First, I don't think that such a fuss should be made about things like "In God We Trust" and the mention of God in the Pledge of Allegiance. The one, you don't ever really encounter except on currency and some official seals; the other, well, no one's forcing you to say it. There were a few atheists at my high school who, when we said the Pledge, simply said "...one nation, indivisible...". It's not that hard. If you're the sort of person who gets all ferhoodled when someone else believes in God... well, you need to get over yourself. Plain and simple. Stop stepping on my right to have faith in a higher power of my choosing. Most Americans believe in some form of God. It's not like we're saying "In Jesus We Trust" or "...one nation, under Jesus...". Yes, the general implication is of the Judeo-Christian God, but there's no reason why you can't choose to interpret the mentions of God differently in accordance with your personal beliefs, or just disregard them entirely.
You're rather young yet, but I don't expect you to remember this if it happened in your school. As children, we would stand up in the morning every day and one student would lead the class in the Pledge of Allegiance. The problem wasn't so much Atheists, it was children who come from different ethnic and religious backgrounds who had know idea what they were saying, but were only saying it so they would "fit in."
An example of a child really not knowing what they were saying when it came to the Pledge is me. For the longest time I thought it said, "I pledge Elysian to the flag / of the United States of America." Elysian was a town close to where I lived. Secondly, kids find great fun in picking on other kids who don't participate in group events. One child who stays seated will be the aim of all ridicule.
For parents who don't believe in God, are Muslim, etc, they should not feel as though they need to participate in the Pledge if they are not of that religion. It's immoral to force people to do such a thing and knock it off as "that's just how America is." Rather close-minded thought from the world's leading power who is supposed to be setting a good example.
Another thing is that the Pledge didn't always have "under God" in it's lyrics. In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower had those words added to the Pledge--they weren't originally there.
I'm sorry, it just really annoys me when people decide that their beliefs are more important than those of others. Especially when you're in the minority. I'll accommodate, I'll respect, but I don't think I need to totally change just because of someone else.
But it's okay for you to? The simplest way is to remain neutral in public areas. If you think the "God" aspect should just widely be accepted (and you believe in him strongly, as well) then I suggest you go to a close-minded school that accepts and teaches those opinions as well: Christian School. This country needs to change--religion was not supposed to play such a key role in the state/government/Congress, but it does. Look at McCain/Palin. No same-sex marriage, no abortions for people who have been raped or incest. I'm sorry, but the last thing I want is to have the baby of the man who raped me. And if America bans abortion we will move backward in the world. It would be as though we decided to go back to being racist and sexist. The rest of the world will look down upon us and our approval will drop significantly.
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branchandroot
Pt 1.
Date: 28 September 2008 14:23 (UTC)You're rather young yet, but I don't expect you to remember this if it happened in your school. As children, we would stand up in the morning every day and one student would lead the class in the Pledge of Allegiance. The problem wasn't so much Atheists, it was children who come from different ethnic and religious backgrounds who had know idea what they were saying, but were only saying it so they would "fit in."
An example of a child really not knowing what they were saying when it came to the Pledge is me. For the longest time I thought it said, "I pledge Elysian to the flag / of the United States of America." Elysian was a town close to where I lived. Secondly, kids find great fun in picking on other kids who don't participate in group events. One child who stays seated will be the aim of all ridicule.
For parents who don't believe in God, are Muslim, etc, they should not feel as though they need to participate in the Pledge if they are not of that religion. It's immoral to force people to do such a thing and knock it off as "that's just how America is." Rather close-minded thought from the world's leading power who is supposed to be setting a good example.
Another thing is that the Pledge didn't always have "under God" in it's lyrics. In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower had those words added to the Pledge--they weren't originally there.
But it's okay for you to? The simplest way is to remain neutral in public areas. If you think the "God" aspect should just widely be accepted (and you believe in him strongly, as well) then I suggest you go to a close-minded school that accepts and teaches those opinions as well: Christian School. This country needs to change--religion was not supposed to play such a key role in the state/government/Congress, but it does. Look at McCain/Palin. No same-sex marriage, no abortions for people who have been raped or incest. I'm sorry, but the last thing I want is to have the baby of the man who raped me. And if America bans abortion we will move backward in the world. It would be as though we decided to go back to being racist and sexist. The rest of the world will look down upon us and our approval will drop significantly.