pledge of allegiance

I always find it interesting to see what the members of the media choose to talk about. I am by no means surprised or upset that they spend so much time on the foreign policy and homeland security. Both issues deserve a great deal of attention. I am not even surprised that they ignore so many other important topics. They always have and they probably always will. But unlike Brendan Cavalier, I am pleasantly surprised to see that the media has decided to talk about the current Pledge of Allegiance debate.

In his article titled “Court controversy pledges brief reprieve from war, terrorism”, Mr. Cavalier wonders if anyone really cares or should care about the issue. Well, the fact is Michael Newdow and some atheists do care. They don’t believe in God and they don’t want their children to be forced or pressured into the beliefs of others. There are also some people who strongly believe in God but believe pledging allegiance to a flag or a government conflicts with their allegiance to God. While I may not agree with these people they are by no means irrational or insane. They simply hold different religious and political beliefs. The purpose of the first amendment of the Constitution was to allow Americans to freely exercise their religious beliefs so long as they did not in turn infringe on the rights of others. More importantly it forbids the government from mandating religious beliefs. The Freedom of Religion is important today because we, as a nation, are denouncing governments, especially those in the Middle East, that force religious beliefs on their citizens.

The problem with Brendan Cavalier’s article is not that he questions why Michael Newdow cares but is that he doesn’t really question why everyone else cares so much about the Pledge of Allegiance and the words “Under God”. Why is the U.S. Senate voting on the issue? I agree with Mr. Cavalier that the Pledge has little or no meaning to most of those that say it. But why,if it is not terribly important, do we insist on forcing Michael Newdow’s child to either recite the Pledge of Allegiance or become a social outcast. Social acceptance, of course, is one of the greatest concerns of all people but it is especially important children. The answer to these questions is that for many people, especially in times of war, acts of patriotism like reciting the Pledge of Allegiance are important because with conformity and homogenization comes much needed security.

Deciding the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance may not be of great important to most people, but it should be. This case is only the first of what is sure to be a line of cases in the near future that will call upon the Supreme Court and the American people to decide which is more important, our rights to be individuals and to express ourselves or the comfort and security that comes from forcing conformity?

Tim Hartnett CAS ’03

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