Isn't it odd that it is only in schools—and, I think, only in elementary schools—that the Pledge of Allegiance is regularly used? Does anyone know of any circumstances where ADULTS are required to say the Pledge of Allegiance? I think it's obvious why not. Adults wouldn't stand for it (literally or figuratively). If they ever tried to make it mandatory for adults, you'd find out quick how many people really believe the Pledge is a good thing. People are so hypocritical in how they treat kids! Kids are forced to put up with a lot of bullshit that adults wouldn't tolerate for themselves, but they will tolerate having done to their kids. And kids are so used to putting up with adults' bullshit, especially in school, that they usually don't protest, even when they know it's bullshit.

I heard some interesting stuff on talk radio this morning. (I don't normally listen to talk radio, but my local public radio station is having its pledge drive.)

The original author of the Pledge was a Christian socialist.

He originally wanted it to read, "...with liberty, equality, and justice for all" but he realized it wouldn't fly that way, so he dropped "equality." (This was before women could vote, when blacks were severely restricted by Jim Crow laws, and when even Catholics and Jews didn't stand a chance of getting elected to public office.)

(Click here for a web page where you can add your name to a petition to put "equality" back in. I'd sign it myself, but I'd feel like a hypocrite. What I'd really prefer is to drop the Pledge altogether.)

Various groups have campaigned to change the Pledge for various reasons. For instance, some prolifers want it to say, "...with liberty and justice for all, born and unborn."

See "The Pledge of Allegiance: A Short History" by Dr. John W. Baer.