Patriotism - virtue or vice? (generation, illegal, death, Kennedy)
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By definition Patriotism means love for or devotion to one's country.
It's up to each American who cares about the future of this nation to do their part, whether it's staying informed or being a registered voter or maybe even running for office of some kind.
To ask if it's a virtue or a vice changes the meaning of the word patriotism.
Just my two cents.
I guess I've never understood patriotism. Unless we're talking about blind patriotism, I don't see how it's either virtue or vice. Neutral, really...and it just doesn't resonate with me.
I feel pride in my state. It's the only one I've ever lived in and it's not perfect, but there are so many things about it that make me happy and hopeful. When I move beyond Louisiana, well...I think "my country is the world," like Thomas Paine. I think about state issues more often, probably, but after that I don't really think of people in Oregon don't really demand my attention more than people in Nepal.
Patriotism is unquestionably a virtue. To love your country is to care about its future. Don't bastardize patriotism into blind faith in a government. Patriotism can be many different things to many different people, so for example, it's just as patriotic to oppose the Iraq war as it is to support it, so long as how you feel is directly related to what you perceive is best for the nation.
I moved to this city about a year ago. It has some good and bad aspects, and overall is probably average. The city and college libraries are both wonderful, the city bus system is spectacular for a town of this size, and the college baseball team went 38-4 in its first season ever. Few cities have a park as big and nice as the one on our riverside. But the local cineplex sucks (there's only one), the police appear to be a petty fiefdom, corruption is rampant and publicly scandalous in the city adminstration, and the daily newspaper is, journalistically, worse than my high school paper. The High School here is the biggest in the state, but the football team can't even make a first down.
Most people would talk about their town in pretty much the same contrasts between really good and really bad. So, why, then, is it considered unpatriotic to talk about your country that way, and call attention to deficiencies that could or should be improved? Without people saying "Why do you hate America?"
Patriotism is unquestionably a virtue. To love your country is to care about its future. Don't bastardize patriotism into blind faith in a government. Patriotism can be many different things to many different people, so for example, it's just as patriotic to oppose the Iraq war as it is to support it, so long as how you feel is directly related to what you perceive is best for the nation.
so far i think that this is the best answer.
intelligent patriotism should be about actual concern for, and dedication to, the community that you live in. it should be a willingness to work for its progress and the benefit of those around you.
instead it is either the self-centered belief that everything exists to make you happy, or the ignorant idea that the system is already perfect, and anyone that says differently should be deported or shot. i wonder how often the latter evolves from the former.
Patriotism is a virtue when it's displayed without any fanfare, when it's obvious to the observer that it's a natural and proud act.
It's a vice when it's touted and thrown into everyone's face. Half-hearted attempts are as transparent as none at all.
It's like religion. If you are "truly" religous, it's between you and those who share it with you. Not for you to rub into others faces or try to display some sort of supremacy with.
Patriotism is the love of one's country. How the h-ll is that a vice?
Only a braindead liberal would think that it is.
Depends on whether "one's own" country is USA or North Korea.
Mull this over. If you lived in Pyongyang, would you love your country in the same ways that you love America? What kind of life would you live? What would you consider to be your oblligations and responsibilities as a citizen? (Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea--I'll save some of you the trouble of looking it up.)
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