The Shame of Shame

Once upon a time when I was a hippy chick, I was one of those who used to cringe at those who proudly expressed their patriotism. Although I had been raised a proud citizen, for a while I bought into the whole notion that the U.S. was a nation that shouldn't bang its drum so loudly -- that as a nation we overstepped our role, blah blah blah.

There were people in my life -- my father, most prominently -- who did not shy from declaring what a great nation we are. For a thankfully short period of time, I rolled my eyes when he would say how we should proudly display our flag or sang along to songs praising our country.

Of course, I got over all that. Pheee-ew!

But now we have a President whose only show of patriotism is the perpetual flag pin on his lapel. And everywhere you turn, there is someone complaining about others showing their patriotic stripes.

From the firefighter who was suspended for putting a flag sticker on his locker (now reinstated, and allowed to keep the sticker) to the gym owner with clients who complained about a large flag hung in the workout area (says he doesn't care if he loses customers) -- those who say it loud and say it proud are supposedly offending others and are being told they should put a lid on it.

Who are these people who feel we must apologize for being the greatest nation in the history of the world?

Now, I do think there needs to be boundaries. For instance, the latest story is about an employee of Home Depot that was fired because he refused to follow the company policy and remove a pin that said "One Nation Under God."

Wellllllll, here's the thing: Whereas, it is weird that he wore it for over a year with no objections, and it wasn't until he brought a Bible to work that suddenly the pin became a problem...

Still, there is a slippery slope that private companies have to deal with here. Unfortunately, there would be a problem of deciding which pins to allow, and which not to. Would anyone want to be the guy who had to decide which are ok and which are not (we're talking conservative and liberal here)?

I think the fact that HD does allow their employees to wear the single approved non-work-related button -- a flag pin that says "United We Stand" -- is sufficient.

But just as I grew up/ woke up/ got an attitude adjustment / whatever you want to call it -- and realized that we as Americans have no reason to apologize for pride in our nation, those who listen to this song and don't get a lump in their throat, if not a tear in their eye...

Well, maybe they should just go spend about a week in say Cuba, Afghanistan, Syria, North Korea -- and I don't mean as a "special guest" of the government. I mean amongst its oppressed people. And then we'll see if they still deny that the U.S. of A. ain't worth bragging about!

 

Comments

[Joyce]

I understand your point here. However, I take exception to one jab: "But now we have a President whose only show of patriotism is the perpetual flag pin on his lapel."

His patriotism extends beyond that. Most notably, his recent midnight trip to Dover to pay respects to the fallen soldiers coming home from Afghanistan. He stood there, solemnly saluting and paying his respects on the tarmac, one of few there that night. He went quietly. He met with the families that night, and he was humbled. A reminder that what we do over the coming months must be carefully considered to ensure our best chance of success. We may not agree with everything he's trying to accomplish, but his patriotism is unquestionable.

[Colette Moran]

I wrote this before Obama made the trip to Dover -- and I have to say I have mixed feelings about it.

There are pros and cons of making the trip for any President, and there are pros and cons to having the media covering it.

I think -- just like with Bush -- there is a "damned if he does/doesn't" -- but I think it's not so much the possibility of raising the anti-war sentiment, as much as it is a need to find the balance between rightfully grieving our fallen heroes, while still recognizing that the fight they are waging is not for naught...

If all you are seeing is the coffins of those who made the ultimate sacrfice and not the actions and results of all who are advancing the cause of global freedom, it is easy to lose sight of why we must battle these enemies.

AS for BO having unquestionable patriotism -- that's not the feeling I get when I hear him talking about our nation overseas...

[ChunLing]

Oh, so he's wearing the flag pin now? Does he put his hand over his heart rather than his crotch during the national anthem too? That's kinda too bad, it was funnier than most of what he does without being really harmful.

I can't blame Obama for wanting to take some credit for helping to kill those Americans, though he should be more honest about it. On the other hand...for having taken over the American CnC spot, his fragcount isn't very impressive, so maybe leaving the message ambiguous is understandable. Well, enough of that. Obama's what he is, he doesn't have to make any sense. On to other things.

I'm not proud to be an American. Because pride is a sin.

Hah hahah.

No, obviously it's because America is basically good and I'm basically evil. But pride is a sin, after all. Why do people say "I'm proud" of something or other when what they really feel is humility and gratitude for the honor? True, "I'm humbled and grateful for the honor of being an American" is a little clunky...but it's more accurate. "Glad" scans the same as "proud" and it isn't a sin, though.

I love America. It's a beautiful country with beautiful ideals.

On the other hand, I'm a horrible person with degenerate ideals.

But I think that even if I were fit to be "American", I'd still would say "I'm blessed/honored/grateful/privileged/etc. to be an American." Being "proud" to be American just doesn't make any sense to me.