The 4th

DEMachina.

Posted to Diary on Thu Jul 03, 2008 at 03:36:54 PM EST. RSS.

I have mixed feelings about patriotic holidays.

I began thinking about this when Memorial Day came around, although that one is a mixed bag for me for other reasons.

The true purpose of the Fourth of July, like a lot of holidays in the U.S., has become somewhat obscured.  A lot of times it's just a day people get off work and an excuse to party.  I'll admit this is the first time I've really thought about what the Fourth means since I got over that pseudo-patriotism our schools indoctrinate young kids with.

I don't remember how it came up precisely; I think it was talking briefly with a classmate of mine who's also in the military and who is extremely patriotic (the angriest I've ever seen this guy was when someone said the U.S. was basically a terrorist state).

I'll admit my self-image as an American (or Unitedstatesian) has always been shaky.  That is to say, the U.S. is not one of the first groups I think of myself as belonging to.  I remember a character in Thirteen by Richard Morgan saying something like, "no one who knows its history is proud of their country."  That describes a lot of how I feel...I always wonder about that whole pride thing.  Our country has done some terrible, terrible things, and we often accuse other countries of those same things.  This was the same problem I had being associated with an organized religion: how can I join a group that has done such horrible things?  

Honestly I think patriotism does a lot more harm than good.  It blinds us to the bad things our country has done, and by failing to learn from those mistakes, is still doing.

Thus I find myself wondering what exactly I should be celebrating.  I suppose in a lot of ways I'm asking for too much; things could be a lot worse, and in the past they have been.  But somehow "things could be worse!" isn't for me a cause of celebration.  

So, have a good weekend, dear reader; try to spend it with some people that deserve your loyalty, as I will.  This year, I'll be thinking about all that could have been, and all that can still be.