On Patriotism

Just a little input on the topic of patriotism that I am quite certain Mr. McSame will raise in the general election

On Patriotism.

 

With all of the recent talk about flag pins, pledges of allegiance and patriotism, I have recently been drawn to ruminate on the topic. What exactly is patriotism? Is it a policy of blind conformity with the policies and actions of one’s government? I hope not. Because if that is indeed the definition, then the only factor that separates a good, patriotic American from a Nazi is the “ovarian lottery ball” that rolls from fate’s bingo machine with your date and place of birth stamped upon it. If patriotism is indeed that blind conformity spoken of earlier, a good and decent American who had instead, randomly fallen into 1934 Germany would have been one of the group of people who are now seen as a repugnant scourge of humanity.

 

On a more personal level, when I consider the gifts that fate has bestowed upon me, neither cover-boy style good looks nor earth shattering athletic ability are on that list. Neither artistic talent nor musical endowments live in any part of my being. What I have been given is the gift of rational thought, a capacity for reasoned discourse and deep contemplation. If none of those gifts are required of me with regard to matters of a political nature, I am left to ask how my existence is any different from that of a citizen of North Korea who is told what his opinion will be and who his friends and enemies will be.

 

          The American Heritage Dictionary defines patriotism as love of and devotion to one's country. So when I consider this definition, I ask myself what is a good example of love and devotion for me to look to? My daughter is without question, the one person on this earth to whom I feel the most love and devotion. I love her without condition. Yet if she did something that was wrong, I would certainly call her out on it. I would never ignore her flaws, because the fact that I love her makes me want to help her become the best girl and woman that she can possibly be. I would do my country a tremendous disservice if I were to fail to hold it to those very same exacting standards. If my government fails to live up to the idealism of the words in the constitution or the bill of rights, it is my duty as a citizen to take to the streets, or the airwaves or the Internet and rouse the consciousness of other citizens in the same spirit that was shown by Patrick Henry. So when I rail against an unjust war that was sold to the American people based on fraudulent information or fear mongering, I am indeed doing my patriotic duty. Yes, I suppose I could wear a lapel pin or participate vigorously when anthems and pledges are delivered, but I’m a bit uneasy that if I lower my eyes to put a pin on my jacket, my right to privacy might be handed over to a TelCom company, or if I lower my eyes to put my hand over my heart and sing or pledge, I might find myself and my country in an ill-advised and unwarranted war with some other small country.

 

          So you’ll just have to take my word for it without benefit of any symbols, songs or chants. I shall continue to demand that my government officials show a level of moral fortitude that justifies my faith in my country.

           

In the words of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy:

        

Few are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world that yields most painfully to change.

Reviews

[JC]

Sometimes when you stand up for what is right, you stand alone, but that will have to wait for another day. We show our patriotism by, exercising the right to vote, assembling in peaceful protest and our freedom of speech. We are vigilant, and tenacious in ensuring that our government holds itself accountable.

Continue the good fight, our fellow Americans are depending on it!

JC

[Mel]

You definitely have a writing talent. Your flowing words have me hanging on to the end. Speaking of hanging on to the end, when will you have the ending for "This Can't Be Happening!" I can't wait.
Mel

[Donald Meikle]

This makes me reassess my values. Am I a patriot? sorta kinda. I agree with the principles this country was founded upon. I am a citizen by choice, and a veteran. I saw the citizens of the oldest country in the world voting in a new government. It was quite a turnout. Did they get what they wanted? Was it worth the effort?
Are they patriots? I look at the choices I have to vote for and am not content. I look at what I have for representation and am ill content. The true blue freedom of the fiftees is just a memory.

[bluessadmood]

I really did not want to comment here, not that I did not like it, on the contrary, what you said; every word is so right and thoughtful
Not because you were talking against a war that shattered a whole country to peaces, millions killed, millions refugees in surrounding countries
Your talk about patriotism is thoughtful and very convincing
We Iraqis have never loved any government over the last 100 years, does that makes us non patriotic, no...
Iraq ,I think most do not know is the oldest country in the world ,its there 6000 years old ,only a few miles from my town ,there grew the first civilization ever known on earth,Civilisation of Hammurabi and Nimrod..
we have been occupied by the Persians for some 500 y,then the Turks also about the same time, in the beginning of the twentieth century Iraq was put under British Rule ,the some 8 Iraqi governments ,all we either thrown away or thrown away ,so are we not Patriotic ,no..
We just can not stand what is wrong and no one right came to rule
I liked your concept of patriotism, you have done some great work here ,you are defending your country before saying the right thing about the mistake to go into another small country and shatter it to peaces ,Iraq was never hurt along all the ages like at these times, nothing is left erect, everything gone down to pieces
let alone the so many innocent lives taken away ,is that right ,to say that is right� is to be patriotic...if that's the case I don't want to be patriotic ,I want to be a traitor, if I have to stand with the wrong so they say I am patriotic, then I don't want to be patriotic!!!!
wonderful write,i bow to your good judgment.

[Jane Doe]

An excellent, excellent, phenomenal essay on patriotism. I agree with you wholeheartedly. People seem to forget that dissent is the ultimate form of patriotism as this country was founded upon it. If we had not dissented with the British government we would all still be drinking tea and eating bangers and mash, whatever the hell that is. Your essay reminds me of two quotes that I think are particularly poignant:

"You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong no matter who does or says it." ~Malcolm X

"Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel." ~Samuel Johnson

Again, an utterly fantastic piece!

Jane

[Eagle Cruagh]

A great many "citizens" felt the same during World WarII.
By claiming patriotism as their motive, they were able to
be a slacker and enjoy all the benifits (freedoms) that were
won and preserved by the many who died for their country.
---- Eagle Cruagh

[T]

Wow. I really like this and to end it with a quote by Kennedy was great! Great job!

[HoWiE]

Yeah this is very well put mate. Eloquent and informative. I find myself in a bit of a quandry here and tend to divide my patriotic feelings up in big chunks. Being a member of the Armed Forces, I am fiercely patriotic about my colleagues in the other services (yes... even the Airforce... poofs!). Having taken part in both Gulf Wars and humanitarion aid operations in Iraq in 1991 I have a slightly skewed view of things - certainly Saddam had to be stopped, having personally witnessed what he did to the Kurds. Of course then there was the bullshit fed to us by both our Governments (the chief reasons being oil reserves and strategic vantage points in the Middle East). Consequently, I'm not so patriotic about our Government. I am more so about the Queen as she's my boss but I am by no means a radical Royalist. I am patriotic about the sporting side of life, especially our football (soccer), athletics and so on, whilst cricket... I'm not overly fussed. Generally the UK is in decline and so it's hard to remain patriotic about our countrymen - rising crime, immigration (legal or otherwise), pollution and so on. I could go on, lol. I liked your piece because it reminded me of how I think. At the end of the day... am I patriotic? I think so. But I am more a patriot to the idea of England, not what it's become. Thanks for posting this. Cheers!! Howie ;-)

[Samuel Dickens]

You say it all so well. I am retired from the US Navy, a Vietnam veteran, and I agree with your words 100% I love the analogy you make with your daughter. According to some, my disdain for the current administration somehow makes me unpatriotic, despite all I've done. This is a terrific write, Creepy Blue Guy.

[Brandon Meyers]

Nicely put, sir. I am in complete agreement.

[Emily Rose]

"the true patriotism, the only rational patriotism, is loyalty to the Nation ALL the time, loyalty to the Government when it deserves it." ~ Mark Twain

How clearly you get your point across! I heartily agree with your sentiments in every sense. I like that you called out the war without being unnecessarily rude or condecending. So few people are able to do that these days, and, I find, even fewer people are able to support the war without immediately resorting to such tactics. The comparison of our country to your daughter was a wonderful one, too - it's a very great truth that unconditional love means that one's flaws SHOULD be recognized as an agent for change, not the other way around. Your gifts for reasoned discourse and contemplation certainly shine through in yoru work.

I have some small grammatical qualms with the essay, however: very few indeed. The first is that the word "patriotism" is repeated a little too much in the opening paragraph. I think at least on or two of those "patriotisim's" can easily be replaced by an "it" without much fear that the clarity will be lost. Also, this sentence is not actually a sentence but a fragment: "On a more personal level, when I consider the gifts that fate has bestowed upon me." This is probably just a simple editing error, but the sentence needs to be expanded or condensed so it can stand on its own.

I'm glad to run across some critical/personal essays here - yours was very insightful and great to read.