Now This...

There is little difference remaining between the United States and a Banana Republic. What differentiated us from so many countries was our Constitution and our legal system. The Constitution prevented government from overstepping boundaries, at least for a while. The Rule of Law meant that all citizens would have the same rights and expectations regarding how contracts and misbehavior would be treated.

On saying the Pledge of Allegiance: Sorry - I already pledged my allegiance to my Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness. I have no allegiance left for a piece of brightly colored cloth and repetitive incantations lauding a Freedom destroying oligarchy trying to disguise itself as a "republic". If one sincerely believes in an omniscient, loving Supreme Being, the postulation that it somehow favors an entity so monumentally destructive should be nauseating....