1115.org

Sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference.

Pa”tri*ot*ism\, n. [Cf. F. patriotisme.] Love of country; devotion to the welfare of one’s country; the virtues and actions of a patriot; the passion which inspires one to serve one’s country.

Trai”tor\, n. [OE. traitour] One who violates his allegiance and betrays his country; one guilty of treason; one who, in breach of trust, delivers his country to an enemy, one who takes arms and levies war against his country; or one who aids an enemy in conquering his country.

Two weeks ago, I went to a panel discussion at Cal Berkeley that featured some White House reporters discussing how coverage of the President has changed over the last 50 years. The same question hung over the 2000 people in attendance: Why has the press fallen down on the job at the most crucial point in our history? Even though the panelists were very highly respected professionals, I still expected them to gloss over the poor performance of the vast majority of their peers. I was very surprised that each of them acknowledged that post-9/11 important questions were going unasked and leads uninvestigated. I was considerably more surprised when they admitted that the press corps was tip-toeing out of fear of being labeled un-patriotic.

I blame Faux News, but that’s for a different entry.

This all seems so foreign to me. Maybe it is because it’s unclear to me what there is to love about this country, what there is left to be passionate about.

One of the most vital components in any 12 step program is the need to see things “as they are” and not “how you wish them to be”. Is it any surprise that our President is an alcoholic who never went through a recovery program? Talking to God doesn’t count, Chimpy.

I don’t blame flag wavers for their patriotism.
(I do blame anyone who would wear this.)
It is difficult and painful to take an honest look at what our country has come to stand for. It’s much easier to put a stars and stripes bumper sticker on your pick-up and take your three day weekends at the beach. It’s hard to think about what that flag used to stand for and the meaning behind Independence Day and Memorial Day. It’s easy to cash your tax rebate check. It’s unpleasant to think about the rise of class warfare and the erosion of freedoms. It’s easy to eat what the administration feeds you. It’s hard to root out the truth. It is much harder when the people who are paid to ask the questions are cowering in the corner.

It is shameful and infuriating that every time a member of this administration
is asked about people with opposing views, the response is always “those views
are dangerous and unpatriotic”.

One of the ideas that my father (now inexplicably a Republican) hammered into my head when I was growing up was that as a citizen of this country I had “rights and responsibilities”. Many of the rights are now under attack and many of the responsibilities would be described by some government officials as “giving aid and comfort to the enemy.”

I ask you: Who are the patriots and who are the traitors?