"Under God"

[DrFaroohk]

Just curious...would the big problem with the POA, mainly being the "Under God" line, make everyone happy if it was "Under god"? I know it's such a minor change, but at the same time seems like it'd satisfy everyone's problems.

[AdminAssistant]

Why not just take god out entirely?

[jackfaire]

Just curious...would the big problem with the POA, mainly being the "Under God" line, make everyone happy if it was "Under god"? I know it's such a minor change, but at the same time seems like it'd satisfy everyone's problems.

In what way?

I mean I think your getting at then the little g implies we aren't just talking about the Christian god but the thing is this isn't something read silently and sit down.

This is something that is spoken aloud. Altering the way the word looks in writing makes no difference if not altered how it is heard.

It would be like snickering when talking to a Grammar Nazi cuz dude I totally said Their awesome instead of They're awesome and she totally didn't catch it.

[DrFaroohk]

There was a word I learned in English class...it means...two words that sound the same, but mean different things. This could be one of those words!

[Gravekeeper]

Seeing as "Under God" was a recent edition it should be removed completely. But the revisionist historians on the right would lose their shit if you tried. You'd be attacking the ficitional Christian Nation that never actually existed that they all fondly remember the Founding Fathers creating in an imaginary history book.

[jackfaire]

There was a word I learned in English class...it means...two words that sound the same, but mean different things. This could be one of those words!

Homonym yeah I know. That's my point the people that feel uncomfortable saying Under God would lose and the people that want to push this as a Christian Nation would win.

[Duelist925]

There is pretty much no reason for it to be in the pledge. Hell, as the esteemable Lewis Black has stated, it was only added to differentiate us from the, in his wise words, "godless commie fucks", and since the cold wars over, yeah, pretty much useless now.

[bara]

I can see taking out the under god part and having it still make sense.

In fact. Pledging to the flag could easily be a form of idolatry, which to a christian should be a no no anyway.

[Gravekeeper]

I can see taking out the under god part and having it still make sense.

Well, seeing as "Under God" was *added* to the pledge, it would certainly make sense without it. Seeing as it was without to begin with. -.-

[Andara Bledin]

My objection with the PoA has nothing to do with the "under God" and everything to do with the whole pledging my allegiance to a piece of cloth.

But as for the OP question, there's no need for the phrase at all. If you follow God, then it's redundant (you don't have to publicly declare unless your faith is just for show), and if you're not, then you have no use for it in any fashion.

^-.-^

[Hyena Dandy]

It's not about it being the Christian God. It's about it being a god at all. Not everyone believes in god.

[DrFaroohk]

But your god could be money, or food, or coke, or American Dad.

Honestly I'm all for keeping it out of the pledge, its just sometimes the other people want that come off as royal shit disturbers. They don't care about the flag, the religion, or the constitution. They just learned something in history class and want to flex their political muscles.

These are people who it should be legal to physically assault.

[Hyena Dandy]

Some people are dicks. Like, saying that people shouldn't be able to be religious in public. I've been told 'keep your religion at home' for wearing a cross around my neck. That's being a dick.

But if a teacher wore a cross around their neck, that's different. Cover it up with a shirt if you have to wear it. Same with under god. Asking for no reference to god or God in the pledge isn't a problem.

What I'd suggest is what my school did. Put a space in when the person on the PA is reading the Pledge. That way there's enough room for a student who wants to say Under God to say it, but there's no official endorsement of a religious viewpoint. While I see the New Atheist/Gnu Atheist movement as a religious movement, I'm sure that members wouldn't call Rationalism their god. Nor would Gravekeeper call The Buddha his god. And I think they're right in that.

[Gravekeeper]

I'm sure that members wouldn't call Rationalism their god. Nor would Gravekeeper call The Buddha his god.

Nope. I'm a pandeist. Heck, my perferred Buddha is actually a she. But Buddha's are not gods. Just people wiser than I am. ;p

I never really understood the pledge of allegience to begin with though. It seems kinda....what's the word I'm looking for? Indoctrination? Not quite that strong....diet indoctrination?

Overt nationalism makes me uncomfortable.

[radiocerk]

I've always felt that in a true democracy, which the US is not, the government should be pledging its allegiance to the people, not the other way around.