March 3, 2005
The Pledge
Kenneth Quinnell, in his essay Why I Don't Say the Pledge of Allegiance states:
But the very concept of a Pledge of Allegiance is wrong in a free country.He elaborates on this at some length and I could, and I'm sure some others might, debate some of his points.
I do, though, agree with his basic point that free individuals have no obligation to recite a pledge of allegiance.
On the other hand, there is a group who by dint of their position should recite a pledge...probably several times per day. That would be the set of government employees, elected, appointed or hired, throughout the world. Our servants: congress critters, kings and queens, premiers, secretaries of desks and states, governors, presidents, soldiers, firepersons, police, mayors, etc.
They, each and everyone, in every government job throughout the world should start their day with something like:
I pledge allegiance to the people of name your jurisdiction and swear to protect their lives, help them maintain their liberty and assist them in their pursuit of happiness.
...and repeat it frequently throughout the day and once again before going to sleep at night.
Posted by Steve on March 3, 2005
