Can I just say ...? (Re: Patriotism)
January 10, 2003 ~ 2:29 p.m.
I received some great replies to yesterday�s entry. I encourage this and am grateful to all who take the time to lodge their opinions. So many questions were asked and/or points raised, that I would like to answer back, if I may (guestbook entries may be truncated):
Jonnybox: �I used to have to pray in school, give grace for lunch, sing hymns and go to church. For some odd reason I felt that it was irrelevant to education and offensive to many groups. Is there any reason why the pledge is specific to schools and perhaps not other institutions?�
I understand. You were immersed in an organized religion at a young age and you came out questioning the orthodox manner in which it was delivered to you. Everyone should make up their own minds on manners of religion. And, according to some of the things I�ve written on the subject in the past, those who didn�t know better could be excused for thinking that religion and patriotism are closely linked.
In much the same manner as religion in school (surely it was not a state school you attended?), mandatory displays of patriotism could be thought to be very orthodox in their manner. However, the American spirit from day one has pretty much been, �men died to establish this free republic and you must realize what an honor it is to reside here.� Arrogant? Yes, I grant you that, especially when seen through the eyes of foreigners. But we worship freedom; it is not fundamentalist babble. I can understand how someone not from America could say, �you guys really go overboard,� but don�t some other cultures? The heavy-handed theocratic or communist states, for instance � a lot more dangerous and hurtful ideologies running rampant there.
I suppose that primary education is the best place to reinforce feelings of national pride and honor and that�s why the pledge is recited in classrooms, before lessons begin. This is a process I went through and I look upon it fondly. It isn�t so much an institution in other aspects of American life, because we�ve ensured that the bases are covered by establishing it in elementary school.
Belle-tn: �I can't understand what all the hoopla about the Pledge is all about. I remember in school we would say it at times and anyone who objected to taking part could either leave the room or just remain seated � When Americans go to other countries (as far as I know) we don't object to their customs and their rights as it's done over here by visitors or even some who have legal citizenship but not heartfelt citizenship.�
Amen. Going back to the subject of religion, in Catholic school, if you tweaked a recited prayer with witticisms, the nuns would whack your hands with rulers. Ouch! However, if you did not want to recite the pledge in public school, you didn�t have to. Some kids just stood there � again, an option I am willing to accept as the basic minimum for showing respect to the land that houses, feeds and educates you, and gives you all the freedoms we so often take for granted. And we do take them for granted, especially kids who don�t know better.
We so often stand accused of forcing our ideas down other people�s throats, but the fact stands out: America is still the top choice for immigrants the world over. Why do they come? If you told them, �you know, your child(ren) will have to stand up and recite a pledge of allegiance to America in front of Old Glory,� do you think they�d say, �Ah, hell with it.� Most immigrants would be only too glad to do so as a gesture and ultimate thank-you to their adopted land. Give �em credit � often times immigrants know better than dyed-in-the-wool citizens. They know what it�s like to do without the basic freedoms in thought, speech and most actions that America possesses in abundance.
I love your last point (sentence). So true.
Ashlynnhaven: �I think that, if we are to require kids to recite the pledge (which by the way I think is a good thing) we should give them more information on what it means. I remember standing with the class and listening to my best friend recite under her breath "I pledge allegiance to Queen Frag, in her mighty state of hysteria..." The kids stand there with glazed eyes, right hand somewhere near their heart, and mutter sleepily about allegiance, when they really don't understand it.�
LOL, Epiphany. I have never heard the �Queen Frag� twist on the pledge of allegiance during my elementary school days, but I remember it well from a Calvin & Hobbes comic. Calvin was the prototype for the sort of children you mention � indeed, most children. They are rebellious by nature and are only interested in the ideas forming in their young minds. They resent the dictates of adults. And surely, if this pledge of allegiance thing is so important to adults, then you can rest assured, children will mock it.
This is perfectly understandable. Children learn what it means in retrospect. I sure did. I look back 30 years and say, �ain�t no crime.� Most Americans would say the same. Were we indoctrinated? Yes. Harmfully? No. In an enriching manner? Yes. Emphatically yes.
A good place to reinforce the meaning of the pledge of allegiance and stress its existence to children is during their American history classes, I should think. That is where we learn about the sacrifices made to establish the American nation. If kids are taught to put two and two together, they will understand. Perhaps they will still rebel with their silence or their �Queen Frag� references. But, no-one is going to deny kids a bit of natural dissent. Again, they will only really appreciate it in their adulthoods, when looking back in retrospect.
Plastroncafe: �I also don't think it's a good idea for school children to recite a pledge that they don't understand. I would rather have one true patriot who knows and comprehends all that goes with their pledge, than 1000 drones who parrot what they're told to do so.�
Pretty similar to what Epiphany said, but again, kids will never truly know the meanings of things held in such lofty adult standards until they�ve learned and experienced life a bit more. True patriots are bred in the classroom. That, second only to the home, is where devotion to certain people and standards are taught. Following that line of argument, the pledge of allegiance would certainly appear to have its place.
Is it safe for me to assume, Colleen, that you consider yourself enriched by the pledge? Or do you feel as though you were cruelly indoctrinated in retrospect?
Although we are free to decide for ourselves the importance of such things such as patriotism � how much we have and how much we feel we should have � are matters for the conscience. But consciences are partly formed by information fed to them at young ages. Is it any wonder that Americans are so loudly patriotic, given the existence of the pledge of allegiance? No. If this is indoctrination, please forgive for saying it�s very small fry on the scale of others that exist in the world, past and present.
� M.E.M.
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