On Tue, 12 Aug 2008, Rich wrote:
> Pointing out an evil is not patriotic at all.  Pointing out an
> evil against which you put yourself in harms way to expose the evil
> is patriotic.  Talk is cheap.  Action speaks louder than words.

This hits the nail on the head, and is a great point.

So in order of least useful...

1. Ignoring your countrys faults because you think you are a patriot.
2. Complaining about faults because you think you are a patriot. (Me)
3. Doing something about your countries faults because you are a patriot.

I think too many people equate loving your country and it's leaders 
without question is being a patriot.  

I suspect it's our desire to be bigger than we are.  We identify with 
sports teams and our countries to be part of something larger.  When our
country is great, we feel that we are great too.  So when you are told 
your country is evil, you think, "I am NOT evil.. how dare they insult 
me!"  This is all under the hood, so I doubt most people are aware of WHY 
they react so strongly.

For an example, go to a bar in New York city and say, "Yankees suck, 
the Red Sox totally dominates them!" and count the number of beatings 
it gets you. 

--
Ian Smith
www.ian.org
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