I've never really had a problem with the Pledge of Allegiance before, but after hearing about the latest news surrounding the pledge, I think I might have to reconsider.
In the video, a member of the press interrupts Barack Obama for the sole purpose of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. (Apparently, it is common practice to begin town hall meetings with the pledge. Who knew?) Afterward, he goes on a somewhat bizarre diatribe (3:50 in the video) stating that we shouldn't "disrespect the flag." Ironically, he follows that up by stating that "this is a free country" (5:04). Really? Because I don't think you really believe that...
It's almost too easy: he makes my point for me. This is a free country; therefore, we each have the right to do as we please. Guess what? That means I don't have to say the stinkin' Pledge of Allegiance if I don't want to. Freedom doesn't mean we have the right to do (or not do) anything we want until you tell us we can't. Look, there are a lot of things that people do on a daily basis that agitate me (neighbors playing their music too loudly next to my apartment...), but there's nothing I can do about it. And you know what? I'm happy it's that way. Sure, I'm definitely upset at the time, but given the alternative, I'd rather we all have the right to act like morons than be told what we can and cannot do.
The great thing about America is that we have many freedoms. If an individual chooses to not recite the pledge, that is their right to do so. You see, I have a problem with people (like this man) who consider certain actions or choices as being "unpatriotic." If you have a problem with people being able to make their own decisions, then as far as I'm concerned, it is you who is unpatriotic. This country was founded upon the principles of freedom and democracy, which means we do as we please. There is no room for those who wish we all followed a specified way of life. If that's what you're looking for, try living in Iran, I hear they have a great authoritarian government...and the housing is way cheap! Unfortunately, people make poor choices all the time, but that is their right (in this country) to make them.
On a related note, I find it humorous that this man does not even know how to properly recite the Pledge of Allegiance. He begins by stating, "I pledge allegiance to the United States of America," in this video (0:43). Sure, this is completely irrelevant to my argument, but I just couldn't resist pointing this out and delivering the low blow :)
I also remember being told that it should not be said, "one nation, under God," but actually, "one nation under God" (no pause between the two). Of course, I could be wrong, but I remember that I heard this on very good authority, so if anyone knows the truth, please let me know. If it turns out I'm right, it's just another example of this man's ignorance. If I'm wrong, then I guess it is just I who is ignorant.
In the video, a member of the press interrupts Barack Obama for the sole purpose of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. (Apparently, it is common practice to begin town hall meetings with the pledge. Who knew?) Afterward, he goes on a somewhat bizarre diatribe (3:50 in the video) stating that we shouldn't "disrespect the flag." Ironically, he follows that up by stating that "this is a free country" (5:04). Really? Because I don't think you really believe that...
It's almost too easy: he makes my point for me. This is a free country; therefore, we each have the right to do as we please. Guess what? That means I don't have to say the stinkin' Pledge of Allegiance if I don't want to. Freedom doesn't mean we have the right to do (or not do) anything we want until you tell us we can't. Look, there are a lot of things that people do on a daily basis that agitate me (neighbors playing their music too loudly next to my apartment...), but there's nothing I can do about it. And you know what? I'm happy it's that way. Sure, I'm definitely upset at the time, but given the alternative, I'd rather we all have the right to act like morons than be told what we can and cannot do.
The great thing about America is that we have many freedoms. If an individual chooses to not recite the pledge, that is their right to do so. You see, I have a problem with people (like this man) who consider certain actions or choices as being "unpatriotic." If you have a problem with people being able to make their own decisions, then as far as I'm concerned, it is you who is unpatriotic. This country was founded upon the principles of freedom and democracy, which means we do as we please. There is no room for those who wish we all followed a specified way of life. If that's what you're looking for, try living in Iran, I hear they have a great authoritarian government...and the housing is way cheap! Unfortunately, people make poor choices all the time, but that is their right (in this country) to make them.
On a related note, I find it humorous that this man does not even know how to properly recite the Pledge of Allegiance. He begins by stating, "I pledge allegiance to the United States of America," in this video (0:43). Sure, this is completely irrelevant to my argument, but I just couldn't resist pointing this out and delivering the low blow :)
I also remember being told that it should not be said, "one nation, under God," but actually, "one nation under God" (no pause between the two). Of course, I could be wrong, but I remember that I heard this on very good authority, so if anyone knows the truth, please let me know. If it turns out I'm right, it's just another example of this man's ignorance. If I'm wrong, then I guess it is just I who is ignorant.
3 comments:
Quinton! When did you become so libertarian? ;)
On this stance, I perfectly agree with you. I think that if one decides not to pledge allegiance to the flag, that is fine if he has good reason not to (i.e. Jehovah's Witnesses feel it is against their religion to pledge any kind of allegiance to anyone but God). I think if you don't have a good reason, you're just one of those people who jump on the bandwagon, like those people who say the Beatles are overrated just to feel like they are cool, but that is not necessarily bad or wrong or illegal and I digress.
The problem with absolute freedom is that it can cause some severe problems. As you put it, "Freedom doesn't mean we have the right to do (or not do) anything we want until you tell us we can't." But there are certainly limits to how that freedom applies that most people agree on.
A great example of this is our beloved "freedom of speech." In Oliver Wendell Holmes' explanation of Schenck vs. United States in 1919, he cited the now popular saying that even the most strict interpretation of freedom of speech would not protect a man from falsely yelling "fire!" in a theater.
(I do not agree with Holmes' ruling in this case, but the point still stands.)
Most people would agree that a man yelling "fire!" falsely in a full theater would cause a severe panic and injury and even death in the ensuing trampling. Very few people would buy his argument that he is merely exercising his freedom of speech.
Where we draw the line on this subject is a matter of very large debate, which is a good, strong, healthy debate. Some restrictions of freedom are relatively silly (such as not reciting the pledge of allegiance at a town hall meeting), but others are of very intense and interesting debate, and we shouldn't discount that. After all, the Supreme Court rulings are only a long history of where exactly freedom begins and ends.
But to reiterate, I think the guy was an idiot. But I guess even he has the right to say what he thinks. ;)
And to clarify my position a little bit further, I personally believe that it is important to maintain our freedoms at the expense of our comfort and our security, than the other way around. It's what you get when you're an ex-journalist. ;)
In other words:
"The genius of intellectual pluralism lies not in doing away with prejudices and dogmas but in channeling them - making them socially productive by pitting prejudice against prejudice and dogma against dogma, exposing all to withering public criticism. What survives at the end of the day is our base of knowledge.
"Pluralism is the principle that protects and makes a place in human company for that loneliest and most vulnerable of all minorities, the minority who is hounded and despised among blacks and whites, gays and straights, who is suspect or criminal among every tribe and in every nation of the world, and yet on whom progress depends: the dissident."
- Jonathan Rauch, "In Defense of Prejudice"
Hahaha, I agree that I do sound more and more libertarian with each passing day...
But of course, I do not believe in "absolute freedom," though the meaning of this phrase is ambiguous at best. When I think of absolute freedom, I think of it as everyone having the right to do whatever they want, whenever they please. Of course, this idea of absolute freedom is impossible, as we shall soon see.
The great LIBERTARIAN thinker and economist Milton Friedman writes in Capitalism and Freedom,"The major problem in deciding the appropriate activities of government is how to resolve such conflicts among the freedoms of different individuals. In some cases, the answer is easy. There is little difficulty in attaining near unanimity to the proposition that one man's freedom to murder his neighbor must be sacrificed to preserve the freedom of the other man to live."
Obviously, "absolute freedom" cannot be maintained because invariably there will be conflicts, such as Friedman describes, where one person's freedom infringes upon another's freedom. Therefore, there will always be trade-offs when it comes to freedoms between individuals and groups. If one person does everything that they please, then it limits the freedoms of another, thus falling short of our definition of absolute freedom.
A controversial example is censorship: do I have the right to scream expletives in public? Or do I have the right to advertise my Neo-Nazi beliefs on television? (For the record, I am NOT a Neo-Nazi, though I DO sometimes curse in public. Okay, that's not really true either...)
Does my right to free speech overrule the rights of many to be free from such language or messages? A less contentious and excellent example would be the classic example you provided concerning yelling, "Fire!" in a crowded theater.
To conclude my little comment here, I will respond in kind to your Supreme Court quote with a quote of my own, which comes from the longest tenured justice in American history: William O. Douglas. Concerning freedom, he said, "My freedom to move my fist must be limited by the proximity of your chin."
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