Pledge of Allegiance (page 2)

WTWizard

I never had that issue myself, but I think it's totally wrong to force a person to not say the pledge or sing the national anthem. However, if I felt the country was doing a poor job in running things (having too many regulators that want the power to themselves and to hell with the health or well-being of the people), I should also have the option to not say the pledge or sing the anthem. And not for religious reasons, either.

Yes, people should be able to choose. That way, the country would have to earn allegiance from its people. And telling people every little thing they have to do, or cannot do, is not the way to earn that allegiance.

Give me a government that solely protects people from others who would initiate the use of force, threat of force, coercion, and/or fraud, and I will salute their flag and sing their anthem without any reservations. Give me one that criminalizes everything and tells me what I have to think, say, and do, and I will refuse to salute their flag or sing their anthem because they do not deserve honor.

nomoreguilt

As a kid in school I hated being a witness. You have to remember that WWII had only been over for 10 years when I started school. The USA was very high on itself and the fathers of every kid in school was a hero. They liberated lands and people. Overthrew dictators and emperors.

Then you have these righteous little anti govt zealots, jw's. Traitors they were,wouldn't give their lives for their country. So, every time the kids would go to school, they would encounter some litttle boy or girl that was a jw. I know now where the instigation of my persecution came from, the parents of these kids. They were only mimicing what their fathers told them.

Yes, I endured an awful lot of torment in my childhood and I so wanted not to be differant. it took me until my junior high school days to separate myslef from the jw influence. My father said that I didn't have to go to meetings any longer.WHEW! He wasn't a dub, just my mom.

The rest of my life and why I later became a REAL dub later.

NMG

coffee_black

My mom would meet with my teacher on the first day of the school year from k-2nd grade. The first day of third grade she told me she thought I was old enough to explain to the teacher myself why I wouldn't be saluting the flag. I didn't....so when the salute started, I sat at my desk and cried. The teacher was really nice about it and let me explain it to her privately after the salute was over. From then I didn't have a problem with not saluting...everyone pretty much left me alone.... until 6th grade, when we moved to a suburb, and my religion became a huge issue, and that year was one that left deep scars. My year from hell...

Coffee

LouBelle

well we had to salute the flag in the morning at my junior school but my mother had gone to the principle and explained I was a jw and wouldn't be doing that and going to assembley or religious education or play sport or participate in school plays or or or or or

sacrebleu

I agree with frankiespeakin.

It is indoctrination and should not be forced.

I got baptised at 16 and decided for myself not to salute.

But then my mother raised me to consider it weird. I was also taught not to AUTOMATICALLY trust and revere anyone, including policemen, doctors, lawyers, etc. People are people are people. They put their pants on one leg at a time. They are no better than I am. Some are not very bright or honest. That is how I was raised before the JWs ever hit the scene at our house.

So I still feel kind of creepy when the salute happens.

On the other hand, this is America. I have a right to not salute. RIGHT??

Did anyone here see the Saturday Night Live performance about the man who did not salute who was beat up and kicked down while the people beating him were singing about our great country? It was funny, sad and to the point.

sacrebleu

frankiespeakin

The only salute I will give to the flag is the middle fingered one. Unless I'm surrounded by and angry croud of pariotic fantatic wearing white white hoods or I'm stuck at Gitmo under interrogation then I might do it then to save my ass but it will never be from the heart unless it the middle finger salute.

frankiespeakin

What the most irreverant thing you ever did with the flag or at a saluting cerimony whether it was on tv durring a game or at one personally. And what the most irreverant thing you have done with a flag. When I was younger and the Vietnam war was drafting people, I used to alway like rolling my joint in american flag rolling papers, wear a part of the american flag to patch a hole in the ass of my jeans.

Amber Rose

I think that the pledge of allegiance is really funny, actually. Just the way that people recite it anyway. Think about it. We were taught the Pledge at age 5. How many 5 year olds know what the words "pledge", "allegiance", "republic" , "indivisible", and "liberty" mean. Not many, and the kindergarten teacher doesn't tell you either. Usually by the 4th grade most kids realise that the correct word is not "invisible". But all the way up to 12th grade most kids still start off by saying "I pledge OF allegiance to the flag..." Therefore, the pledge of allegiance means absoultely nothing to most US school students.

mentalclearness

i am against forving kids to pledge allegience to any country...and if you had such a hard time standing out as a kid because you didn´t pledge..please..get a backbone....i can understand small kids conforming.(which is a really horrible reason to do anything IMO) but bigger children..your parents should have taught you to stick up for what you believe..being a witness actually helped me in that sense..i can say whatever my opinion is and don´t give a shit about what other people think..and guess what that is called???? INTEGRITY...i don{t buy into wt dogma...but pledge of allegience should be completely taken out of schools...there is such a huge melting pot in the states right now that it{s kind of ridiculous to have kids say this ritualistic chant every morning...yeah, saying the pledge of allegience definitely shows your love of country.....please...I´m sure those involved in oklahoma bombing said the pledge...THEY LOVED THEIR COUNTRY GODDAMMIT!!!!

Layla33

I have never said the plege of allegiance or sang the national anthem in my life. I don't agree on the WTS stand on it, but I really don't see the big need to do it. It's all about tradition and loyalty to me, which seems nice enough, but at the same time I look at us waring with killing innocent people over loyalty to one country versus another. I love being a citizen of the US, but at the same time I feel like a citizen of the world. I don't knock anyone that pleges allegience or sings the national anthem, but in the grand scheme of things, to me, it isn't that big a deal.

Pledge of Allegiance

Share this