My Piece of Land is Better Than Your Piece of Land!

     Ah yes, good ol' nationalism. Or, as it's known here in the States, being a good patriot. I prefer to call it being proud of a complete accident and taking your worth from the accomplishments of others. But that's too wordy. I think I'll just call it American Syndrome.

     Why am I talking about nationalism, of all the infinite things I could be talking about? Because I think rambling on about nationalism will scare off the type of person to shout "USA! USA! USA! USA!" as a politician talks about how our country is just the pinnacle of enlightenment, civilization, and open-mindedness(more on that later). I don't want anything to do with that type of person, and I hope they want nothing to do with me. I've got some more bombshells waiting in the wings to drop on the poor little internet at a later date, but I need to save them. Maybe until I manage to pick up enough followers to make getting some hatemail over my ideas a certainty. Besides, nationalis - I mean, patriotism, is encouraged by just about every person with any authority in the entire country(my country. If you're in Sweden or something, consider yourself lucky). 

     Before I can tear nationalism to pieces, I should define the word so that people know what it is. Nationalism is the unwavering and absolute support for your country or birth and/or residence, and the taking of immense pride in the accomplishments of your fellow countrymen. The EDL(English Defense League, the UK's premier white nationalist(which I will also get to later)) and the Tea Party(basically the US's version of the EDL, but a lot more politically active and a bit more dangerous)  are prime examples of organized nationalism. Hell, just about every politician in the United States calls on nationalism. "God bless America." "America the great." "Land of the free." and so forth. It boils down to "The piece of land I was accidentally born on is better than the piece of land you were accidentally born on!" if you really examine it.

     But Fielder, surely you take pride in your own country! I mean, it took until the 1960's for people of a different skin color to get equal rights! And in 44* states you can't marry the person you love if they happen to be the same gender as you! And, and people are terrified enough of Middle Easterners to submit to being put through what amounts to a digital naked machine or being pat down by a guy who has a job to make sure stupid people feel safe, just to fly within their own country! This is a country where whether a legislator has a D or R by their name matters more than what they're actually proposing(unless it raises the military budget, includes tax cuts for the upper class, or increases taxes on everybody else)! What's not to love about that, right? We're the country steadily losing ground to China, India, and Germany and completely convinced that we're going to be at the head of the pack for the rest of time, dude! You were born here, so you'd better fucking love it or get the hell out, you commie pinko liberal towelhead marxist socialist nazi! Do you see why I'm not a flag-waving patriot? How about the part where many politicians including at least one FORMER PRESIDENT aren't sure whether I should be considered a citizen because I don't believe in God? Or the whole 'entire country is divided along party lines and nobody will give anybody a straight answer as to why' bit? Does this sound like the land of the free, or the home of the brave to you?

     Granted, the US has done some good things. Like going to the Moon, and other miscellaneous space travel. Oh right, shuttle program got cut(and not by Obama. Look at the US Congress, which is where the decisions on such things are made. But Obama is to blame as well). Or investing heavily in alternative energy, except for the part where Reagan gutted that program and Japan went full throttle with it, or the oil executives have spent years bribing - I mean, lobbying, to politicians. We have been the picture of freedom though, unless you were black until 1865. 

     How did I get off on that tangent? This is about nationalism. What's wrong with being proud of my country, aside from the things up there? 

     The blind support of everything this country does isn't some fringe thing. It's encouraged heavily. "If ya don't like the US of A, get da hell out!" is a catchphrase used so much that it's since stretched so thin it broke and bled out all over the Constitution(which would explain why people seem to forget about the whole separation of church and state thing). I can't comment on other countries, as I haven't lived in other countries, but I'm relatively sure that at least a few other countries are like this.  Why should anybody stop holding groups accountable for their actions, or completely support them, just because they live where that group reigns supreme?


     Also, I seem to have two followers. I wonder Hao I managed to trick two people into pretending to pay attention to me.