Letters
Age is not a factor when pledging our allegiance
Oscar Falconi sent a commentary, published in the Saratoga News April 3 issue, criticizing having the Pledge of Allegiance spoken at the Saratoga Senior Center as a part of the Wednesday lunches. His statements cause me distress when he states that just a few old veterans (those who have lived through defending our nation) might be the only ones to appreciate reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.
While many children have said it over and over, it does not lose its meaning, ever. It is a statement confirming a person's feeling for the country through the flag. When anyone assumes that this is not important, our country is weaker for that. Age or exposure do not take away from commitment to our country nor a statement of that commitment. We have the greatest country and the best lives anywhere in the world. Others know this and do almost anything to get here and be a part of our United States.
If you really love someone, but take the attitude that "I said that once, or several times already and more is not necessary," there is a loss in attitude and the joy of that relationship. Mr. Falconi should not have to be told that, unless his is a poor relationship and he has let himself drift into just existing. Any relationship worth keeping needs the strength of recommitment and sincere statement of the fact.
If the routine seems too mundane, then speak it with sincerity and expression rather than just as an assembly of words. Make it a statement that is both understood for its full value and heartfelt from the individual. Along with the words, think of what you have done for your country or are willing to do should the need arise. Then think of your country as being made up of many parts, including your state, county, city, and neighborhood.
Each time you contribute something to beautify your surroundings, or help clean up a mess, or assist another person, or perform an act of kindness, think about the fact that you are making your country something better than it would have been without you. Consider that the Pledge of Allegiance is but a small reminder that you are an American.
Even an old person can have love, commitment, and appreciation for his country. Try it. You might find that the sky is bluer, the flowers more colorful and the tranquility even better than you had ever known them before. Make the Pledge of Allegiance a call to action.
John Feemster
Saratoga
Saratoga should leave the heritage oak trees alone
So, the Saratoga City Council has decided to override the city tree code on land owned by the city of Saratoga, and voted to remove 11 trees from the Heritage Orchard to " ... restore the professional look to the orchard."
The council preferred to ignore the professional opinion of the head caretaker, Matt Novakovich; to override the original plan calling for the protection of the native trees; to vote to cut trees in variance with city code on property that rightfully belongs to the citizens of Saratoga--without public notice, even to the Novakovich family, whose property neighbors the Heritage Orchard.
The word "heritage" implies that the historical character of the agricultural land would be reflected in the landscape architecture. The Novakovich family has farmed that land into the third generation. The oaks and the fir trees have served a purpose to the health and production of the orchard, and balanced man's intrusion with the natural environment.
Those old trees have offered a cool resting place for workers and hikers. The old trees are a part of the heritage of the orchard, and unless they are diseased and threatening the community's health and safety, they should continue to serve to complete a total orchard. They actually are a big part of what will be taught in the education center; what an orchard was before corporate farming!
This move by the city council appears illegal. The duplicity of interest in voting variances from the code to remove mature trees, and overriding the very agreement that built the Heritage Orchard, is a miscarriage of their responsibility to represent the city honorably. What other shenanigans will be discovered after the deed is done?
Luanne Nieman
Padero Court
Children learned Pledge, and so much more
Oscar Falconi's complaint over the public recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in the Saratoga News April 3 issue is, according to polls taken after Sept. 11, in concurrence with the liberal news media and our liberal educational system.
These two sources of public indoctrination deny any liability for the reaction occurring in U.S. colleges, after Sept. 11, when college kids started protesting over Bush's statement to declare war on the terrorists. Our indoctrinated kids obviously believed if we didn't punish the terrorists, then the terrorists' response would be to hang garlands of flowers around our necks.
Mr. Falconi's reference to Goebbels, Hitler's propaganda minister, is absolutely accurate in that if you repeat something enough times, you'll believe it. Mr. Falconi then asks, as children were we brainwashed, Nazi-style, for saying the Pledge of Allegiance?
No doubt about it; 30 to 40 years ago, American children were brainwashed to love their country, respect their parents, not kill their classmates and all sorts of other weird beliefs that apparently gave them no incentive, as is the case today, to commit suicide in large numbers.
In the rest of the world, government and religious indoctrination of the young is considered beneficial. So beneficial that Arab children are taught to hate that powerful country, called the U.S.A., that contributes millions or billions of dollars to their own country. This legitimate hatred by Arab children means they might grow up to become a hero by killing off the citizens of this horrible nation called the U.S.A.
Oh, and by the way, Mr. Falconi, there was another ridiculous concept taught to America's youth 30 to 40 years ago, and that was to respect the rights of others. This meant if you were attending a meeting where the Pledge of Allegiance was being given, and such an atrocity greatly bothered you, you could simply either leave the meeting or keep your mouth shut until everyone else at the meeting did what they wanted to do. My sympathy is simply overpowering in regard to Mr. Falconi's irritation about the Pledge of Allegiance.
Elaine Hocker
Saratoga
Saratoga, California Since 1955
