The problem (which is a strength in other ways) is that we're a large country with only two neighbors. And yet we've been a dominant military, political, and economic force for the last century or more.
It gives us distance from, say Europe. Gives us perspective, in a way. But also makes the rest of the world seem less... real. If that makes any sense.
So you end up with mobs of people who firmly believe that we're the best in every way, without knowing what else is out there. The vast majority of them have never set foot on another continent. Many of them haven't even been to Canada or Mexico. But they firmly, blindly believe that we're superior, and they denounce those who question that superiority as unpatriotic. Not all Republicans feel that way, but most, if not all, of the people who do are Republican.
To me, and to many liberals, being patriotic is more than that. It's wanting your country to be the best it can be, which means recognizing its flaws and shortcomings. How else can we grow?
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Date: 2008-11-05 09:34 pm (UTC)It gives us distance from, say Europe. Gives us perspective, in a way. But also makes the rest of the world seem less... real. If that makes any sense.
So you end up with mobs of people who firmly believe that we're the best in every way, without knowing what else is out there. The vast majority of them have never set foot on another continent. Many of them haven't even been to Canada or Mexico. But they firmly, blindly believe that we're superior, and they denounce those who question that superiority as unpatriotic. Not all Republicans feel that way, but most, if not all, of the people who do are Republican.
To me, and to many liberals, being patriotic is more than that. It's wanting your country to be the best it can be, which means recognizing its flaws and shortcomings. How else can we grow?