It's Not Unconstitutional To Be A Jerk

And Mike Newdow will be invited to none of my dinner parties. But  I have no problem with this:

Judge Rules Pledge of Allegiance in Calif. Schools Unconstitutional

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 14 -- A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the law requiring the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools is unconstitutional and said he was ready to issue an injunction to three California school districts to halt the daily reciting of the pledge.

Terming the case "a cause celebre in the ongoing struggle as to the role of religion in the civil life of this nation," U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton ruled that the pledge's reference to "one nation under God" violates children's right to be "free from a coercive requirement to affirm God."...

"The pendulum is swinging in the wrong direction in our country," [attorney Jared] Leland said. "Mike  Newdow is on a train whose destination is designed to hide and undermine the role of religion in public life. We want to restore religion to the public square."

Agreed, just not compulsory religion. I mean it's a pledge.

The lede and some of the stories make it sound as if the issue is reciting the pledge, period, but this is all about the God clause. I will pledge my allegiance to God in church. Since we can all agree the nation exists--well, most of us--let's stick to that.

Comments

[J.K.]

It continues to amaze me every time this issue comes up, mainly because the phrase "under God" isn't the only, or main problem with the Pledge. Being a Christian myself, I find the idea of pledging fealty to an object (the flag) something akin to idolatry. Actually, the Disciple Matthew states: "Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths". And what is the pledge if not an oath? Do we demand loyalty oaths in this country? I thought that idea was struck down in the 50's with McCarthy. And are our children any better citizens for having repeated these words day after day? "Indivisible" certainly isn't the most accurate word to describe the condition of this country that I can think of either.
"Under God"? Well whose? Mine? Yours? Unless the names of Allah or Buddha or Zoroaster are included as well it would still leave out those who chose not to worship any God, as unappealing as that may seem to those who would continue to prop up a useless tradition that the country has simply outgrown.
Oh, and religion has never been taken out of the public square. Each one of us carries our faith in our hearts and the first amendment allows us to express it at any time. just not when we're speaking on behalf of the government.

"Free people pledge allegiance to nothing. Freedom defies allegiances, let alone necessitates their pledges. One is not free in devotion to governments, one is free in defiance of governments. Free people don’t worship an ideal; they live it."

http://caveshadows.typepad.com/cave_shadows/2005/09/none_dare_call_.html

[Christopher Fotos]

Addressing only the last remark for now, I'll quote Hemingway: Isn't it pretty to think so. Nation-building is a neglected art inside the United States, and those who feel put-upon by pledging allegiance to the country are free to make no claims upon the laws or the armies that protect them.

In other words, freedom isn't free.