I wonder why anyone would trust a "pledge" when the "contract" has yet to be honored. n/t

[pepperbear]

[Dappleganger]

1. Well we all know how that Contract with America went before.

[blondeatlast]

2. Because it's a pledge, silly. You know, like that flag thing. Why do you hate the flag, you awful

unAmerican liberal?

[HereSince1628]

3. Republicans are so Newt-onian, so last century

I feel like I can make the comparison without looking, but I'll wait to pull up the old contract on America first...

[MineralMan]

4. Making it a "Pledge" is very clever of the GOOPers.

Everyone knows that if you make a "Pledge," NPR will eventually shut up and stop their annoying fundraising drive. Once they stop, you can simply ignore their letters, since a "Pledge" is not an actual contract. So, the GOOPers can "Pledge" anything they like, knowing that they needn't actually accomplish anything.

Stupid GOOPers, though. Their Pledge doesn't even promise anything specific. They wasted their time.

[no_hypocrisy]

5. Legally a contract is different from a pledge.

A contract is an exchange of promises based on consideration (something of value). When one promise isn't fulfilled, the injured party can sue for the expected value had the promise been performed.

A pledge is sort of an I.O.U. You borrow money and give an actual object of value in exchange to your borrower until you have finished repaying the loan. Let's say you have a gold coin and borrow $1300. You give the gold coin to your borrower who will either return it when you finish paying your debt or will keep it along with any payments you've made if you don't. The gold coin is your pledge.

When you recite The Pledge of Allegiance, symbolically you are promising your life to your country in exchange for its citizenship and the rights that come with it.

What makes the GOP's "pledge" so hollow is they aren't offering anything to anybody. Without giving something valuable as a pledge, it's just empty rhetoric. A pledge is not a promise. It's a "promise-plus".

[no_hypocrisy]

6. Dupe. Sorry.

[Orsino]

7. It doesn't change the furniture, but it puts a nice temporary gloss on it. n/t

[pepperbear]

8. +1