Feel free to recite it before going to the beach or before a play.

It is an act of allegiance to the concept of governance and equality in the USA. If you are not going to recite it before council - which is about government - then when would you recite it?

Feel free to stay silent if you feel you are being brainwashed.

what are you nuts, you should be proud to say the pledge of allegiance, this is american and we have freedoms that many other countries do not have and men and women have died for our freedom and we do NEED to say the pledge not only for respect but for honor as well...being in this great country is a privelige and we all should remember that.. David D Koohy, Coastal Financial Group, Middletown, RI

Anyone not willing to pledge allegiance to our country The United States Of America, made up of We The People, is free to leave.

Its a simple answer my friend. Pledge to uphold the values our forefathers and soldiers fought to preserve. Your question itself is an indication of your lack of knowledge in areas of Patriotism
and Democracy. Read it slowly and understand the meaning especially in matters of local government. With no premise to the Pledge of Allegiance we may not have a local government but a dictatorship that outlaws public rule making.