blatham wrote:Pleased to make your acquaintance, builder (and tip of hat to Lord E).
America, like most places or people I suppose, carries within itself all it really needs to destroy itself. Lincoln understood this and postulated precisely that eventuality for his country. The irony, and the tragedy, is that to many Americans the "truth" is directly opposite Lincoln's notion - that their nation and its people are so inherently good and exceptional that it must be some other external agency that might do it harm. And further, that it is America's goodness and exceptionalism which makes it an inevitable target of evil intentions floating about in the unexceptional others. At the same time, because certain facts remain obvious and undeniable, this national mythology allows for evil/destructive internal elements - but those elements are always unAmerican in nature or origin (commies, papists, agents of satan, european values, etc).
There's lots written on all this. If you are interested, I can certainly recommend the book below...
http://www.amazon.com/America-Right-Wrong-American-Nationalism/dp/0195168402
Thanks for the link, Blatham.
I think that with 300 million people living in states with differing laws, religious mindsets, habits, personal beliefs, and monetary needs, there will always be people whose very nature is destructive and self-serving.
On the patriotism issue, when needed, patriotism is a postive tangible substance, well worth encouraging, but when it is manipulated by greedy lying pricks to line their own pockets, the populace needs to take stock of their own malleability, and look closely at themselves for answers to their own problems. The scapegoat mentality closely follows faux patriotism.
I still think there is hope for America. I believe the incumbent political system needs a top-to-bottom shake-up and clean-out, and some rationality brought into foreign policy and spending, but with a worker-base that large, the end of the tunnel is not that far off.
