It may be true that patriotism is not what it once was. If so, one of the biggest signs may be this attempt to indoctrinate our children - isn't this a tactic of totalitarian regimes? Is there so little to love about our country that we need to FORCE children to declare their devotion to it? This is a bad idea for a bunch of reasons:
- It doesn't work. Just about everyone in my generation grew up saying the pledge every day. It didn't make you stop to think about this country, our form of government, or anything else - it was just something you did at the beginning of the day. After learning it, I don't remember spending one single second thinking about it afterward.
- It's unnecessary. Most grade schools already say the pledge every day. There's plenty of overt patriotic symbols available, both in and out of school - the pledge of allegiance, the flag flying at schools, businesses, and public buildings, and the Star Spangled Banner played before every sporting event. If that's not enough to show our love of country, I don't know what is.
- It is against our traditional values to force someone to say a pledge. We have a long and proud tradition of being able to control what we do and don't say - do we need to lean on students to get them to go along with this? (and, yes, I know the proposed law doesn't FORCE students to say the pledge - it just forces it to be led in every class. If you don't think that will force students to participate, you haven't been in school for a while)
- It's a poor solution to a nonexistent problem. I don't see any signs that our youth are less patriotic than past generations. If they are, saying the pledge won't fix it.
- Passing this law will take up time and effort that would be better spent working on real solutions to real problems. We've got serious problems - budget issues, a struggling economy, a failing education system - and the most important thing we can think to do is pass a law requiring students to say the Pledge of Allegiance every day? It makes no sense!
Great post, Gregg!
ReplyDeleteThis always reminded me of the old Soviet Union, or Mao's Red China, where they had to brainwash kids with mindless repetition.
Apparently, Fulton and his supporters don't think much of America. Yeah, you can't teach children our real history, you can't teach them of how we've made mistakes, but have improved what started out as the world's first and best secular democracy.
Apparently, there's nothing there to admire, huh? So, in the absence of reasons for real love of country, we're forced to brainwash our kids with mindless, repetitive, ostentatious displays of patriotism?
I think a lot more of America than that!
I'm reading a book called In the Garden of the Beasts about Germany in 1933. The storm troopers would go around and beat people up if they didn't do the heil Hitler salute when required - and the Nazis required it for everything. They thought if you didn't stick your arm up in the air with everyone else you were anti-patriotic. I hate group think.
ReplyDeletePersonally I feel the most patriotic when I read history books about our country. Maybe they should just teach more history in schools.
When I was a kid I always felt stupid saying the pledge. I thought our flag was the best of any nation's, but everyone talking to it at once seemed weird.
I appreciate the comments. When I first read about this, it sounded like a joke - I mean, do we REALLY think our big problem is we're not patriotic enough?
ReplyDeleteOf course, I'm not convinced even Tony Fulton thinks this is a real problem - it's just a political move to get his name out there. If introduced, this will pass with virtually no opposition, since what politician will come out against the flag, Mom, and apple pie?
I remember saying the pledge in school when I was younger, but by High school I don't remember doing a pledge. Maybe by then I just stood up and said "yeah whatever" instead of the pledge.
ReplyDeleteI love America and don't plan on living anywhere else, but the older I got the stranger it seemed to be talking to a flag.