To Pledge, or not

Usually, in an election year that focuses on state and federal offices, rather than local ones, towns’ controversies are limited or even nonexistent. There are exceptions, of course, to every rule, and Salisbury is having an internal discussion that has fomented some contention.At the last selectmen’s meeting, Salisbury Selectman Mark Lauretano suggested having a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of those meetings. First Selectman Curtis Rand was unprepared for the request, and while saying he thought he leaned toward not having those present say the Pledge at every meeting, he also said he’d do further research on the matter.None of the towns in the northwestern part of Connecticut follow this practice, but towns in New York state do. There are American flags on display in town halls, so saying the Pledge of Allegiance would not be unusual or out of order. Certainly there are those who are accustomed to saying the Pledge regularly, and would find it natural to do so. Others, who aren’t as familiar with the Pledge, might feel uncomfortable with a situation where they felt they had to take part in a ceremony at a meeting or else feel they are being seen as unpatriotic. People react in different ways to the Pledge. It was written by Francis Bellamy, politically a Christian socialist, in 1892 and published in The Youth’s Companion magazine, where he was employed. Formally adopted by the U.S. Congress during World War II in 1942, the words “under God” were added when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a congressional resolution doing so in 1954. Since then, the Supreme Court has ruled time and again that nobody, including school children, should be coerced to say the pledge. Maybe it could be optional, then, at municipal meetings, and those who would like to say it not be made to feel odd for doing so, and those who do not say it, likewise. Whether you are from Salisbury or not, this newspaper would like to know your opinion on this. Go to www.tricornernews.com to vote on a poll question that refreshingly has nothing to do with the elections: Do you support the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of official meetings in your town?