* Initially posted on the Progressives of Kane County Facebook page
When I enlisted in the US Navy in August of 1995 I took an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America. I did not swear an oath to pledge to a flag or stand during the national anthem. My pledge was to uphold a legal document that this nation’s democracy was founded on by a group of idealists who wanted a more equal form of government. 
The flag debate was recently re-visited when U-46 (Elgin, IL) School Board member, Traci Ellis made a controversial statement abou the flag. But that is not the purpose of this blog.
I am hoping the readers of this short essay ask themselves an important question – “why do I say the pledge or why don’t I say the pledge?” Plato said that the unexamined life is not worth living. So, if you are a flag pledger and anthem stander, “why?” If you sit, kneel and refuse to repeat with the rest of the herd, “why?” (more…)
