Patriotism is defined by Merriam Webster online as love or devotion to one’s country. It is the special affinity one has towards their homeland. This means being ready and willing to sacrifice for the country due to the loved one’s feels for their country. Patriotic people are seen as more devoted to their countries as opposed to devotion to one’s interests. Patriotism is a complicated phenomenon and scholars have divided it into various categories.
Though there exists a disagreement on the labels. The first group is known as devout patriotism that signifies unconditional loyalty to one’s state. Devout patriotism is also referred to as blind patriotism. The second type of patriotism is symbolic patriotism. This kind of patriotism is associated with symbols and rituals which can be informed of loyalty songs and national flags. The other category is constructive or critical patriotism which is the belief that the best way to love one’s country is with constructive criticism of the government (Primoratz and pavkovic 35-76)
The constructive or critical patriotism leads me to the question. Is being critical of the government patriotic? Some will argue that a patriotic person is the one who is not scared to ask a question to the government. (Littman, 2005) states that she does not criticize what the government is doing because she hates this country. The reason behind her deeds is her passionate love and pride in her American country.
Criticizing the government is very patriotic because we are able to voice our concerns on the issues we feel are not going right. In the case of the Iraq war, how would it be unpatriotic to take to task a government that puts the precious lives of its sons and daughters at risk based on politically influenced intelligence? (Littman, 2005). Being critical of the government is patriotic. Thomas Jefferson observed that the will of struggle to an administration is important on some occasions and should be maintained. Most of the time it is exercised in the wrong manner but is better than not observing it at all. A government that is never criticized would lead us to a scenario like the one in Zimbabwe.
Many would urge that criticizing the government has detrimental effects to that the government such as putting off investors and visitors; which would, in turn, affect the economy of the country. We may embarrass our leaders but this is short-term. In the long term, we rectify the mistakes and things go back to normal..
Some use patriotism to advance their political agenda. In this case, patriotism becomes a threat to democracy. The patriotic allegiance should not limit informed dialogue that involves a varied range of opinions
Where we have blind patriotism it becomes unpatriotic to criticize one’s own country thus leading to intolerance of criticisms thus lack of informed debate and discussion (Primoratz and Pavkovic 89-150). They further their political agenda because they use patriotism to advance their political agenda as the people they lead never question what they do. Like in the case of George W Bush on the war in Iraq he said to those who were opposed to the war were either with them or the terrorist. And in this, he silenced those opposed to the invasion of Iraq us they did not want to be seen as unpatriotic. The people in power embezzle funds make bad decisions for the country as no one takes them to task as they do not want to appear unpatriotic. In my opinion, people in power can use patriotism to advance their political agenda.
The radicals and the liberals can close the gap between America as the apotheosis of democratic strivings and the sordid realities of greed and arrogance that often betray it. This is because they have moved from normal thinking and are ready to embrace change as evidenced in the election of Barrack Obama to the presidency. Yet he was considered an outsider by the conservatives. With their new approach and even trying to bring democracy to the East, they are setting America as a role model for other democracies in the world.
They will help to clean up the mess that has been in the democracy because they are vocal and ready in that they seem ready for a comeback. With the current financial crisis placing the dangers of capitalism at the forefront, they can present better ways of dealing with this problem as they are opposed to a few controlling the economy.
The left side of the political spectrum is more inclined to hold America up to higher standards of democracy and can hold up America. The left-wing issues are equality, social justice, labour rights and trade unionism, concern for the poor, working-class solidarity and internationalism (Berman). And because the left-wing is against hierarchy and authority, strict adherence to tradition, monoculturalism, a privilege for the wealthy. Due to the issues, they can bring a change in the way democracy is perceived in the USA. And because the left-side politics encourages internationalism they are in a position to dialogue with those countries, considered an enemy of the USA for a long time. Already there is a change experienced with the left politicians lifting the travel embargo for Cubans.
On the other hand, it will be very difficult for the left-side to hold the standards of democracy because they are perceived as socialists who seem to promote communism. They need to work very hard on the issues that are considered controversial by the conservatives for instance abortion issues, contraceptives. They may need to maintain the status quo.
Finally, patriotism is a powerful political tool and many nations have become powerful because of it. Some did it through propaganda that created patriots who would do anything for their countries including killing those who were perceived as enemies or outsiders (Primoratz and Pavkovic 180-200). This helps their leaders fulfill their political dreams. Patriotism is good and it should never be used to isolate people of the world into blocks rather it should unite all humanity by everyone becoming a patriot of humanity.
References
Igor Primoratz and Pavkovic Aleksandar (2008) Patriotism: Philosophical and Political Perspectives Alder shot: Ashgate.
“Patriotism.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2009.
Merriam-Webster Online. 2009. Web.
Sarah darer Littman 2006 fourth and Nature of Patriotism. Web.
Sheri Berman (2006) The Primacy of Politics: Social Democracy and the Making of Europe’s Twentieth Century London: Cambridge University Press.