Patriotism

I found the thoughts of Robert Jensen very interesting.
He boils down one definition of patriotism to "We were attacked. We must defend ourselves. The only real way to defend ourselves is by military force. If you want to be patriotic, you should -- you must -- support the war."
my reaction to this definition was refusal. i think that people should be allowed to voice their opinions and not get harassed as 'unpatriotic'. i don't think that force is always the response needed. don't get me wrong i support our troops and wish them all good health. but i also wish them a safe and quick return home. i don't claim to keep close tabs on the situation but i think that surely there could have been more done before we got into the situation we are now in. it relates back to Jensen because he talked at length about how the United States of America needs to accept the things we have done. we cannont be on a pedestal. we are not better than other humans on this planet. we have caused much mischief all over the world which we need to call ourselves to task for.
He also shared this quote by Emma Goldman: "Patriotism assumes that our globe is divided into little spots, each one surrounded by an iron gate. Those who had the fortune of being born on some particular spot, consider themselves better, nobler, grander, more intelligent than the living beings inhabiting any other spot. It is, therefore, the duty of everyone living on that chosen spot to fight, kill, and die in the attempt to impose his superiority upon all others."
i think that the US is perhaps the most guilty of this form of pratriotism i do not pretend to be at all an expert on american or world history but our country has done some inexcusable things in my opinion and tried to suppress disagreement with the threat that we are not patriotic if we argue. this is rubbish. if we have to use the word patriotic i do not think this is the right way and that we need to rethink how we view the concept drastically.
America needs to revise it's view of itself in relation to other societies.
he sums it up well when he says:
"I believe there is a light shining out of September 11, out of all that darkness. It is a light that I believe we Americans can follow to our own salvation. That light is contained in a simple truth that is obvious, but which Americans have never really taken to heart: We are part of the world. We cannot any longer hide from that world. We cannot allow our politicians, and generals, and corporate executives to do their dirty business around the world while we hide from the truths about just how dirty that business really is. We can no longer hide from the coups they plan, the wars they start, the sweatshops they run."