By RSOPerator

If you pay any attention to mainstream media today, you are well aware of the continuing controversy regarding our youth reciting The Pledge of Allegiance in the classroom.

I realize nothing I can say or do will change the minds of those whose agenda is to completely separate American children from a love for their country. That being said, I whole heartedly support the recitation of The Pledge, but there is something that troubles me about how it is currently being conducted in American classrooms. Many, if not most of our children simply do not know what many of the words in The Pledge mean. Essentially, young children are being invited and encouraged to make a Pledge that they simply do not understand, and I feel it is unfair to deny them that understanding.

In doing some investigating I’m finding that teachers in the public schools that still allow students to recite The Pledge are not making an effort to explain to their students what the words mean, nor do they explain the significance of what making such a pledge entails. This means that, for now, it’s up to the parents.

Whether or not you feel that an understanding of The Pledge of Allegiance should come before the decision to participate in reciting The Pledge, at some point shouldn’t we as Americans know what we are asserting when we stand up and place our hand on our heart?

I’ve included the words of The Pledge of Allegiance below, along with the definitions of all of the key words to help other parents and teachers explain to our children what The Pledge actually means. I encourage everyone reading this to share it with someone they love.

The Pledge of Allegiance (1954-present):

“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

Definitions:

Pledge: a solemn promise or agreement to do or refrain from doing something: a pledge of aid; a pledge not to wage war.

Allegiance: loyalty or devotion to some person, group, cause, or the like.

Republic: a state in which the supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by them.

Nation: a large body of people, associated with a particular territory, that is sufficiently conscious of its unity to seek or to possess a government peculiarly its own.

God: the one Supreme Being, the creator and ruler of the universe.

Indivisible: not divisible; not separable into parts; incapable of being divided.

Liberty: freedom from arbitrary or despotic government or control.

Justice: the maintenance or administration of what is just by law, as by judicial or other proceedings. the administering of deserved reward or punishment.

News Reporter
RSOP is the co-founder & Executive Editor of Radical Survivalism Webzine, as well as a Family Preparedness Consultant with over seven years of personal experience in the self-reliance game. RSOP's many preparedness roles within his own group include team mechanic, head of security, electrician, and project designer/engineer.