What kind of paranoid citizens demand from their countrymen some kind of pledge insuring sacred Americaness? No nation, no matter what it stands for, can guarantee "liberty and justice for all." If we could do that the bill of rights, appeals courts, pardons, clemency, congressional investigations, etc. would be superflous. Here we have the means and the right to fight our case. It is the recognition of perpetual injustices in this temporal world that The Declaration of Independence, The Constitution and other founding documents establish. Our constitution intentionally diffuses power and makes for numerous review processes. People abuse power, the founders recognized, wrapping a flag around them and forcing supposed "patriotic" incantations from their lips will have exactly zero effect on a person of poor character. Only an athiest can believe that humans can perfect government to the point of "liberty and justice for all," so Francis Bellamy's paean is really blasphemy.

The pledge was authored by a Boston preacher that was fired by his congregation because of his belief in socialism and social engineering. It was used by a boys magazine to sell flags. The mindless oath is intended to instill awe and place emotion over reason in the chanter. This goal is in blatant conflict with American patriotism which is based on the consent of the governed. Our patriots, if the inventors of this country are any example, are vigilant, skeptical of those that view themselves entitled to power, learned in the events of their own day and those of the past and certainly not cowed by the threat of overwhelming force. Patriotism, by these standards, is a process of ever persistent re-examination, nothing could be as odious to them as the vast secret government that we tolerate today. The pledge is to patriotism what rote prayer is to religion. A man that votes for a rapacious demagogue and never stands up for his own rights or those of others gains about as much from the pledge of allegiance as a child molester does from round the clock Hail Marys and Our Fathers.

We must never forget that our country was invented in a criminal conspiracy. Conformity and government PR campaigns were things that they were fighting against. Mass participation in a chant will not improve our country and has likely done much harm already. We can improve this nation through careful observation, exacting description of conditions and dogged commitment to the truth. A to commitment liberty and justice is a damned good and patriotic goal but the idea that everybody already has it is Bolshevist propaganda. Utopia is no place but where we live is a thriving country loaded with competing grievances and competing ambitions. Whoever is in power will inevitably leave many weak, unnoticed people trounced in the wake of a grand vision. There will always be something to fight against in our government and it is pretty damned UnAmerican to think otherwise.

Please describe the criminal conspiracy you say our country was invented in.

"I pledge allegiance 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."

I would agree that any compulsory requirement to make this pledge would be un-American.

I am not sure how a voluntary decision to affirm the principles which our country is based on, is un-American. Nor do I read the above as some statement that the USA always has or always does live up to those principles.

Perhaps just so that we don't commit the sin of hypocrisy, we just throw any statement of principles away entirely.

Although there are all sorts of traps to avoid when it comes to patriotic expressions and traditions, we need a way to reaffirm our commitments to those principles, and to transmit that commitment to later generations. We need a way to celebrate the good that we believe our country has in it.

The country which just sits around and yells about how imperfect it is, the society which can only bemoan how far it falls from its stated principles, is not going to last too long.

If our country does not last too long it will not be for not muttering or shouting a pledge to a flag. It will be for the very issues that "critics" bring to our attention; such as, unmitigated greed fueled by capitalist fervor to make money at the expense of people, their health, and the effects on the environment. It will be because people in the rest of the world turn their collective backs on us for our arrogance and bullying. It will be because we fail to learn from other creative and intelligent people throughout the world who solve problems we haven't.

I fail to understand why, it seems, conservatives get into such a froth over the most inane things, like flag pins, oaths, hands on heart, or playing an anthem at sporting events. They seem unmoved by the real issues like health care, poverty, corrupt financial businesses, war, or true equality for every American. Every election they trot these things out and condemn liberals for being soft on ........whatever. Conservatives are soft on substance.

I once admired conservatives for their insistence on fiscal responsibility. Once Ronald Reagan came along I began to doubt their sincerity. After Bush, I am convinced they no longer have any scruples. It is a bankrupt ideology, much like the economy sputtering in their wake. They are left with only their flag pins and score-keeping for patriotic signs.

Mactosh, Thank you! You have spoken my mind more eloquently that I could ever have.
I personally do not understand patriotism as it is practiced, or stated, today. It seems so blind and unthinking that is seems meaningless. Yet it is such a powerful political tool!

It was called the American Revolution, it doesn't surprise me you obviously no nothing about it.

"with liberty and justice for all" is not a statement of principle but an assertion of a supposed fait accompli.

It is a statement of a goal to shoot for. Yes we fall short but that goal is still there.

So tell us, how do you express your patriotism, or lack there of?

TruettCollins:

So tell us, how do you express your patriotism, or lack there of?

I do believe that an example of McTosh's patriotism was expressed in his original post. And I applaud it.

Thanks for the historical synopsis of the POA; interesting stuff and, ironically, also quintessentially American :)

Whenever I meet young people who inquire on this subject I ask them to pick a number between one and ten, then recite the amendment that corresponds. The Bill of Rights and the preamble are a lot more meaningful than a pledge invented for mass indocrination by an elitist preacher that loathed the constitution. Do you think for yourself at all? What is it about that mindless, Bolshevik pledge that you think is so grandiose. It is a treasonous pledge meant to reinforce docility, cowardice and undue peer pressure on the wisely recalcitrant. No one would have subscribe to it in the 1770's except the Tories.

The statement that the Constitution was the result of a criminal conspiracy is overblown "purple prose." The delegates at the convention in 1789 were there for the express purpose of amending the Articles of Confederation. They exceeded their authority unless you consider the Constitution to be an amendmentof the Articles, another big stretch. There is no doubt that Madison(Father of the Constitution) ,Washington, Farnklin and Hamilton along with others wanted a stronger government and had plans in preparation to bring this about. The oppositon to the Constitution, which some today regard as divinely inspired or the greatest document ever written, was intense and bitter. Patrick Henry and John Hancock were two of its strongest opponents. The interpretation of this perfect and wonderful document was the root cause of the war between the states, the rebelion, civil war, or war for southern independence. whatever biased name you prefer.

Patriotism is a secular religion that attaches the deity to it for the purpose of validity and righteousness. Its scriptures are founding documents, its saints are national heroes, its sacred places are monuments, graveyards and places of historic importance. The flag, described as sacred, is its symbol like the cross or the crescent.The flag is not to be desecrated,(desanctified) that is mistreated or profaned. The dogmas of patriotism are the treasury of beliefs, attitudes and values that are supposed to be worth any sacrifice, including death. All of this is backed by appeal to a generic all purpose deity who is invoked for protection, sustenance and the foundation of the nation. In God(whatever one you want) we trust, or one nation under God(of Christians, Jews, Muslims, etc). No one even knows what the hell it means to trust in God or be under God. The mottos are nothing but a feel good, formal nod to the deity. After all, if we don't do this God might get mad and let us be attacked or suffer numerous, terrible plagues

We all need something bigger than ourselves to believe in and justify our lives other than the ordinary, trite, mundane things we do every day.

I know a lot about the American Revolution. Your weak attempt at an insult doesn't answer my question though. Please describe the criminal conspiracy you say our country was invented in.

Hey swifty, I was referring to the revolution, like I said in the response, not the constitutional convention. The law of the land was the British government in 1775 when formal hostilities began and the revolution required violating laws against treason, theft of private and public property, vandalism and numerous assaults against unarmed British officials and loyal colonists. My screen name was inspired by Ebeneezer Macintosh and it's a cinch you never even heard of him.

What do you think a revolution is, the policemen's ball? Thousands of criminal acts are required to overthrow a government. The Boston Tea party was held to prevent the East India Company enjoying a moratorium on the tax and undercutting smugglers. The tea was thrown into the harbor to keep consumers from getting tea more cheaply than what customs runners paid Dutch merchants, and that is just one example. Revolution is a criminal act, succeeding in one means overthrowing the established government, ya'know the guys in charge of law and order. If you don't know it was a criminal conspiracy, you absolutely nothing about it.