George,

I just happen to be within the jurisdiction of the 9th circuit court of appeals that has sparked so much controversy. My uncle, who is quite conservative and agrees with few rulings of the 9th district court says "so what?" He can remember a time before the day that the words "under God" were added to the pledge. They were added during the Cold War, as were the words "In God We Trust" to our money, as a retaliation to the unfavorable stance towards religion that the Soviet Communists had. "Under God" is just a Cold War relic.

En plus, a pledge of allegiance to a country in which we have freedom to express our religious beliefs any way that we may choose should not require us to acknowledge the existence of one God, whether we believe or disbelieve in one. Being a believer in one God was not a requirement for being an American citizen the last time that I checked.

And that textbook controversy in Texas - I don't see the point of painting a pristine history of our nation. Mentioning that prostitution existed does not condone the practice. We know that our nation has never been perfect, although some of us unrealistically pretend that we have. To deny children the right to know that the people in their country weren't perfect is to deny them a valuable lesson in life. Even traditional heroes such as cowboys had faults, and if children realize this they can discover that they too can become heroes in spite of their failings. To not learn of human weakness is to become a victim of it. If a country can't acknowledge its faults and learn from them, then it is doomed to repeat them.

Y'all enjoy your day.

Joseph Cheek (electronic mail, July 9, 2002)