An
outdated idea, that your
country is so
important that you should
support it even when doing the
wrong thing. It comes with the
belief that your country is somehow
superior to others.
For a while, this idea seemed to be rapidly disappearing, especially among the youth who are internet users, as they've come to realize how arbitrary national boundaries are to the human mind, and is being replaced with a general global perspective.
However, with the events on September 11, 2001, there seems to be a resurgence of this idea among a lot of Americans. It is not being expressed as such so far, but attitudes are suggesting this idea is definitely growing.
Frankly, this scares me. I cannot see how someone can give their blanket support to the government, no matter what their actions are. Shouldn't our concerns be more on getting them to handle the situation properly, and if we think they're not, then let them know? This is a case where if handled incorrectly, the results could be disastrous. Not only could thousands of Afghani citizens, who have been terrorized for years by the Taliban, be killed, but it would make large numbers of people around the world even more upset, and possibly invite more terrorism.
Look, being proud of your country just because you happen to live in it seems rather ridiculous, doesn't it? If you want to be proud of it, be proud of the principles it stands for - and never let those principles be compromised.
I once heard someone state that "My Country, right or wrong!" is the most un-American thing one can say or feel.