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Adolf Hitler being
saluted with the Nazi salute. |
he modern pledge of allegiance is a cover-up.
The hand-over-the-heart hides a horrid history. It hides the
original gesture, which was very different. The hand covers up what
real Americans know in their hearts is a bizarre ritual that
glorifies big government.
The pledge of allegiance was the origin of the salute of the
National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nazi Party). It is a
brown stain on American heritage. The original pledge of allegiance
used a straight-arm salute because
Francis
Bellamy was a self-proclaimed national socialist who promoted
“military socialism” (a Bellamy term). To promote militarism,
Bellamy started the pledge of allegiance with a military salute.
The military salute was held for the phrase “I pledge allegiance”
and then the right arm extended straight outward toward the flag for
the rest of the chant. Historic photographs are linked at
http://rexcurry.net/pledge1.html and at
http://rexcurry.net/pledge_military.html
The first description of the pledge had the palm of the hand turned
upward for the straight-armed gesture. The gesture changed in use,
growing into the "Heil Hitler" appearance because of the military
salute (palm down) extended casually straight toward the flag.
James Bailey Upham suggested to Bellamy part of the gesture (the
straight-arm with the palm upward). Upham’s suggested gesture (palm
up) was like saying “Here is the flag.” It was because of Bellamy’s
alteration (the addition of the military salute) that the pledge
evolved into the Nazi-style.
Upham was also familiar with Bellamy's "military
socialism" dogma because Edward Bellamy, cousin and cohort to
Francis, had written of it in the international bestseller "Looking
Backward" in 1888, and both Bellamys had been openly involved in the
national socialism movement and the "Nationalist" magazine.
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Edward Bellamy |
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Francis Bellamy |
Edward Bellamy
was a bitter West Point failure but he loved Prussian militarism and
the educational system. According to Tom Peyser "On his deathbed,
he wiled away the hours by arranging tin soldiers along the folds of
his coverlet." That would interest all who loathe the National
Socialist German Workers’ Party, because Prussia led to the
formation of the German empire, and after World War I, Prussia
continued to exist as the largest Land (state) within the Weimar
Republic and under the National Socialist German Workers’ Party.
After World War II it was dissolved by decree of the Allied Control
Council in 1947.
Even with the palm turned upward, people would later see the
relationship to the National Socialist German Workers' Party and
that is why the straight-arm salute was disfavored in 1942, and the
hand-over-the-heart was adopted. (On June 22, 1942, the pledge was
included in the U.S. Flag Code, but Congress gave it the modern
hand-over-the-heart gesture. There is probably one overriding reason
why Congress interfered: to make everyone drop the straight-arm
salute, which was becoming very embarassing and very revealing. The
US had entered WWII on December 7, 1941 against Japan after Pearl
Harbor. On December 11, 1941 Germany and Italy declared war on the
United States and the U.S. declared war on Germany and Italy.)
It is interesting to note that Upham's father had operated a school
in New Hampshire that included Roman and Greek classics and Upham
had attended that school. It is not clear how this might have
influenced the “Roman salute” myth that eventually arose about the
straight-armed salute.
