From Middle School to High School, at the beginning of every class day we have recited the Pledge of Allegiance. It has become ritualistic in America, but what has driven children to stop reciting it, stop paying attention, and even forget the true meaning of it? This raises one big question, is our generation patriotic?
All I know for fact is that every day I am the only kid in my second period High School class to actually recite the Pledge of Allegiance every single day. Other kids do homework, talk, or are asleep. Sometimes even the teacher teaches through it! This is something that needs to be dealt with.
In order to truly appreciate the Pledge of Allegiance, one has to be patriotic about America. One has to believe that the cause of this patriotic-sickness is the lack of current event teaching in the public education system. One is lucky if they find at least 3 kids in a classroom that can tell the reasons why America was in Iraq and is presently in Afghanistan. There is a gap in the political and patriotic knowledge. The generation before us had many reasons to be involved in current affairs, for example: Watergate, Vietnam, Iranian Captivity, and the Soviet Union. People formulated opinions around these topics because they were prevalent in their lives. Today, there is no topic that will nationally impact the 90’s and 00’s babies. Therefore what does one have to be patriotic about? Yes it is true we caught Osama Bin Laden and the success of “Zero Dark Thirty” has brought some American patriotism back, but a lack of understanding of these topics will doom our future. Why did Osama Bin Laden hate America? I bet that not even 1 out 20 kids will even know the reasons. There has to be more extensive classes that dive deeper into the issues that will be dominant in our lives and our children’s lives.
Through a better understanding of the abstruse topics that swarm the news, the kids of America will learn to be patriotic. Those same kids will say the Pledge of Allegiance for the thousands of troops overseas who fight for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.