Pledge of Allegiance in Schools

[Anonymous]

Dyslexic agnostic insomniac?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dyslexic agnostic insomniac?

kinda a great description of me!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dyslexic agnostic insomniac?

kinda a great description of me!

staying up all night wondering if there really is a dog?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids attend the same school as you OP and the few times I was in my child's class, it was too much commotion to even participate.

The teacher even mumbled it was a waste of two minutes. Furthermore you can barely hear it over the PA system.

How about standing, placing hand to heart, facing flag and saying pledge? Fantastic use of two minutes. I'm loving we are finally saying the pledge in DC public schools - when I taught in them it was not done. Too bad. There is much worthwhile in the pledge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids attend the same school as you OP and the few times I was in my child's class, it was too much commotion to even participate.

The teacher even mumbled it was a waste of two minutes. Furthermore you can barely hear it over the PA system.

How about standing, placing hand to heart, facing flag and saying pledge? Fantastic use of two minutes. I'm loving we are finally saying the pledge in DC public schools - when I taught in them it was not done. Too bad. There is much worthwhile in the pledge.

As a teacher, I have to say I would happily jettison the whole morning announcement routine so that we could check homework and have our class morning meeting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you stand, remove your hat, hand over heart, anything during the national anthem? (directed to those who find the pledge fascist, immoral, etc)

I don't, no. I never said the pledge in school. My parents were from different countries and that's where my allegiance was, and still is. I would never lie about that to please some teacher.

[Anonymous]

Do other DCPS participate in this exercise? What about MD or VA schools?

Would you leave a school because you were strongly against it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you stand, remove your hat, hand over heart, anything during the national anthem? (directed to those who find the pledge fascist, immoral, etc)

I don't, no. I never said the pledge in school. My parents were from different countries and that's where my allegiance was, and still is. I would never lie about that to please some teacher.

Then WTH are you doing here, other than reaping the benefits of living in the USA, of course.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hated singing that only because I was SO SHY about my (terrible) singing voice!

I'm just open minded about this stuff. My kids say the pledge. They also go to a fantastic Jewish preschool and participate in Shabbat on Fridays, prayers and all (in hebrew) and we are atheist. I think it's so cool. I just don't really "get" the whole "it's immoral to pledge allegiance to something so evil" if you live here. Or the "I whip out boggle during our anthem". Maybe I'm just some hormonal mother sucker but the anthem usually brings a tear to my eye, somehow especially if it's a child singing it. Our country is so far from perfect-- but so am I. Something about being in a huge stadium and seeing so many people standing, hands over heart, some singing- it just gives me hope that just MAYBE we really can come together as one. Or more like one. Or that we can do better. And I think that uniting over SOMETHING is powerful. So when I see these sweet kids, PROUD that they memorized this (my kids are not religious)......it just makes me happy. Maybe I'm just a stupid sap, but I don't see the evil in it.

I grew up JW. Here are the reasons they cannot pledge.

http://thejehovahswitnesses.org/flag.php

Yes, because they are theologically impaired. Thats a whole different issue.

[Anonymous]

And here's the third verse of the Star Spangled Banner, the one that no one ever sings:

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore,
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a Country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.