I Am A Patriot (2014)

As a former Boy Scout, I was raised with a sense of patriotism, but I was always uneasy with the performative rituals that often followed. For me, being patriotic has always meant believing in the promise that our country represents, and speaking up when our actions fall short of these ideals.

With this as my foundation, I declared "I Am a Patriot" in an essay early in my writing career. Barack Obama was in the middle of his second term, and the partisan divide was deepening. Obama had pushed the country forward when he was elected as the first African-American president. Yet, we were far from achieving a post-racial America, a reality made clear by the vitriol directed at the president.

This is the essay, presented with light edits from its original publication:

“Being a good patriot…sure ain’t about parties...loyalty to the party instead of loyalty to the truth.”

- “Little” Steven Van Zandt

In a 2014 study conducted by the Pew Research Center, fewer than half of the Millennials interviewed said the term “patriotic person” described them very well. Perhaps this is simply indicative of the independence of this generation. After all, they were also found to be far less religious, less trusting of other people, and more detached from traditional institutions. However, we cannot discount the fact that older generations have not exactly been the greatest of role models. If our country wants to inspire young patriots in the next generations, we need to do better. 

Too often, we think of patriotism in mostly symbolic terms. For example, some recite the Pledge of Allegiance with a particular gusto as if their love of country can be measured in decibels. Talking heads on television instinctively thank veterans for their service, while their reporting regularly ignores the costs of our soldiers’ sacrifices. Flag lapel pins have become part of the unofficial dress code for politicians, even as they show blatant disrespect for offices occupied by those with different ideological values.

In the military, one salutes “the rank, not the man.” An employee who wants to keep receiving a paycheck knows that disagreeing with a boss must be done with tact. To maintain a civilized society, the vast majority of citizens need to respect the rule of law and the people responsible for its enforcement. Similarly, mutual respect between our elected officials is necessary if we are to work together to solve the problems facing our country.

If Representative Joe Wilson believed that the President was incorrect when he stated in his speech to Congress that the health care reforms he was proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally, he certainly had a patriotic duty to expose the truth. The networks always present an opportunity for the opposing party to offer a rebuttal to the President’s planned televised speeches. I am also sure that Rep. Wilson, as an elected representative, has better access to the press than most of his constituents. Instead, he chose to act like an audience member of the Jerry Springer Show and heckled the person chosen by the majority of the electorate to be the President of the United States. But at least he was wearing three lapel pins, one of which, of course, was an American flag.

Outside the halls of Congress, and when not dealing face-to-face with the Chief Executive, all bets are off. Protest and debate are hallmarks of a successful democracy. Basking in the failures and mishaps of the guy we did not vote for is also an established American tradition. Bush’s protein spill on the Prime Minister of Japan, Clinton’s ill-advised deposit of DNA on Monica Lewinsky’s blue dress, and the attempt on “Shrub’s” life by the pretzel lobby were all overplayed by the media. What all of these incidents had in common was that, other than being embarrassing to the Commander-in-Chief, they did not affect the country at all.

It seems that with Obama, our country entered new territory. Even before he had taken the oath of office, Rush Limbaugh was publicly stating, “I hope he fails.” Ted Nugent said he gets “down on bended knee daily and pray to God that he does what he can to ensure that President Obama fails.” A potential juror in the trial of Osama bin Laden’s son‑in‑law was excused after telling the court “that he felt that a guilty conviction would help Obama, and he didn’t want to do anything that would help President Obama.”

In defense of his statement, Limbaugh asked, “Were the liberals out there hoping Bush succeeded, or were they out there trying to destroy him before he was even inaugurated?” Perhaps the OxyContin affected Limbaugh’s memory, but I remember Al Gore setting a very conciliatory tone after the Supreme Court’s unique ruling that awarded the presidency to Bush. When the country faced the crisis of 9/11, Bush’s approval rating soared to 92%. I personally hoped that my worst fears were not true and that future elections would bring different results. But I also wanted the best for my country, and that meant hoping that the President would be a successful leader.

In his farewell address to the country, George Washington warned us that the emergence of political parties would supplant our loyalty to the nation. Unfortunately, his worst fears seem to have come true in modern-day America. An opinion piece published in the Wall Street Journal stated:

“it should be obvious that many of our country’s current problems either existed long before (the president) ever came to office, or are beyond his control. Perhaps if Americans stopped being so divisive, and congressional leaders came together to work with the president on some of these problems, he would actually have had a fighting chance of solving them.”

The author was writing about George W. Bush, but his words ring true if one inserts the name of almost any sitting president.