14 year old Middle School student Fatima Smart of New Hampshire was allegedly forced by her teacher to leave class after refusing to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Smart claims she was later lectured in front of all the other students.

“She kind of used me as an example in front of the class to say that, ‘You have to stand for the flag salute, or you can be like Fatima and wait outside,’” Smart said.

“I don’t like our government at all,” she said. “I think they are making bad decisions, and I didn’t stand. I don’t like pretending to believe in something I don’t believe in to please others… They have their rights, and I have mine.”

I would not be able to hide my pride if my child got in trouble for this. It’d be one of those signs you are winning at the parenting thing. Fatima’s parent’s raised a daughter who stands by what she believes in, who is engaged and interested in the world around her, and who is intelligent enough to question the merit of robotic (and frankly creepy) traditions.

So of course her school authority figure can’t have any of it and attempts to  “fix” her immediately. Check out the smirk of clear pride on her Dad’s face in the background in this new clip..  I don’t blame him.

Smart’s parents rightfully stand by their daughter, and have asked for an apology from school officials. Smart had every right to stand by her conscience.

In New Hampshire it is voluntary for students to stand for the pledge. Smart’s parents believe she was singled out and her rights were violated for personal reasons. Her teacher said as the daughter of a military man she found Smart’s position to be offensive.

Being offended because someone won’t idolize a flag doesn’t give someone the right to force flag worship down their student’s throats, nor does it give them the right to bully students into submission. I salute this young lady for standing her ground and living up to her last name of Smart!

In Maine more heads explode over this issue when local politicians refuse to stand for Pledge of Allegiance.  In the wake of the completely over the top uproar over Cecil the lion, I think its time folks stop calling for people’s heads and take a step back to look at what is actually taking place before becoming so vitriolic over issues.

A human didn’t want to say a creepy pledge to a piece of cloth.

That’s it.

They didn’t spit on your dead grandfathers grave who served in WW2, and no, your dad/secondcousin/uncle/great grandpa didn’t “die for that flag”  –  He didn’t need to, you can buy them at Walmart for like ten dollars.

Many soldiers have died for freedom, liberty, free speech, and the security of their families. Many soldiers have died for corrupt leaders, greed, and ethnocentrism. A plethora of reasons,  good and bad, that have very little to do with a piece of cloth dyed different colors and put into a starry and striped design. So take a chill pill.

While I personally do not partake in flag burning, it is merely for the reason I don’t randomly burn pieces of cloth to prove my point, so i don’t see why I would start now.  However, I truly have no issue with those who do, nor do I have an issue with those who refuse to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

If the actions of one’s government becomes a danger to, and constrains the freedom of, its nations citizens, I would say it would be immoral to pretend the flag still represented a country noble enough to pledge one’s allegiance.

Even if you lived in the perfect country, ten years from now it could devolve into an incredibly evil place.  Is it ok to claim your allegiance is justified  because the country “used to be cool like 200 years ago”?

This makes blind patriotism and nationalism rather illogical concepts. The leaders you are directed under could instruct you to do horrible things, such as worship them or commit mass murder. ( ie Nazis and North Korea with their 99% government approval rating) – the most patriotic of all nations I would say.

Surely this shows such visceral reactions concerning a flag are for those without enough  intelligence or depth of thought to recognize its absurdity.

Patriotism would be great if we lived in a Godly righteous nation with just laws and a peaceful society that strongly valued liberty, freedom, and individual rights. But that is not the case nor is it even realistic. No faith should be put into something as fallible and changeable as a nation and its governing body.

Let people be guided by their morals & values. If you want to fight or stand or pledge to something make it God, liberty, justice, freedom. The timeless and eternal principles and truths that can never change or be corrupted, and save your outrage for a real issue.