Why did McCain's `Greatest Nation on Earth' comment irritate me?
I think patriotism as a concept was useful in days when it made sense to need to defend your country to the death. You could argue (strongly) that we are not past those days.
BUT... we are not past those days because of a few basic barriers (and I am aware that I may be oversimplifying):
1. Our obsession with giving land excess significance.
2. Religious beliefs promoting exclusion and conflict.
3. Apartheid on a national scale in the guise of Nation States.
The comment irked me because I caught a snippet of the movie `The Kingdom of God' earlier... which was based on the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Crusaders defending the city against the Saracens and `the evil muslims'.
They kept justifying a carnal basic desire for war with the phrase `God Wills It'.
I am not sure of the consistency of my thoughts here, but isn't the nation state something similar. Isn't what makes America great its focus on empowering individuals? The individual should be greater than the state, and a state founded by immigrants (after the killed most of the locals... mainly through their diseases)should celebrate the empowering of ALL individuals, not just Americans.
He is a politician, I know, but if the American elections have highlighted anything for me, it is the amount of bending to the popular masses that is necessary. Sports fanatic like reference to the greatness of a nation will make people like you.
Yes, to reply to Stuart's comment to the last post... America has elements that make it a great place for an individual to thrive, BUT I don't think anymore that competition between nations is necessary. Comments like that, and I may sound pedantic or like I am picking on something trivial, I can see will continue to irk me.
My point isn't clear yet, cause my thoughts aren't clear in my head yet.
2 comments:
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I agree with the sentiments in this post. In fact, there was a lot of discussion online about this question.
I'm no fan of patriotism, but I don't really have a problem with the line of thinking that goes, "I think people should be able to do X, Y and Z. America allows people to do X and Y and most of Z and that rocks (though what about the rest Z huh???). Of course, 20 other countries also allow this and they rock too!!"
McCain left out the last bit which sucks, but otherwise...
Of course I'm pleased that this seems to have made you more sceptical of democracy...?
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