Red Skelton - Pledge Of Allegiance, 1969

Thought you guys might like this. Even though it's from one of our great comedians, this isn't really a comedy routine.

In this Flash presentation, Red recounts his old school days when a teacher of his decided to change the routine of reciting the Pledge, by explaining each of the words first. He then recites it, and at the end, he mentions how it would be a pity if the two words added to it since he was a child; "under God", caused the Pledge to be considered a prayer, and removed from schools. He mentions that, because it's been a controvercial issue since they were added.

I still remember saying it myself at the start of every school day. Not many realize that those two words weren't always included. They weren't added until 1954.

To get a little background, here's a site that presents both sides of the argument:

Should the words "under God" be
in the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance?

This site presents in a simple, nonpartisan pro-con format, responses to the core question "Should the words 'under God' be in the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance?"

My own opinion is to leave it the way it is, and get on with more important things in life. It's not hurting anything, and we all know kids don't pay any attention to things that don't interest them anyway. It's only an issue amongst special interest groups. It's worth noting the reason Reds' teacher thought it useful to spend time explaining each word; because they'd been saying it mechanically, and not giving it much thought. To them, it was/is just a harmless (perhaps even meaningless) routine.