Have you declared your loyalty to the US yet today?

While purusing the Whitehouse.gov site earlier today I decided to check out Bush's Proclamations page. I was surprised to learn that there are 4 days and 3 weeks that have been designated as reminders for us to "swear our loyalty to the country", which I had never heard of. These were in addition to Independence Day, Vetran's Day and Memorial Day, etc.

Loyalty Day May 1st--
The Congress, by Public Law 85-529, as amended, has designated May 1 of each year as "Loyalty Day," and I ask all Americans to join me in this day of celebration and in reaffirming our allegiance to our Nation.

Citizenship Day September 17--
Constitution Week September 17 through 23--
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim September 17, 2003, as Citizenship Day, and September 17 through September 23, 2003, as Constitution Week. I encourage Federal, State, and local officials, as well as leaders of civic, social, and educational organizations, to conduct ceremonies and programs to celebrate our Constitution and reaffirm our commitment as citizens to this great Nation.

Patriot Day September 11
As we remember September 11, 2001, we reaffirm the vows made in the earliest hours of our grief and anger. As liberty's home and defender, America will not tire, will not falter, and will not fail in fighting for the safety and security of the American people and a world free from terrorism. We will continue to bring our enemies to justice or bring justice to them. This Patriot Day, we hold steady to this task.

By a joint resolution approved December 18, 2001 (Public Law 107-89), the Congress has designated September 11 of each year as "Patriot Day."

( not to be confused with: National Days of Prayer and Remembrance September 5 through 7--
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Friday, September 5, through Sunday, September 7, 2003, as National Days of Prayer and Remembrance. I ask that the people of the United States and places of worship mark these National Days of Prayer and Remembrance with memorial services, the ringing of bells, and evening candlelight remembrance vigils. I invite the people of the world to share in these Days of Prayer and Remembrance.)



Flag Day June 14--
National Flag Week June 8 through 14--
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim June 14, 2003, as Flag Day and the week beginning June 8, 2003, as National Flag Week. I direct the appropriate officials to display the flag on all Federal Government buildings during that week, and I urge all Americans to observe Flag Day and National Flag Week by flying the Stars and Stripes from their homes and other suitable places. I also call upon the people of the United States to observe with pride and all due ceremony those days from Flag Day through Independence Day, also set aside by the Congress (89 Stat. 211), as a time to honor America, to celebrate our heritage in public gatherings and activities, and to publicly recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America.


Captive Nations Week July 21 through 27--

One of our greatest strengths in this struggle against a world of fear, chaos, and captivity is our commitment to standing alongside people everywhere determined to build a world of freedom, dignity, and tolerance. This week America affirms its commitment to helping those in captive nations achieve democracy.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim July 21 through 27, 2002, as Captive Nations Week. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this week with appropriate ceremonies and activities and to reaffirm their devotion to the aspirations of all peoples for liberty, justice, and self-determination.
-------------

Now don't get me wrong...I don't have a problem with observance or respect being shown for those who have died, or for the ideals of the founding fathers. But these proclamations feel more like something out of Orwell's 1984. It's not what is being observed that is bothering me, rather, it's the titles that were chosen for the designated days. After a while people forget what the days are in recognition of. All they remember is, "It's Patriots Day; It's Citizenship Day; It's Loyalty Day, better declare my loyalty to the U.S. government. Don't want anyone to think I'm un-Patriotic!"

I checked to see if there was a Proclamation of the 2 Minute Hate, but it wasn't there yet.

And no, before anyone accuses me, I am not anti-American, and I am not a "Democrat". Like it or not, this is a subtle form of brain-washing and I simply have no tolerance for manipulative sh*t like this.

Anyways, I thought this might be of interest to some of you...Let me know what you think...Am I the only one that sees things this way?

Pretty simple,

Ignore those "loyalty holidays", if they make you uncomfortable.

I don't think these are forced are they?
Not really different from saying the "Pledge" to the flag though, and thats every day in most US schools.


[Edited on 1-6-2004 by spacedoubt]

As long as we get school off and work off on those days we are happy.

After all, Americans don't give a # about holidays unless they are off from work on that day.

I try and keep up with things like this and other than Flag day I was not aware of the ohters . I would tend to agree that some of the names seem almost ominous in the image they bring to mind. "Loyalty Day" does seem almost 1984ish.

Originally posted by Duke_Nukem
"Loyalty Day" does seem almost 1984ish.

1984ish?

Try Hitlerish.

Hitlerish?

A little Over-the-top aren't you?

Originally posted by Illmatic67

Originally posted by Duke_Nukem
"Loyalty Day" does seem almost 1984ish.

1984ish?

Try Hitlerish.

I had the same thought but some people get so upset when anyone mentions the idea that American nationalism and Hitler's German nationalism campaign are eerily similar.

YES!

I am loyal to loved ones in the US and to the virtues of freedom and liberty that the nation espouses!

Therefore I stand up to say "be rid of the criminals in the Bush administration, and see that they are punished for every crime."

Mayors, Governors, and Presidents rountinely issue proclamations for a wide range of things. They're not recognized as state or federal holidays unless the state legislature or Congress passes the legislation recognizing those days as holidays and the executive branch issues a proclamation in recognition of that.

Mainly proclamations are used to draw attention to special interest groups, ranging from MIA-POW groups, to girls scouts, to psychological associations, local fesitvals, charities and so on. You're not legally bound to do anything, its really just PR to draw attention to an issue and/or keep constituents happy. You'll notice that the wording will typically say, "I call on/encourage/ask my fellow citizens to blah, blah" its a request, not an order.

Although they are worded similarily to executive orders but that's another matter entirely.

[Edited on 1-6-2004 by zakk]

ahhhh pointless holidays

if im ever gonna be pres..... there are gonna be a lot of those

I'm with you....................that crap makes we want to puke. But I�m not surprised In my experience it�s always the ones� who yell the loudest �I�m (fill in the blank)� who ain�t. Example: �I�m innocent!� etc.

These folk wrap them selves in the flag because they be naked underneath. �YES SIR, they are! Naked!�

Look at them all in the Bush Administration����.. have you ever seen such a concentration of Chicken Hawks all in one place at the same time?

Well, it looks like the "chicken-hawks" are at it again. These people who were too chicken to go to war (or even serve in the military) become middle-aged hawks looking for an opportunity to send others to kill and be killed.
�Peter Lorenzo, "Chicken hawks," Sacramento Bee, March 31, 2002


See also:
www.symbolman.com...
www.alternet.org...
www.chickenhawkcards.com...
www.nhgazette.com...

All I can say is this: How many freaking holidays do we need? Seriously! This is over the top! What the hell happened to checks and balances? Its as if the Congress lets GW do whatever he likes. I think the powers of a president must be more limiting - especially executive orders. There should be a law written that keeps moronic presidents from issuing executive orders.

I bet more people would celebrate loyalty day than martin luther king day.

To attempt enactment of such a law would require a President "dead at the switch" who would sign such a law; and assuming the success of that gambit, unless the USSC was packed, by Congress's cronies(which is another impossiblity) the law would be declared unconstitutional because it violated the 'seperation of powers' clause of the Constitution.

Can you think of something less radical and more possible??????????

HINT: Vote the bastards out is strategy which may/could work.

I was being sarcastic in the last sentence. :-D Sorry, I should have clarified that.

��And I was amplifying on it..............Sorry about taking a free ride on your dime but I just couldn't resist...............I'm just a crazy kinda guy.

What do you have to be sorry for? I thought it was pretty funny what you said.

[Edited on 6-2-2004 by EmbryonicEssence]

Originally posted by fawlty
I bet more people would celebrate loyalty day than martin luther king day.

offered as a profoud insight?

Or an execise in mathmatical pinciples:

the part is smaller then the whole! WoW

Everyone take notes. It maybe on a Pop Quiz some day.

[Edited on 2-6-2004 by gmcnulty]

Loyalty day definately sounds like something Hitler would have done. There is no denying that. GW wants us to declare our loyalty to this country so we will turn a blind eye to what him and his cronies are doing behind our back. If we don't declare loyalty, we are un-patriotic, and un-american. :-D