[wakawaka28]

>I'd rather they pledge allegiance to the values rather than to the country. I can see defending those values as part of the social contract, but not the country. If the country and the values are aligned, then sure.

The "values for which we stand" are quite numerous and too lengthy to reiterate on a daily basis, in a short pledge. The pledge may inspire more interest in finding out more about those values, and that is worthwhile.

>Otherwise, you can wind up with something like Nazi Germany where people have to go along with it because "my country".

Funny you should mention this. Most Germans, even Nazis, had no idea what their government was actually up to and would have never supported anything more than deporting those they saw as troublemakers.

>If you think about it, the main reason for the Bill of Rights, and especially the 2A (I vehemently disagree with guns in today's world but I understand the original purpose of the 2A), is because they understood that governments can be subverted away from the country's values and citizens need protection from the government in such cases.

Today's world needs the 2A and the Bill of Rights more than any other time. Idk why you think 2A doesn't apply now. Guns did not go away. The government is bigger than ever. The founders were not only worried about "subversion" but governments going rogue in overt and shameless ways. There was no standing army back then, and the founders did not want one. That is one thing that isn't practical anymore... We need professional soldiers. But we ALSO need people armed and ready to defend the homeland if necessary. We let in way too many people and grant citizenship way too easily. There are 1.5 million Chinese coming of age soon who never lived in the US but will be eligible to vote here due to birthright citizenship tourism! It's insane that we allow this, or any of the BS asylum claims. If a war pops off, I expect that thousands of operators who were let in under false pretenses will spring into action and sabotage everything. If you tell most people this, they will look at you like you're the crazy one.