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Forced Patriotism is False Patriotism |
In a United States court case, Russo v. Central School District No. 1, the court made this profound statement that reflects precisely the position of the Church of Reality.
"Patriotism that is forced is a false patriotism just as loyalty that is coerced is the very antithesis of loyalty. We ought not impugn the loyalty of a citizen any more than we ought necessarily to praise the loyalty of a citizen who without conviction or meaning, and with mental reservation, recites the pledge by rote each morning. Surely patriotism and loyalty go deeper than that."
For a Realist to recite state sponsored pledges is an insult to the very freedoms the State supposedly stands for.
A Realist is a Realist because they can not live the lie. State sponsored acts of patriotism are in direct conflict with our Sacred Principle of Honesty. To require a Realist to recite a pledge or to salute a flag is to deny a Realist his religious right to pursue reality as it really is. For a Realist, even a Realist who is truly patriotic, the act of reciting a state sponsored pledge diminishes the patriotic experience because it is not an act of the individual praising the State, but the State praising itself. When the State requires affirmations by its citizens it is an implied admission that the conduct of the State is unworthy of praise on its own merits. So even a Realist who loves the State and is totally loyal to the State is harmed by state sponsored affirmations of loyalty.
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