"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."
Recently, I was embroiled in a lively - and civil - discussion on having the words under God" appear in the Pledge, and whether or not they should be there, as they have been since 1954. I want to thank all those involved in said discussion, because it was kept civil, with no name-calling, etc. In this day and age, that's a pretty amazing feat.
Among the opinions expressed were several individuals claiming that it's not right to say "under God" since a lot of people do not believe in a deity. They were offended that they should have to express belief in such a concept, and that it was included in something pertaining to the State, since it had to do with religion. Now, I'm going to say this here: I personally do not care whether you believe in God, Allah, Yaweh, Jehovah, Buddha, Shiva, Ra, Zeus, Jupiter, Gaia, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, Cthulhu, or the Almighty Dollar. You believe as you do for your reasons. I don't have to understand your reasons - I just have to understand that you have them. I don't care whether you share my belief or not. Would I like it if you did? Well, it would give us one more thing in common to talk about, but I'm sure the same can be said from all perspectives.
But I was saddened, none the less - not at the opinions and points argued, but at what I've come to notice as a trend in this country. It is now a social "crime" to offend anyone - and what we are labeling as "offensive" is way, way, WAY out of control. When and how did we become such pansies that when someone says something we don't agree with, we become instantly offended and are owed an apology? Furthermore, we MUST argue and prove ourselves "right" to anyone and everyone! Why? What is the point of all this nonsense?
We have become a nation not of free thinkers, but a nation free from thought. I know my "liberal" friends will now be mortally offended at this statement, but it's true from the perspective that we don't "think" anymore - we simply react on how we feel and then argue the hell out of it. We are so desperately clinging to the idea of being able to think and have our own opinions that anyone or anything that expresses an idea opposite to our own draws our ire.
And all I have to ask is: THIS is a nation that's supposed to be a superpower in the world? We can't even agree on a uniform way to pledge our allegiance to our country!! Unified? We are only unified when it suits us, and really only on the basest of levels. We were all unified and pretty much universally agree that the attacks of 9/11/2001 were attrocious - but that's as far as that unity spreads, because we can't even agree on how - or IF - we should seek out and catch those responsible for it! Then, when someone makes a decision one way or another, we criticize the only people willing to make a decision on the topic because we don't like the method of action the individual(s) chose! It seems we're offended at having to make the choice, offended by the choice someone else has made for us after we abdicated making the choice, and then we're offended because that choice that we didn't make didn't turn out the way we wanted it to!
This is the New America. This is our legacy. You can blame liberal thinking, you can blame Conservative politics and structure, but the truth is that somewhere along the line, we stopped thinking about what was best for this country a long time ago, and we started only looking out for ourselves. There is nothing "United" about the U.S.A. Check your baggage and personal opinions at the door, and welcome to the Automoton Nation. That's the only way we can be assured to not offend anyone, ever.
We live in a culture of fear. Half the advertisements we read/see are based on a fear of something: fear of dirt, fear of an accident, fear of growing older, fear of getting fatter, fear of looking worse than anyone else, fear of being laughed at, fear of being alone...the list goes on and on and on. WHY DO WE FEAR BEING RESPONSIBLE FOR OURSELVES AND DOING THE BEST WE CAN???????? Why do we fear getting older, going bald, having less things than the nest person, etc? WHY DO WE LET FEAR WIN?
I don't know if you care to hear or not, but here's what I believe:
I believe in God. I believe that in the terms of The Pledge of Allegience the words "under God" mean that the USA will tolerate being second to no other power other than The Almighty on this earth, whatever the cost. I believe that men and woman are not equal, but that each should be given proper respect for their individual abilites, talents and gifts - in accordance with how they choose to use them. I believe that chivalry and graciousness have been out of common practice for far too long. I believe that nothing is free. I believe that sometimes, there is a proper order in which to do things, and sometimes it doesn't matter. I believe in telling those dear to you that you love them. I believe that children are watching us to learn how to be adults, so we better do a damned good job of modeling and teaching. I believe that we need each other in this life. I believe I am here for a purpose, and that I might never know what that purpose might be - and I'm OK with that. I believe that life is worth living, if we make it so. I believe in the power of a healing smile, a kind word, or a hug. I believe we all have to deal with disappointment - the point is to deal with it. I believe it's time we all started growing up a bit, stopped thinking like children, grew a spine and some thicker skin, and stop living in fear of everything, expecially each other.
Oh and I believe that if you were offended by any of my ramblings, I really don't care. Get over it. I have.
Thanks for reading,
The Fat Kid
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