One Nation Under God

persusive essay for college prep...

Every morning in the United States, schools across America are reciting the pledge of allegiance. “I pledge allegiance, to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands; one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” Sounds innocent enough right? Yet, the pledge of allegiance is under more criticism everyday for having the two words, ‘under God’ in it. They have a right to be concerned, but I think that these two words should be in the pledge to stay.
The Pledge of Allegiance was written by Baptist minister, Francis Bellamy in 1892. The thing that most people don’t know is that the original pledge written in 1892 isn’t the same pledge that we recite today. The pledge has undergone a couple of changes in the last 115 years. The original pledge read, “I pledge allegiance to my flag and the Republic for which it stands; one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
In 1923 the words “I pledge allegiance to my flag” were changed to “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States.” Then in 1924 the words “of America” were added and finally in 1952, the two words “under God” made their way into the pledge. President Dwight D. Eisenhower approved the addition of the two words, not knowing that these words would become so controversial.
The statement “under God” is opposed by some people because they think it goes against the Bill of Rights and the separation of church and state. The Establishment Clause states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” These people have a right to be concerned about this but is adding ‘under God’ really establishing religion or is it just distinguishing us from the nations who answer to no higher power than the state?
Most people think that since the pledge didn’t have ‘under God’ in it before, that the founding fathers didn’t want the statement to be a part of it. Although, those people also think that the founding fathers wrote the pledge. That is incorrect considering the pledge was written by one person. Therefore, it was based upon one person’s opinions and beliefs. The truth of the matter is that almost all the founding fathers were profoundly Christian and the nation was established on Christian principles. ‘Under God’ is the recognition of the faith of the founding fathers and the inspiration that led us to be the greatest nation in the history of the world.
I think that there’s more controversy in change then there is in acceptance. The controversy over these two words is constantly being fueled by less people. In a recent poll by CNN.com, ninety percent of Americans agree the pledge should stay written how it is and ten percent of Americans say that it should be restored to its original version. You’d think that with such a high percentage to keep the pledge as is, the argument would die down right? Unfortunately that’s wrong, we hear more about the ten percent of people against the pledge than we hear about the ninety percent of people who are for keeping the pledge of allegiance how it is. What is wrong with this picture? Are we going to let that ten percent of people affect the pledge that we have grown up reciting?
If you still are against keeping these two words in the pledge try to think about it this way. This nation is home to approximately three hundred million people all with different religions, cultures and ideas. If the government were to try to cater to all of these different groups, how do you think our country would be able to function? So why do we have to change these two words that have worked for over fifty years because ten percent of the population doesn’t agree with it? It just doesn’t make sense.
I think, while keeping the words ‘under God’ in the pledge there is a way to end this controversy. Any people who don’t agree with those words just don’t have to say them. Why change the whole pledge when all those people would have to do is remain silent during that part of the pledge or just choose not to recite the pledge of allegiance at all? They have the right to their own beliefs, if they don’t believe in the words ‘under God’ then they don’t have to say them. This agreement would save a lot of trouble for our government, who is busy working on more important things.
It is justifiable that the words ‘under God’ should stay in the pledge of allegiance because our nation was founded on Christian beliefs. People who don’t agree with the pledge of allegiance, in my opinion, aren’t respecting our founding fathers and how great they enabled this country to become. People who are offended by the pledge don’t realize that the words ‘under God’ are not a personal attack on them, these words are and always have been the most important words to our nation and its foundation. ‘One nation, under God’ are the words that our country were founded on and the idea that it will forever exist on.

End of Homecoming Week

Homecoming is now officially over and I can truly say I'm pretty glad. Other that getting out of school early Friday for the parade, the week wasn't all that special. I was really happy with who got king and queen, they were actually the two i voted for, which was pretty great.
powderpuff wasn't all it was cracked up to be. i mean, it was fun and it was ok but there was a lot of drama going on. i played some quarterback, center and end... but i must say the place i was the best at was middle linebacker. i had 5 'tackles', three knocked down passes and the interception to save the game. it was fun.
friday night didn't bring us a win, but we are all looking forward to next week and to playing crb. it should be a pretty evenly matched, good game.
so that's pretty much the end of the week...nothing much exciting happened which is good because usually exciting means bad. i was proud of how us, as a school, handled homecoming and as far as I know, we are going to be able to keep all of our privledges for next year. yay us!

Update on Homecoming, etc.

So my paper "Home Sweet Home" is due tomorrow and I've made a few changes, but it isn't that much different from the one below so I probably won't put this other one on their unless someone requests it and I'd be happy to put it up.
Homecoming is this week and can you say DRAMA?? Oh my goodness...it's all "who did you vote for" or "did you vote for me?" It's crazy! I'm glad we only have to deal with all this for only a week. For the most part the court is predictable... hopefully the most deserving wins. I won't say who I think that is, but it would be ridiculous if this person didn't get it for the girls. It's a total toss up for the guys though, it will be interesting to see who ends up with it.
So, the school brought back Powderpuff football this year and I'm soo excited! I've been waiting my whole life for this! I've always been around football because of my dad and for the longest time I wanted to play in jr. high and high school. Now, I'm glad I didn't, but I'm so excited for this! Say hello to the "pink team" quarterback baby!
What else? Let's see, my life pretty much consists of algebra 3 assignments I can't seem to do, chemistry labs that are crazy difficult, killer basketball workouts that make me walk like some old lady and naps on Mrs. K's floor during lunch because I'm so wiped all the time. Other than that life is beautiful! :)
So that's pretty much what I'm up to, I'll probably let you know how the rest of Homecoming week goes, it's usually pretty fun. Love you guys!
*CB

Home Sweet Home

So I decided on "home" to be my topic. (thanks to whoever commented and gave me the idea!) I just got done writing it so I haven't done any tweaking or anything so I may change it later.. but here it is!

Home Sweet Home

Where do you call home? To some it might be the place where you are living now. A place that is always there for you to go to, to sleep, socialize and to shelter you. For others, their home is the place where they grew up, whether it be there house, their state or their country. Some people consider home the place where their loved ones are, it doesn’t matter where it is, as long as they are surrounded by family. Still others, when asked provide a place like a church or other place where they feel comfortable and safe as their home. In the dictionary the definition for home is “any place of residence or refuge.” In this paper I’ll explore the many meanings of the word home.
Home is where the heart is. This means that your home is with the person or in the place you love most. I love this quote, because it has a big meaning in my life. My home, is the house I live in now. This house, was built **** years ago by my great-great grandfather. This house, will always be my true home, for it is where my heart is. I love this house because if you lay really quiet you can hear its heartbeat. The heartbeat of love and hard work from my family that lived here before I did. It gives me comfort to know that when I touch any of the walls or doors that my family that I love so much touched them before me. Home is definitely where the heart is, especially when your home has a heartbeat of it’s own.
“Home is place you grow up wanting to leave and grow old wanting to come back to.” These words by John Ed Pierce are very true. As a child and teenager you grow up dreaming of the time you can get out on your own. But the longer you’re away from home, the more you begin to realize what you had there. Home is somewhere you will always be welcomed and loved. As these teenagers grow up to be adults this quote holds true. But in my opinion, it doesn’t mean what it seems to mean. Though it may hold some truth to it, the home that he describes wanting to go back to may not be the home that he grew up in. It may be the home he will make, for his own family that is modeled after the home of his childhood.
The word home doesn’t always mean the place where you live. To many, it’s with the people you live with which is what makes it home. Nancy Reagan said, “I have been very happy with my homes, but homes are no more than the people who live in them. For example, after Hurricane Katrina many, many people had to leave their homes in New Orleans and find new places to live. This was very hard on all of them, considering New Orleans is their hometown. But these people agree that as long as they still have their families, they can find a new home because what makes it home, is the people who live with them.
Home may not be where you live, but where they understand you. For some, the meaning of home has no connection to where they live or grew up. It may be a place like a church, building or even park where you feel comfortable and at peace. A place that you can be yourself and not worry about what others think. A place where you can relax and know that you will be safe or a place that holds many memories. I know someone whose home is in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. This place, where he spent a lot of time in his childhood is where he feels at home because of the memories he has there. Colorado will always hold a place in his heart because of the many memories that were made and that are still being made. I also know someone whose home is in the fields of Iowa where he plants, nurtures and harvests his crops. This is where he grew up and spent all of his life. Since he was young, this has been his job, his passion and his home.
Home is a shelter from storms, all sorts of storms. People go back home for comfort, for refuge from life’s many trials. This is because home is the first place they were comforted, the first place they felt safe. This is why when an adult has no place to go, they end up where they grew up. A place where they can get back on their feet and back into their lives again. John Denver’s song “Take Me Home Country Roads” portrays the real meaning of home. The lyrics, “Almost heaven, West Virginia” and “Take me Home, country roads, to the place, I belong…” portrays the passion he has for his home, his state and everything that comes with it.
Harriet Breecher Stowe once said, “Home is a place not only of strong affections, but of entire unreserved; it is life’s dress rehearsal, its backroom, it’s dressing room.” Home is where you become yourself. The person you will be for the rest of your life. It is who you are, what you are and who you will be. It will always be a part of you.
I think that Frederick Robertson sums up the meaning of home in this one quote, “Home is the one place in all this world where hearts of sure of each other. It is a place of confidence. It is the place where you can tear off that mask of guarded and suspicious coldness which the world forces us to wear in self-defense, and where we pour out the unreserved communications of full and confiding hearts. It is the spot where expressions of tenderness gush out without any sensation of awkwardness and without any dread of ridicule.” So wherever your home may be, let it be “Home Sweet Home.”

need opinions!!

I have a writing assignment for school and for the first time in awhile I'm stumped about what to write about. It is a definiton essay, meaning you have to pick one word and define it in about 1 1/2 to 2 pages. For example: love. you might go from puppy love like in elementary, to first love like in high school or college, then to true love like the person you marry. I'm thinking about either 'hero' or 'freedom' but i've been having trouble with both of them. any ideas??

Stars Are Like People That Way

Have you ever laid out at night and just looked at all the stars? It’s amazing how many there are…billions and billions of different stars all in different places. Yet, for the most part they all look the same.
Stars are kind of like people. There are so many of them and they all look the same with a quick glance. But the more you look at them, the more different they are. They all have something unique that makes them who they are.
Have you ever heard that the light from the stars we are seeing now is like 1000 years old? So by the time we see it, the star could’ve been dead for just that long. Stars are like people that way too, by the time you realized they’ve changed it’s too late. The person you knew is already gone.
I’m sure you’ve noticed that you can’t see stars in the daylight. But when nightfall comes they appear one by one until the whole sky is scattered with stars of all different sizes. Stars are like people in that way too, it takes a certain time or place for them to show their true selves, or themselves at all.
Have you ever planned to go out and look at the stars and get outside to find no stars in the sky because it’s cloudy? Or you only see some, and not all of them? Stars are like people that way too, people find a way to only show themselves when the conditions are right.
Would you be impressed with the sky if only a couple stars existed? Would it be as breathtaking or beautiful? No, it wouldn’t. It takes all the stars together in the sky to make it beautiful. Stars are like people that way. Sometimes all a person needs is a little help from some friends to make something 'just right.'
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “If stars should appear once every thousand years, how men would marvel and stare.” We take advantage of the stars just as we take advantage of the people in our lives. So next time you are out at night and see the stars think of the people you love and say a prayer of thanks for them. And if you’re lucky enough to see a shooting star, don’t forget to tell God thanks for the stars too.