The phrase "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance is our only deterrent against slobbering godless hordes cannibalizing our children and transforming the United States into a barren moonscape peppered with charred Christian bones.  Or something like that, I gather.  Truth be told, I don't waste one second of my time fretting about real or imagined attacks on our Pledge of Allegiance.  The way I see it, we lived without the phrase "under God" in anything resembling a Pledge of Allegiance for 178 years, so I can't help wondering whether it is really all that essential to our survival.

Perhaps a short history lesson is in order.  You might be surprised to learn that most people in the United States never heard of such a thing as the "Pledge of Allegiance" until just a few years shy of the 20th century.  Not George Washington, not Thomas Jefferson, not Abraham Lincoln.  As patriotic as they all were, not one of them ever once recited the "Pledge of Allegiance."  No, the "Pledge of Allegiance" wasn't even written until 1892, honey, and that first shocking version was missing the phrase "under God" altogether.  When the Pledge was officially recognized by Congress in 1942, "under God" was STILL nowhere to be found.  It wasn't until 1954, the same year Elvis Presley hit the airwaves, that "under God" was added to our Pledge of Allegiance.  If you don't believe me, you can read more here, here, and surprisingly, here.  Watch this old movie clip while you are at it.

How on earth did "The Greatest Generation" manage to survive the Great Depression and fight World War II without ever pledging allegiance to "one nation under God?"  Well, honey, fact is they got along just fine, as did every President on Mt. Rushmore, the rest of our Founding Fathers, and even young Elvis Presley, the undisputed King of Rock and Roll.

I just can't help feeling this "under God" flap is much ado about nothing.  I don't think there is a snowflake's chance in hell that "under God" will ever be removed from the Pledge of Allegiance.  The Supreme Court already ruled back in 1943 that schoolchildren cannot be compelled to recite the Pledge, so even court challenges are old news.  I'm reading that the Pledge of Allegiance has only been banned in a whopping total of 3 public schools located in Sacramento County, CA since 2005.  If I'm wrong and somehow "under God" gets the ax or the Pledge of Allegiance is banned nationwide, it won't be the end of America.  We already lived without it for 178 years, for the love of Pete!  The "under God" brouhaha serves no one except opportunistic politicians who raise money off of it and TV and radio talkers who need you to remain angry and upset because then you give them "ratings."  And as I've said elsewhere, "ratings" are what enable TV and radio talkers to buy bigger mansions and hire more security guards to keep people like you out of their sight.

And while we're at it, all of the above also applies to the phrase "In God we Trust" on U.S. currency.  That phrase first appeared on the 2-cent coin in 1864, and wasn't required on all U.S. currency until 1955.  Read more about it here and here.

Imagine young Elvis Presley carrying in his pocket U.S. currency lacking the "In God we Trust" inscription while simultaneously reciting the Pledge of Allegiance minus the phrase "under God."  You know, Elvis' career really took off around the same time "under God" was added to the Pledge and "In God we Trust" was mandated on all U.S. currency.  Coincidence?????  I think not.  Perhaps God blessed us with rock and roll as a reward for recognizing Him in our Pledge and on our currency.  God works in mysterious ways, I hear.