Thank you for your comments. Please allow me to respond kindly.
There has been said a lot in Europe about the whole case about the oath to the flag (or something like that). I wouldn't like to do this everyday at school, and I wouldn't like to say 'one nation under God' every day. The senate of the US approves this every day... Personal choice, I guess, but this is not something for country that calls itselves 'the country of liberty'
The nature of controversy arises not so much from the oath to the flag itself (and the Republic for which it stands), but from the religious phrase you mentioned which was a later addition. As a non-Christian I, and some other people, do object to the belated insertion of reference to their god in the oath. But this entire argument is framed between conservative Monotheists and their opponents over one religious phrase. Most Americans as such I think have little problem with making an oath to the flag. Furthermore, those that don't want to say the oath for any reason have the option of remaining silent. It is not as though they have secret police monitoring the room willing to arrest anyone who fails to honor it
By the way, did you know when the Pledge of Allegiance was first written, American citizens were taught to revere the Flag with the Roman salute? This practice was only abandoned in the thirties after the gesture came to be identified with fascist parties. I found that most interesting ....
A little nationalism is a good thing, IMHO, at least in countries who have some proud record to enshrine. Nationalism helps cement the bonds of union among citizens, and between citizens and State. Excessive nationalism, of course, can lead to woeful policies, and I understand why Europeans with their history are taught to be wary of it. But we Americans can take assertive pride in our country without sending the stormtroopers marching into Poland.
Do they play on mondaynight in the US? strange...
No, seriously: I don't think many americans know what is going on in the other parts of the world. During an inquiry only 48% of the Americans knew that in Israel more Palestinians were murdered than Iraelis. Strange... Don't they say that on television?
On the news, not on popular programs. The deplorable state of American civic awareness is a valid criticism; however, it does not in and of itself invalidate the people's right to defend themselves from foreign aggression.
Mmmm... I don't think it will be that bad. I think you mean Iraq here. If they allow weapon surveyers (I don't know what the exact english word is) the problem is partly solved. All right, I admit that you can't talk with Saddam, but attacking Iraq will be an attack on the whole arab world, and that should be avoided. These people allready had to ran through a lot of problems.
I meant Al Qada, but I have no love for Iraq. Al Qada's ultimate goal is to attain weapons of mass destruction and detonate them in American cities. It is not currently a question of if, but when.
I support all victims of any war, where-ever they may be on this planet; but the best thing to do is prevent war, and not by making war.
"Those who want peace prepare for war."
"War is the extension of diplomacy by other means."
Peace is preferable, but not always obtainable. When a clash of wills cannot be resolved peacefully the result is conflict. Our enemies see as their highest religious duty the destruction of America's global influence. They will wage war on us one way or another. We aren't interested in negotiating with people who want to kill us in the name of their deity. We aren't interested in forging peace with people who want to wipe us from the face of the map. What we can do is meet the challenge with the best traditions of courage, strength, and cunning as exemplified by our Greco-Roman forebears.
You said you admired the Roman culture; in my personal opinion one cannot separate the warrior ethic from Roman culture. Or Grecian culture. Or any culture influenced by our Indo-European forebears. It was the warrior spirit that allowed Spartan troops to defend Greece at Thermopolye, and it was the warrior spirit that allowed Rome to defend herself from Carthage. If it weren't for the warrior spirit, the cultures we all admire and revere would have been annihilated by foreign foes, consigned to the forgotten ashes of history.
The Europeans, victims of two great cataclysms of the last century, are understandably wary of violence. But they can afford the luxury of their new found pacifism as they are not directly in the crosshairs. We Americans are. And I suspect if for some reason American influence is ever destroyed, the barbarians will turn to the next great bastion of Western Civilization whose very existence threatens their delusions of a worldwide Islamic state - Europe.
Cordially yours,
Romulus Iulius Ursus.