Saying the Pledge

I saw a piece making the Facebook rounds that featured a photo of kids in a classroom saying the pledge of allegiance. It asks you to share or like or something if you grew up saying the pledge and think kids still should.

I grew up saying the pledge. I remember it up until 3rd grade but don't remember saying it so much beyond that at school in Los Angeles. I would think we did but, frankly, don't remember.

The funny thing is, these nostalgic recollections of the pledge of allegiance strike me as just one more example of the sentimental, and frequently distorted, recollection of the good ol' days in the U.S.: Mom at home with the kids-- one boy, one girl, maybe a dog. Dad off to work each day. Everyone in church on Sunday. No such thing as an "unwed mom"-- at least not outside a "home" for such girls. Somehow people look back on memories of activities like saying the pledge and everything else falls away: the poverty, the lack of diversity, the intolerance, the open discrimination on the basis of race, religion, and gender.  Sexual orientation? Forget about it!

The scary part about it is that I have to wonder if there aren't those among us who really would like to turn the clock back. As hard as it is to believe, I have to think there probably are those who really do wish it were that way, that polyanna, rose colored view of American history.

The really scary part is what seems to be an effort to turn the clock back to a time that never was: Nothing more dangerous than thinking you know exactly where you're at, where you're going, committed to the path, and being completely misinformed.