Science Forums 2

[CraigD]

Originally Posted by SidewalkCynic

.. however, I am a states rights advocate and I would not be opposed to state pledges.

To promote a state pledge, just get a bunch of people to repeat it in whatever gatherings you frequent. A state pledge, or even a county, town, organizational (eg: the Scout Promise), or household pledge is as, or arguably more Constitutionally protected than the Pledge of Allegiance to the US flag is sanctioned by US public law. You can even have it be a pledge to a flag.

Though it was barely in print for a month before it was endorsed by a proclamation (which had no legal significance) by the US President, The Pledge was essentially a sales jingle, being pitched by a magazine company to grow its number of subscribers by promoting the sale of flags to the many local and county-run public and private schools. As an act of what these days might be termed guerilla advertising, it was brilliantly successful, helping to grow its number of subscriptions from 400,000 in 1887 and over 500,000 in 1897 (source), while selling about 26,000 flags (source), and establishing from a small, niche “craft” business a permanent US flag consumer goods manufacturing industry.

Not to be overly cynical, but for such an act of propaganda and advertising to be as successful now as The Pledge was in 1892, I think it needs a large, physical object, like an American flag with stand, etc. After some hours of contemplation, I can’t think of any such object – the best I can imagine is perhaps a 2/3 scale sculpture of the blindfolded goddess Justicia. Merely repeating the 1892 trick with state or other flags would cause hardly a ripple of growth in the now established flag making industry – the statue making business, OTOH, might be ripe for expansion, and able to grow the 21st equivalent of a magazine subscription base along with it.

Without such an object, I don’t think any sort of public ceremony would have much persistence (or staying power) – perhaps as much as Kwanzaa observances in US public schools.