For Love of Country

If "patriotism" can be described as the feeling of: "My country, right or wrong," then I'm not a patriot. My own philosophy is best summed up with a saying that I found online to the effect of: "If my country is wrong, then I will do my best to make it right." But even that sometimes feels more jingoistic than I expect I genuinely am.

I was having a conversation with an acquaintance about whether it makes sense, if one finds another nation that may be a better fit to one's temperament and/or ideology, to leave and take up residence there; or should one stay in one's home country and work to make it a better personal fit. We went back and forth for a while, until I finally asked: "Say that you and I are complete ideological opposites, to the point where you would find my perfect society an absolute nightmare. Would you prefer that I fought to implement that society here, and won, or would you rather than I moved elsewhere and allowed this place to function in a way more to your liking?" He thought about it for a moment, and then said: "I'd prefer that you stayed and came around to my way of thinking."

Of course, the way international borders are set up, simply packing up and moving to another country simply for ideological reasons is more or less a non-starter, and so many people are left to hope (or demand) that they other side gives up on their ideals and comes over to their side. But this idea that leaving one's home nation for greener pastures is a mark of disloyalty is interesting in a nation that was founded on just that very idea. While Britons may enjoy snarking at us about "Treason Day," it's not expected that anyone takes it seriously. But for many Americans, especially those who view themselves as Conservatives, the idea that someone who finds, say, Europe to to be more appealing might actually decide to move there triggers "outrage."

Unconditional love for a nation is like the unconditional love for a person; it only works when it's reciprocated. But I think that one of the issues that pops up when people speak of love of country is that many people also view it an analogous to a love for themselves. Which can make a certain amount of sense; after all, what is a nation other than its people? While a group of people can effectively be stateless, a state can not be peopleless and still exist as a state. And so it may be this instinct to take the opposition of others to certain aspects of the nation personally, and to respond as such, that drives the rancorous political debate we have today.

If so, it will be a difficult thing to solve, because it can be a difficult thing to understand. If someone mentions what they understand to be a modern problem, and I point out that the situation has, in fact, been steadily improving over the tenure of the nation, it can be difficult for me to understand why they would see that as an attack against them. While there are any number of potential reasons, none of them tend to be particularly evident in the midst of a conversation. And that inability to understand people in the moment may be one of the biggest issues that we face right now. Second only, perhaps, to the lack of urgency around finding a solution.