# "Small government" conservative goes after NBC for altering the Pledge of Allegiance. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 22, 2011, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483 "2011-06-22T20:36:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2011, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/1 "2011-06-22T20:36:50Z")
Senator Dan Coats of Indiana isn’t too happy about the network omitting the words “Under God” in one of its broadcasts and is now demanding that NBC provide a “full written account of its decision-making process in this matter, including an explanation of why these specific words were omitted, and what actions NBC intends to take to prevent such inappropriate edits from occurring in the future.” > [@](#): > > Coats acknowledged that the network has already apologized for its decision — there’s your first mistake, NBC! — but that’s not good enough. He “remain[s] concerned that such a decision to selectively edit the Pledge could be made in the first place.” Here’s the story: [http://gawker.com/5814469/senator-demands-investigation-of-nbc-for-making-business-decision](http://gawker.com/5814469/senator-demands-investigation-of-nbc-for-making-business-decision) And here’s the letter that he sent: [http://coats.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/coats-asks-nbc-for-explanation-of-why-under-god-omitted-from-pledge-during-us-open-broadcast](http://coats.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/coats-asks-nbc-for-explanation-of-why-under-god-omitted-from-pledge-during-us-open-broadcast) ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/2 "2011-06-22T20:38:45Z")
I apologize on behalf of my fellow Hoosier taxpayers for this clown. I didn’t vote for him, but I clearly wasn’t vocal enough and active enough in my support for his opponent. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2011, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/3 "2011-06-22T21:10:06Z")
Can I vote for NBC in this election? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2011, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/4 "2011-06-22T21:47:14Z")
25+ years ago, when I joined the USAF, we were given the option to omit the words “under God” from all pledges and oaths. I guess what is good enough for our Armed Forces is not good enough for the good Senator. And by good I mean ‘bloody venereal disease ridden douche-bag’. And that is being kind. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2011, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/5 "2011-06-22T22:08:27Z")
> [@](#): > > He “remain[s] concerned that such a decision to selectively edit the Pledge could be made in the first place.” Did he have the same problem when Republicans [selectively edited the reading of the US Constitution](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/06/AR2011010602807.html)? (On the floor of the House no less.) ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/6 "2011-06-23T00:33:14Z")
So, I guess he never read the _original_ Pledge of Allegiance, which did not include the phrase “Under God”. It was added in the 1950s. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/7 "2011-06-23T00:39:25Z")
It’s a socialist pledge anyway. Coats must be a socialist if he believes in it. Which means Coats was probably born in Kenya. Anyone seen his birth certificate? What is he hiding anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/8 "2011-06-23T01:45:16Z")
I am displeased to see my tax dollars wasted in this way. Well, ok, I am not in Indiana, and this ain’t my Senator, but still…there are more productive ways he could spend his time. ---
**Author:** ![straight\_man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/straight_man/32/3027_2.png) [@straight\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/straight_man)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/9 "2011-06-23T02:05:05Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Did he have the same problem when Republicans [selectively edited the reading of the US Constitution](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/06/AR2011010602807.html)? (On the floor of the House no less.) I’m with the Republicans on that one. If a passage has been amended out of existence, there’s no reason you should have to read it. Also, it was a little weird to see the act framed as anti-black or revisionist — it makes more sense as a way of emphasizing the importance and the authority of the amendments. (Sorry for the hijack.) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/10 "2011-06-23T02:37:12Z")
I hope that NBC just ignores his demand for a further accounting. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/11 "2011-06-23T03:43:50Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I hope that NBC just ignores his demand for a further accounting. I kinda wish they’d respond with a special prime time edition of Saturday Night Live devoted entirely to ridiculing Senator Coats. Perhaps the writers could be properly motivated by reading [Hustler Magazine v Falwell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hustler_Magazine_v._Falwell) before they start work on the script. But they probably won’t do that. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/12 "2011-06-23T03:57:58Z")
I always understood the “under God” part in a sexual sense anyway – some find it objectionable?! Come on, He’s had a hard day! Be reasonable, it’s not that hard, go to church, get on your knees, smile and think about your canning, it’s over in an hour. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/13 "2011-06-23T03:59:29Z")
A prime time documentary on the origins of the Pledge, complete with an exposition of the political views of its author sounds to me like it would be the appropriate response to Coats. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/14 "2011-06-23T04:35:56Z")
Dear Senator, We left it out because we’re Commies. Regards, NBC ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/15 "2011-06-23T04:51:06Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > A prime time documentary on the origins of the Pledge, complete with an exposition of the political views of its author sounds to me like it would be the appropriate response to Coats. Stressing that [Bellamy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Bellamy) was, **at the same time,** a capitalist trying to sell flags, and a socialist trying to spread a message. More Americans need to learn to stretch their minds around things. And it should also highlight the [Bellamy Salute.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellamy_salute)😃 ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/16 "2011-06-23T07:05:01Z")
altering the pledge of allegiance of the first ever SECULAR government founded on planet earth? who would even think of committing such sacrilege? ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/17 "2011-06-23T07:23:18Z")
> [@Critical1](#): > > altering the pledge of allegiance of the first ever SECULAR government founded on planet earth? who would even think of committing such sacrilege? Wait! You’re telling me the U.S. is not a Christian nation? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Nancarrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c37758/32.png) [@Nancarrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nancarrow)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/18 "2011-06-23T11:09:18Z")
> [@Critical1](#): > > altering the pledge of allegiance of the first ever SECULAR government founded on planet earth? who would even think of committing such sacrilege? Whilst _we_ See What You Did There, I expect the good Senator will not (‘good’ as defined upthread). ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/19 "2011-06-23T12:57:31Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Did he have the same problem when Republicans [selectively edited the reading of the US Constitution](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/06/AR2011010602807.html)? (On the floor of the House no less.) The difference between the two cases: NBC altered the existing Pledge. The Constitution was not altered; what was read was the current operative version of the document. There’s no point in reading the Eighteenth Amendment if the subsequent Twenty-First simply says, “The Eighteenth Amendment is hereby repealed.” ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483/20 "2011-06-23T13:01:00Z")
There was no point to standing there reading it at all, actually. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/small-government-conservative-goes-after-nbc-for-altering-the-pledge-of-allegiance/586483.md?page=2)