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Under God, in the Pledge of Allegiance... *SPEECH NOW AVAILABLE*

A

Actaeon

Diamond Member
The quote "Under God", in the Pledge of Allegiance. With everyone not following the same religion, and seperation of church and state and all that, do you feel it should be removed? Why? On a side note, no matter which side you take, would you care if it changed?

I have a speech I need to do about this subject. My speech will have to persuade my listeners to my opinion on the matter. I would just like to hear some opinions and thoughts on either side of the arguement from the members of our board before I being writing the paper.

I know this is a controversial issue, but please, no flaming.

I did a quick search for "under god", and nothing came up. I wasn't sure if this was political or not, so I decided OT would be the best place for now.

Thanks

Edit: Fixed a grammar issue.

Edit: Fixed another.




Update!

Here is the initial rough draft of my speech...

I pledge allegiance to my flag and the republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. It sounds quite different than what we are used to. That was the original pledge of allegiance written by Francis Bellamy in 1892. My speech to you is regarding the phrase ?under god? in our pledge, and why it should be removed. I will be discussing the history of the pledge, how it has transformed from its original phrase to its current revision. I will also go over why the phrase is unnecessary in our pledge. Lastly, I will share why many others and I want the change. With an open mind, and some new knowledge, maybe you will feel the same way many others do about removing the phrase from our pledge to the flag.

According to history.vineyard.net, the original pledge of allegiance was written by Francis Bellamy in August of 1892. Mr. Bellamy was a Baptist Minister, obviously a very religious man. In the 1923 and 1924 National Flag Conference, the American Legion and the Daughters of the American Revolution changed the words ?my flag? to ?the Flag of the United States to America?. Despite the fact that Bellamy did not approve of the change, it was changed regardless. According to Wikipedia.org, in 1954, the Knights of Columbus persuaded Congress to add the words ?Under God? to the pledge. Many feel this was done because of the Red Scare involving the Cold War, Soviet Union, and communists of the era. Atheism is often associated with the Soviet Union and communism. The then-proposed change was to bring faith into America. During this time, it was regarded as a ?you?re with us, or you?re a communist? kind of deal. Mr. Bellamy was deceased when this change was made, but his granddaughter said that he would have resented this changed. This is how the pledge has been modified from the original, into its modern state.

Now, the current phrase ?Under God? is completely unnecessary in our Pledge of Allegiance. The Pledge is supposed to be an oath to our country, not a pledge of our faith. As I stated earlier, the quote was never in the original pledge. The pledge was even written by a church minister, and he believed it should have been a pledge to your country, and nothing more. Our country was founded under the principles of an individual?s freedom, and religion should not be imposed on its citizens. It goes against the foundation this country was created upon. Besides, anyone who would care enough about keeping the quote should have enough faith that they should be praying on a regular basis anyway, so why does it need to be included in the pledge to our flag? The answer is simple, it doesn?t. There was no good reason to even include the phrase in the pledge to our flag, and there is no reason at all to keep it.

Lastly, many others, including myself, feel this is a slight violation of our rights. I love this nation as much as anybody else, so why can?t I commit an oath to our country without also committing to a religious figure? Not everyone shares the same religion. Why is it God, and not some other religious figure practiced by other religions? For those who support keeping the phrase, put yourself in our shoes. Why not ?Under Buddhism?, or ?Under Allah?? Do you believe that you would still feel the same way about the pledge we have now if it was changed from your religion to another? I bet you would not, but for many of us, it doesn?t even matter, it doesn?t belong there in the first place. Religion should be kept to an individual?s household level and should not be forced upon other people in public environments.

I have expressed my support about the change in the pledge. I brought up how it has been changed from its original state to its current revision we have now. I mentioned why it doesn?t make sense to have this additional phrase included, and lastly, I discussed why people of this nation feel the same way I do. I love the fact that we have the freedom to carry differing views of beliefs within our country, but must it be expressed and forced upon others? The answer is no.
Click to expand...

LMK what you think. I wrote it in a couple of hours. I honestly believe alot of it is poorly written, and I don't expect it to win any national prizes, its just to give me at least a B. I am up for any positive criticism. I'm kinda iffy with the ending, it sounds a bit too dramatic... but oh well.

Thanks

EDIT: I changed the original ending... i like it better now, but still a bit iffy.
 
Yes, because as you said, not everyone is the same religion and not everyone believes in God.
 
Yep, it needs to be removed. It was an addition anyway...

I pledge allegiance
To my flag
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation, indivisible
With libery and justice for all.

 
Originally posted by: hjo3
Originally posted by: Actaeon
I know this is a controversial issue, but please, don't flaming.

Edit: Fixed a grammar issue.
Click to expand...
Not very well.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Fixed.

On a side note, no matter which side you take, would you care if it changed?
 
I'd say I don't really care except it was added later and is silly.

If you start this game, it will never stop, money would be the next logical target
 
Originally posted by: Dedpuhl
Yep, it needs to be removed. It was an addition anyway...

I pledge allegiance
To my flag
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation, indivisible
With libery and justice for all.
Click to expand...

what about

"and to the United States of America"
 
It should go. This country (yeah I know some ATers aren't in the US, but 98% are, and you guys make fun of us enough as is 🙁) was founded on the principle of freedom, which should extend to religion. If you consider religion a belief system (what else would it be?) then atheism and polytheism are valid alternatives to what the pledge states.
 
Originally posted by: yoda291
I think if this bothers you, you need to take a look at your priorities.
Click to expand...

So then we should ignore all but the biggest problems? Microsoft does that...
 
Originally posted by: yoda291
I think if this bothers you, you need to take a look at your priorities.
Click to expand...

Where did you get the idea that it bothers me? It is a paper I have to write, and speak to the class about. It was assigned.
 
I couldn't care whether or not it stays. If anything, I would feel inclined for it to be removed just to watch people cry over it.
 
Originally posted by: ed21x
Originally posted by: Dedpuhl
Yep, it needs to be removed. It was an addition anyway...

I pledge allegiance
To my flag
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation, indivisible
With libery and justice for all.
Click to expand...

what about

"and to the United States of America"
Click to expand...

You mean "of the United States of America" following "to THE flag"..or at least that's how I learned it.

And since "Under God" should never have been there in the first place, it should be removed.
 
Originally posted by: nboy22
Yes, because as you said, not everyone is the same religion and not everyone believes in God.
Click to expand...
Agreed, even athieists (sic?) should be able to swear allegience.
Given that it (under God) wasn't added until the 50's, during the Red Scare, is even more reason.

 
Originally posted by: ed21x
Originally posted by: Dedpuhl
Yep, it needs to be removed. It was an addition anyway...

I pledge allegiance
To my flag
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation, indivisible
With libery and justice for all.
Click to expand...

what about

"and to the United States of America"
Click to expand...


That was also an addition. The original pledge was as I stated.
 
First off, and I could be mistaken, but the term God is a generic term for an all powerful being, so technically "under God" encompasses nearly all religions that believe in a supreme being. That alone comprises the majority of people in this nation, therefore, as is usually the case in a Democracy, majority rules. I think that this nation has gotten into the role of catering to the minority, the least common denominator and it sickens me. All these people fight against the flow and want to force everyone around them to conform to their demands and standards.

PS-bet you can't guess my religious affiliation or faith!
 
just got done with this in my HUM101 class

it was put in there because of the communist scare - they wanted to put some religion in America to show they are not communist.

It was "accepted" because of a "rally around the flag" type action from the American people (you are with us, or you are communist)

of course congress said it was for no one religion - but then again it says "under God" not Gods, and it was for the main christian God.

/rant
 
Originally posted by: Rogue
First off, and I could be mistaken, but the term God is a generic term for an all powerful being, so technically "under God" encompasses nearly all religions that believe in a supreme being. That alone comprises the majority of people in this nation, therefore, as is usually the case in a Democracy, majority rules. I think that this nation has gotten into the role of catering to the minority, the least common denominator and it sickens me. All these people fight against the flow and want to force everyone around them to conform to their demands and standards.

PS-bet you can't guess my religious affiliation or faith!
Click to expand...

(y)

Originally posted by: Dedpuhl
Yep, it needs to be removed. It was an addition anyway...

I pledge allegiance
To my flag
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation, indivisible
With libery and justice for all.
Click to expand...

What else after this? The democrats say they don't want the word republic in there?
The KKK want the word liberty for all change too?

 
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