From: Lee Corbin (lcorbin@tsoft.com)
Date: Mon Apr 07 2003 - 23:12:47 MDT
Lee Daniel Crocker writes
> > I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United
> > States of America, and to the republic for
> > which it stands, one nation indivisible with
> > liberty and justice for all.
> >
> > American patriots are those individuals who can read these
> > words, and agree with every nuance of sentiment they contain,
> > and who indeed are themselves allied with that republic.
>
> If you /had/ to recite it, then it's meaningless; you were just
> following the crowd.
It's perhaps hard to credit, but a lot of history was created by
people who acted as a part of something larger than themselves;
who believed that they were a part of a nation, or who believed
that they had a people. I understand that this does not resonate
with some very strong individualists, for whom practically all
communal feeling is alien.
> If you've ever /freely chosen/ to recite it, then I might think
> it had some meaning. I certainly never have, and never will,
> choose to willingly pledge allegiance to a piece of cloth, but
> that's just me.
Yes; symbolism also plays a factor in many people's thinking, but
not everyone's. A number of people are really moved by the symbols
of their nation, or of their ideological movement. But certainly
not everyone.
> The republic for which it stands is of course a different matter,
> but I'm not sure "allegiance" is something I can admire there either.
Patriotism is not for everyone.
Samantha writes
> A country is only as good as its guiding principles. I don't
> love the country just because I happen to be in it.
This is getting to the core idea. Suppose that you had been a
member of a small Indian tribe, say the Menominee, to be specific.
You grow up noticing that many people have a peculiar loyalty
to the Menominee, and even join in raids that you had opposed
against other tribes. You moreover note that many seem to value
the *existence* of the tribe in a way that transcended the particular
people of the tribe---that is, they value the traditions and mores
of the Menominee, and that it was *not* though any allegiance
to various abstract principles that command their loyalty to the
tribe. Rather they feel that way about Menominee as members of a
*group*.
Do you think that you would have found this alien to your way
of thinking?
> > Patriotism, or love of country, is not the same [as endorsement
> > of principle] at all. Either you have a deep emotional bond to
> > an actual nation and its people, or you do not. Perhaps only a
> > small majority of the members of most Western nations today have
> > such a loyalty.
> If that is all patriotism is then it is worthless.
Well, as I said to Lee Daniel, patriotism isn't for everyone.
Lee
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