Patriotism from a Liberal: I Say The Pledge

When the second period bell rings, I leave my chair, face the flag, and pledge allegiance. I do not to pledge allegiance to the United States, because I am allegiant to no government, and I do not pledge allegiance to the validation of god, because secularism dictates my actions, but I do pledge allegiance to the flag and the noble ideals that embody its existence—life, liberty, and the justice of the people, by the people, for the people.

On November 19^th 1863, Lincoln recited the Gettysburg Address not because he believed that slaves should be free, which he did, and not because he wanted a united nation, which he yearned for; rather, he said those 278 words because he truly believed that the ruination of a country whose very existence is founded in liberty, justice, and equality would portend the destruction of mankind as a whole. The Gettysburg Address, along with the Declaration of Independence, set a historic precedent that altered the face of history. I pledge my allegiance to the ideals the flag represents, not the administration that attempts to fulfill them.