The Pledge of Allegiance

The Pledge of Allegiance was written by Socialist Frances Bellamy in 1892. It read:

"I pledge allegiance to my flag and the republic for which it stands: one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all."

It was published in a children's magazine on the 400th anniversary of the discovery of Christopher Columbus by the native peoples of the Caribbean. Frances wrote the pledge to 'inoculate' immigrants and native-born Americans against the potential for radical subversion.

Bellamy wanted to include the words "equality and fraternity" but in 1892 those rights weren't really extended to everyone, certainly not women or blacks, so he kept his pledge brief and to the point. Today the pledge is no longer brief, and the original point has been considerably twisted.

DID YOU KNOW ..? The original pose for appropriately pledging your allegiance to the American flag involved giving it what would be familiar to everyone as what we call the "Nazi" salute. During World War II, President Roosevelt declared a hand over the heart was more appropriate. Already, the pledge had moved from something suggesting American unity to something much more personal and individual.

This picture is so fucking cute.

There were those who had pressed President Truman to add the words "under God" into the religion-free pledge, to no avail. Finally, in 1954 President Eisenhower attended a church service on Lincoln's birthday, at Lincoln's church, in Lincoln's pew. The pastor, a Reverend Docherty gave a sermon which argued the Pledge of Allegiance could be said by the citizen of any country to their flag ... that something was missing.

GOD WAS MISSING!

Yes. Once again, once and always, God was missing from America. Something must be done. And so, on June 14, 1954 a joint resolution of Congress added the words "under God" to the pledge.

The Dark, Dark Hours

The Dark, Dark Hours
Starring Ronald Reagan and featuring James Dean.
Broadcast Sunday December 12, 1954
CBS General Electric Theater

Origins of the Phrase "War On Drugs"
President Dwight D. Eisenhower began what The New York Times then called "a new war on narcotic addiction at the local, national, and international level" with the establishment of an Interdepartmental Committee on Narcotics on November 27, 1954, which was responsible for coordinating executive branch antidrug efforts. - About.com

Murder of Elderly Widow
June 30, 1948 at Cleveland, Ohio, James Buchanan was arrested by police of that city for the murder of a 60-year-old East Cleveland widow. After questioning by Police detectives he admitted his participation in the crime and also accused an accomplice. Buchanan admitted having participated, during the previous 6 months in the brutal attack of 16 women for the purpose of robbing them of their money. He stated further he wanted the money to buy wine and reefers (marihuana cigarettes) which he would consume at the same time. Before venturing out to commit their atrocious crimes, Buchanan and his partner would fortify themselves with wine and marihuana. Buchanan was 24 years of age at the time of his arrest, married and the father of three children. --The Traffic in Opium and other Dangerous Drugs

Sources:
YouTube
About.com
ReeferMadness.com

The Day the Earth Stood Still

During the week of February 17 - 24, 1954 President Eisenhower was enjoying a golfing expedition in Palm Springs, CA. On the evening of February 20, he was not to be found, having "disappeared" from his itinerary. The official explanation was that he had broken a tooth while consuming a chicken dinner.

He was actually at Edwards Air Force Base, meeting visitors from outer space. The President, with Howard Hughes, examined the visitors vehicle, which they accidentally crashed on Earth, and met with the extraterrestrial crew.

On the evening in question, the Associated Press reported that "Pres. Eisenhower died tonight of a heart attack in Palm Springs." AP retracted this information two minutes later.

The aliens, of a type referred to as Nordics or Aryans because of their, pale, human-like appearance, made a Day The Earth Stood Still-type offer: to impart technology and wisdom in exchange for mankind giving up on nuclear weapons, the employment of which have damaging effects which reach far beyond our own atmosphere, even as far as their home in the Pleiades.

Eisenhower turned down their offer.

The Day the Earth Stood Still was released in 1951.

Source:
Billy Booth, about.com
The Washington Post
Wikipedia