Unhealthy Patriotism

A thought experiment.

You’re in a bar chatting to some guy over a beer, and suddenly, in a rash of frustration, he declares, “You know what? I’m the greatest person in the world, and I don’t think I should apologize for that.” Would you consider him to be an amiable and down-to-earth straight talker? I doubt it. Most likely you would conclude that he’s an arrogant and insufferable little shit.

I see no reason why this same logic should not apply when it comes to nations. It is a depressing and unfortunate thing when declaring that “America is the greatest nation on earth, and we shouldn’t apologize for it” becomes evidence that one is a morally solid American common man. All it shows is how deeply we have in fact sunk into hubris and self-satisfaction. And those are traits which always end in disaster.

I turn the floor over to G. K. Chesterton:

The man who is most likely to ruin the place he loves is exactly the man who loves it with a reason. The man who will improve the place is the man who loves it without a reason. If a man loves some feature of Pimlico (which seems unlikely), he may find himself defending that feature against Pimlico itself. But if he simply loves Pimlico itself, he may lay it waste and turn it into the New Jerusalem. I do not deny that reform may be excessive; I only say it is the mystic patriot who reforms. Mere jingo self-contentment is commonest among those who have some pedantic reason for their patriotism. The worst jingoes do not love England, but a theory of England. (Orthodoxy, pg. 69)

If I buy my father a mug that says “greatest dad in the world,” I do not mean the slogan literally. I mean it with humor and gentleness and a touch of irony, because I know it is not literally true. But I wish to make the statement anyway, because I love him. He is my father. Were I to actually defend the claim with seriousness, against another man’s son making the same claim, the argument would not only likely end in nonsense, but in a betrayal of some of the very values my father has attempted to instill in me. But when people declare America to be first amongst the nations of the world, as far as I can tell they mean it literally. I detect none of that humor, gentleness or irony in their meaning. Rather, their attitude comes off as resentful, almost martial.

They are defending a feature of America (which may or may not be true) against America itself. They do not love America. They love a theory of America.

~ by Jeff on October 17, 2008.