healthy society as some biological pandemic. No, we should not force anyone to pledge allegiance – but we should raise our children to want to take on that responsibility.

“I will admit the author is quite creative – but he is also the antithesis of our American heritage. Truly, is this what the future holds for our children? If the answer is “yes,” then this land is no longer the land of my fathers – every one of whom placed himself in harms way for an ideal greater than himself.”

Now let’s see if they actually publish my comments . . . but you know, if we wonder what has happened to our country -- this is it.

Semper Fi

[Defiant_Infidel]

The "story" completely, conveniently ignores all the benefits of freedom that ALL people in this country enjoy, regardless of their Class Warfare category. It leaves out the chains of slavery elsewhere that socialism and communism demand. It reduces the whole picture to a country trying to extract and remove a person's "individualism".

But, of course it does... There is an agenda to fulfill here. The author seeks to create a wonderful little nest in which the budding liberal can snuggle into for a lifetime. It is a nest with all the pleasures, potential and opportunities given by others' blood before them, but free of the nagging chore of commitment to sustaining that which is experienced.

Liberals would be much happier with a pledge of allegiance to "The Free Ride".

[thedecline77]

The the story reproduced above is comically ridiculous for its awkward extremism and it's terrible writing, but I think the larger point of teaching kids to at least question the idea of allegiance to a flag or to a country is important. You speak of "civic duty," heidianne, but civic duty is vastly different than the sort of nationalism precipitated by pledges to flags. Personally I hope my children fully take on a commitment of civic duty and responsibility, but do so not for one country, rather pledging to uphold humanity and justice world wide. At times this may even run counter to allegiance pledged to America. Mustang mentioned the "chains of slavery" of socialism and communism, but one must not forget that America had much more substantial chains, prejudices, and legal oppression until the past few decades. And while it seems hip to slam liberals on this blog, I think it's important to remember that it was largely the work of the "Liberals" that brought the American ideals of equality for all into fruition. I regret that my white grandparents 70 years ago would have pledged allegiance in school to a country that systematically oppressed an entire portion of its citizenry. We have come far because of the work of Liberals, but there are undoubtedly still times when America does not live up to its ideals. Sometimes we should pledge a grievance to the flag. Undoubtedly at other times the U.S. does live up to its claims, but I would want my children to learn to analyze when it's country is right and when it is wrong rather than just always pledging their allegiance to a symbol.

[thedecline77]

I would also like to add that I appreciate discussions like this be raised in a respectful way. There is, however, no place for the inclusion of Obama's picture where it is juxtaposed. Whatever your opinions are on the candidate that's a cheap and blatantly innacurate inclusion promulgating the myth that Obama refuses to say the pledge. Go to factcheck.org or any credible news source if you care enough about your country to find out the facts rather than the stupid, slanderous myths being promoted by extremists on both sides.

[heidianne jackson]

decline, please note that i made no comment regarding obama and his supposed refusal to pledge allegience or sing the national athem. i simply put the picture in as it is an example of a presidential candidate acting in opposition - even if ONLY on that day which may or may not be the case - to the u.s. code regarding the u.s. flag. in my opinion, anyone seeking to be president of these united states should, at the very least, know and respect (at all times) the code pertaining to and the flag itself.

as for your other comments, i know of no country where reparations have been so extensive and so publicized as here in the u.s. you may do well to remember that america was neither the first country to have slavery nor did we have slavery the longest.

also, legal slavery is still being practiced in other countries - against christians and non-muslims by muslims. where is the outrage?!?!

pledging allegiance to the flag is a pledge of loyalty and honor to our country. making the pledge does not mean that you will always agree with the decisions made by the leaders of the country, but that you will be loyal to the country nonetheless.

i'm proud that my grandparents stood up and said the pledge 70+ years ago. my granddad was born on flag day (june 14) in 1904. it was one of the things that he was most proud of - silly or not.

i put my hand over my heart whenever the flag is raised - and i have made certain my children do so as well. additionally, i say the pledge every time too. and btw, i know every verse of our national athem and i never miss the opportunity to sing it - no matter how terrible my voice. and it never fails to bring tears to my eyes.

[tnaite]

Boy, where to start... I suppose with the story. Yes, it is obviously fiction. However, artists often have to contrive stories to make a point. We should all be thankful of this fact, as it allows us to better see the point of view of others. Which are no more or less valid than our own. This brings me to the "pot & kettle". Many of the comments here are categorizing this as a "liberal" mindset. What is a liberal? Or for that matter a conservative? I am a human. As a human I am both of these, or perhaps neither, depends on the issue really. Is it okay for you speak out against others because they speak against you? Even if your content differs, your methods of behavior are the same. This is the definition of hypocritical, is it not. Finally, this argument about a soldiers duty is often just a misunderstanding of the other side.
The two most common views are such:
1) These are the men and women that defend us and our rights. Treat them with the respect they deserve.
2) The soldiers are carrying out the will of the wealthy at the cost of the lives of the lower classes.
As a U.S. history "buff", I can see both sides as being the truth. While the reason for most of our wars haven't exactly been "noble". The soldiers that fight them are. It is the same exact people that would stand up in a HEARTBEAT to fight for us if a righteous reason ever arose.
The simple fact that the "owner" class exploits a decent persons desire to be apart of something "bigger" than themselves, should never be held against the exploited individuals. But this holds true with those that see things differently than you. Just because their experience and observation has led them to a different conclusion than your own, does not make them "evil" or even wrong for that matter. It simply means they have had a different life.
Why shun them for something outside of their control.

[tnaite]

by the way, here are the lyrics to the Decline by NOFX

Where are all the stupid people from?
And how'd they get to be so dumb?
Bred on purple mountain range
Feed amber waves of grains
To lesser human beings, zero feelings

Blame it on
Human nature, mans destiny (mans destiny)
Blame it on the greediocracy (greediocracy)
Fear of God
The fear of change
The fear of truth

Add the Bill of Rights, subtract the wrongs
There's no answers
Memorize and sing star spangled songs
When the questions
Aren't ever asked
Is anybody learning from the past?
We're living in united stagnation

Father what have I done?
I took that .22
A gift to me from you
To bed with me each night
Kept it clean
Polished it well
Cherished every cartridge, every shell

Down, by the creek, under brush, under dirt
There's a carcass of my second kill
Down, by the park, under stone, under pine
There's a carcass of my brother William
Brother where, have you gone to?
I swear, I never thought I could
I see so many times
They told me to shoot straight
Don't pull the trigger, squeeze
That will insure a kill
A kill is what you want
A kill is why we breed

The Christians love their guns
The church and NRA
Pray for their salvations
Prey on the lower faiths

The story book's been read
And every line believed
Curriculum's been set
Logic is a threat
Reason searched and seized

Jerry spent some time in Michigan
A twenty year vacation, after all he had a dime
A dime is worth a lot more in Detroit
A dime in California, a twenty dollar fine

Jerry only stayed a couple months
It's hard to enjoy yourself while bleeding out the ass
Asphyxiation is simple and fast
It beats seventeen fun years of being someone's bitch

Don't think (Stay)
Drink your wine (Home)
Watch the fire burn (Be)
His problems not mine (Safe)
Just be that model citizen

I wish I had a schilling
(For each senseless killing)
For every senseless killing
I'd buy a government
America's for sale
And you can get a good deal on it
(A good deal on it)
And make a healthy profit
Or maybe, tear it apart
Start with assumption
That a million people are smart
Smarter than one

Serotonin's gone
She gave up, drifted away
Sara fled, thought process gone
She left her answering machine on
The greeting left spoken sincere
Messages no one will ever hear

Ten thousand messages a day
A million more transmissions lay
Victims of the laissez faire
Ten thousand voices, a hundred guns
A hundred decibels turns to one
One bullet, one empty head
Now with Serotonin gone

The man who used to speak
Performs a cute routine
Feel a little patronized
Don't feel bad
They found a way inside your head
And you feel a bit misled
It's not that they don't care, yeah

The television's put a thought inside your head
Like a Barry Manilow, jingle
I'd like, to teach the world to sing
In perfect harmony
A symphonic blank stare, yeah
It doesn't make you care (make you care)
Not designed to make you care (make you care)
They're betting you won't care (you won't...)

Place a wager on your greed
A wager on your pride
Why try to beat them when, a million others tried?

We are the whore
Intellectually spayed
We are the queer
Dysfunctionally raised

One more pill to kill the pain
One more pill to kill the pain
One more pill to kill the pain
Living through conformity

One more prayer to keep me safe
One more prayer to keep us warm
One more prayer to keep us safe
There's gonna be a better place

Lost the battle, lost the war
Lost the things worth living for
Lost the will to win the fight
One more pill to kill the pain

Na na na na na
La na na na na
Na na na na na
Na na na na na

The going get tough, the tough get debt
Don't pay attention, pay the rent
Next of kins pay for your sins
A little faith should keep us safe

Save us
The human, existence
Is failing, resistance
Essential, the future
Written off, the odds are
Astronomically against us
Only moron and genius
Would fight a losing battle
Against the super ego
When giving in is so damn comforting

And so we go, on with our lives
We know the truth, but prefer lies
Lies are simple, simple is bliss
Why go against tradition when we can
Admit defeat, live in decline
Be the victim of our own design
The status quo, built on suspect
Why would anyone stick out their neck?

Fellow members of
Club "We've Got Ours"
I'd like to introduce you to our host
He's got his, and I've got mine
Meet the decline

We are the queer
We are the whore
Ammunition
In the class war
We are worker
We love our queen
We sacrifice
We're soilent green

We are the queer
We are the whore
Ammunition
In the class war

[tnaite]

Another NOFX entry to better understand their POV.

it's not the right time to be sober
now the idiots have taken over
spreading like a social cancer, is there an answer?

Mensa membership conceding
tell me why and how are all the stupid people breeding
Watson, it's really elementary
the industrial revolution
has flipped the bitch on evolution
the benevolent and wise are being thwarted, ostracized, what a bummer
the world keeps getting dumber
insensitivity is standard and faith is being fancied over reason

darwin's rollin over in his coffin
the fittest are surviving much less often
now everything seems to be reversing, and it's worsening
someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool
now angry mob mentality's no longer the exception, it's the rule
and im startin to feel a lot like charlton heston
stranded on a primate planet
apes and orangutans that ran it to the ground
with generals and the armies that obeyed them
followers following fables
philosophies that enable them to rule without regard

there's no point for democracy when ignorance is celebrated
political scientists get the same one vote as some Arkansas inbred
majority rule, don't work in mental institutions
sometimes the smallest softest voice carries the grand biggest solutions

what are we left with?
a nation of god-fearing pregnant nationalists
who feel it's their duty to populate the homeland
pass on traditions
how to get ahead religions
And prosperity via simpleton culture

the idiots are takin over [x8]

[heidianne jackson]

i'm familiar with these songs, tnaite, but so what? is your premise that liberals are smarter than conservatives? if so, on what do you base this premise?