Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Pledge of Allegiance - said wrong at every meeting

You know the Pledge of Allegiance; right? At least, I hope you do.

You think you know it, but have you been saying it incorrectly for years?

At every school board meeting, and in many other places around the country, the Pledge is repeated incorrectly.

Here it is:

"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." (Source: U.S. Flag Code, ¶4)

Almost everyone has gotten into the habit of disconnecting "under God" from "one Nation. And so people say "... and to the Republic for which it (the Flag) stands, one Nation (pause) under God..." as if there is a comma after Nation. There is not.

The Pledge, said correctly, is "... and to the Republic for which it (the Flag) stands, one Nation (no pause) under God..."  It's "one Nation under God". 

"under God" was added to the Pledge in 1954.

Punctuation is important. 

Unfortunately, in schools today, punctuation may not be taught as "important".

The next time you say the Pledge, say it correctly. Notice that you will be standing and speaking alone, as you say "under God" immediately after "one Nation." If I'm there, you and I will be saying it correctly, and together.

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