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As we pledge to the American flag we commit to the republic

TO THE EDITOR:
Flag Day June 14 and Independence Day July 4 are two recurring summer events that are special reminders of our nationís ensign ìOld Glory.î Sadly, as a consequence of a recent court ruling two words of the thirty-one plain words of the pledge of allegiance have been declared unconstitutional. The ruling has raised a firestorm of national anger.
While the pledge of allegiance is usually a collective activity, it is important to note that it is a personal and individualized declaration of fealty - ìI (not we) pledge allegiance...î This is my pledge to my flag (and) to my republic. And because the pledge of allegiance is a personal and individual commitment - felt by the heart and attested to by the mind - we need to comprehend the commitment that we make when we recite the familiar words.
Clearly there is a duality to our declaration. Our allegiance - the obligation of a citizen to his/her government - is, in order of recitation, first to the physical flag - to the stars and stripes that form and fashion the ensign that is the emblem of America and then to the republic for which the flag stands. Thus the flag is not a rag nor a simple symbol, as some would say, but the very emblem of the republic itself. As we pledge to the flag we commit to the republic. To find other or lesser meaning is to torture plain English. The pledge of allegiance is an indivisible unity that either coheres or crumbles depending upon the full understanding of its words. And, without apology, there is a religious element inasmuch as we recognize the sovereignty of a Supreme Being as we confess that we are ìone nation under God.î And from that fact flows ìliberty and justice for all.î

Michas Ohnstad

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