September 10, 2016

Pledge of allegiance written by a socialist

Boing Boing -  Socialist minister Francis J. Bellamy wrote the Pledge of Allegiance in the 1890s in an effort to paper over the post-Civil War divisions; to accompany it, he devised the "Bellamy Salute": "raise your right hand, flip your palm down, point it toward the flag in a salute and recite the words."

Fifty years later, Americans switched to holding their hands over their hearts, a gesture that was formally legislated in the US Flag Code in 1942, as Americans were struck with the hipster's horror of having their OG style ripped off by crass newcomers (Hitler, Mussolini, et al).

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