Loyalty was a value instilled in me as a child.  I don’t ever remember discussing it or having it explained but I knew I was expected to be loyal to my family.  But as an adult I find the concept  almost repugnant. Don’t get me wrong, loyalty to a thing or an entity, even a team is probably okay but blind commitment to a person just does not work.  Loyalty implies unwavering devotion in the face of adversity even to the point of abandoning one’s own principles.  I would never expect someone else to remain loyal to me ahead of his or her own values and I would never forego my principles to support someone else’s simply out of a sense of duty.

What kind of a narcissistic, narrow minded egotist actually asks or demands loyalty of another person?  I would run far and fast from such a clod. No individual should ever feel, that they are owed allegiance. Respect for one’s own principles and values should always and forever  trump such a demand. A bloated self image gives no man or woman the right to demand loyalty. If a person were to tell me she was loyal to someone, I might question  her ability to think deeply.  Loyalty is a thing of the past or at best of limited scope; it is a value of serfs and peasants to their King or the soldier to his commander. Loyalty is not a quality that implies wisdom or intelligence but thoughtless, emotional commitment. Being loyal to someone suggests to me that there is an expectation of reward for doing so. I will give up my own beliefs for some future reward – usually power or money or fame.  Someone who professes loyalty is usually nothing but a panderer.

When the President of The United States demands loyalty, one should ponder his needs.  Why does any human being need loyalty? He needs it because he is admitting he will do anything he chooses without regard to decency or kindness or fairness or the law.  Loyalty to such an individual spells certain disaster. How in this day and time are we still speaking in terms of loyalty to an individual? Have we not evolved?

Where do you stand on loyalty?