I recently read a quotation by American philosopher Richard Rorty:

"National pride is to countries what self-respect is to individuals: a necessary condition for self improvment. Those with no pride in their country will have no motivation to seek their personal growth in conjunction with their nations needs and development."

Would you agree with his statement?

I believe every nation has its strengths and its weaknesses. Its beauties and its flaws. I got to thinking:
What about my country evokes national pride in me?

I have a great deal of pride in my country. I have never lived elsewhere and have no desire to do so. I am proud to be Canadian.

I can live in Canada with a sense of safety and well-being. Canadians are a tolerant and peace-loving people.
Our health care system, while in no way perfect, is a good one. It is a rare occasion where one cannot get necessary medical attention. I can go to my emergency room and while I may have a wait, I will receive excellent treatment and not spend years paying for it. I would never be turned away.
Canada's diversity in people and geography is staggering.
Our people are friendly and courteous. Canadians are sometimes teased about being 'overly-courteous' but can there really be such a thing? I wouldn't see that as a flaw.

Anyway. Time to toot your country's horn. What makes you proud to be a citizen of your homeland?

Isn't that just so Canadian? This huge, beautiful country filled with courteous, fun loving people, and the thing we're proudest of is our health care system? Tommy Douglas, founder of our medicare system, was recently voted "Greatest Canadian".

How about our beer? That's another one that gets alot of national pride votes, especially when we compare ourselves to Americans. (Kind of one sided, if you ask me)

The thing I'm proudest of is that Canada is an inclusive destination. It is a country of immigrants. We have no hyphenated Canadians. If you live here, you are Canadian. We're all proud of our heritage, sure, but we're all Canadian when our team wins at hockey. We do love our heritage of course, like most people I claim to be something else, in my case Irish, even though I've never been there and my family has been here for over 50 years.

The Statue of Liberty says "send me you huddled masses", but Canada lets them come here and retain their cultural identity. We are a truly global nation.

I'm an American. My pride in my country revolves around the constitution. I love the constitution. What an inspired document. I'm not always proud of how my government uses that document, or abuses it, but I love it none the less.

Lately I've been torn between love and hate quite often. I'd say I love the people, the overwhelming ability to come together and rejoice in our nation, but then, there are always those who's method of rejoicing includes hatefulness and violence. In a nation so large and so varied, it will always be difficult to find common ground, and in the end I think we do remarkably well.

I know there is a sentiment in other parts of the world that Americans have more reason to be ashamed right at the moment than proud of their country. But I'm a patriot, and not the flag-waving, red-white-and-blue-wearing, rhetoric-spouting kind. I'm the kind that believes the constitution is a fine document, worthy of praise and pride and defense. It makes me proud to be an American.

I am also grateful to be American. At times it is hard to deal with the endless criticisms made by some around the world who have enlisted our aid time and time again to defend their very existence and way of life.

Regardless of how this particular [temporary] administration conducts the country's domestic and international affairs, the truth will always stand: this was a vast wilderness, sparcely inhabited, almost totally uncultivated. It cannot be argued that piteous mistakes were made in dealing with the native peoples of this continent, and later the Africans who were forced to come here - sold into slavery by their own tribal leaders to greedy, souless white traders. These are sobering facts that I believe every caring American will always be painfully aware of.

The Britons and Europeans who settled here were resourceful, spiritual, out of the box thinkers. Out of that same gene pool, some 500 years later, a great nation of risk takers and innovative minds have created a nation which has enriched the lives of millions around the globe through technology, trade and relief effort in time of trouble.

Generations of forward thinkers and mavericks from every corner of the world have made this their beloved home. It is hard to understand why we are despised by some when so many of the world's citizens call this place their own. I am fascinated with foreign cultures and hope to visit as many as I can someday. I admire all of you and bear you no ill will. I would hope to be treated with the same kindness and regard.

Along with some who have posted on this topic, I believe there should be no hyphenated Americans. All of us came here from somewhere else. But we're all here now.

As an amazed Cathy stammered to Isabella concerning her longtime beau in Wuthering Heights - "I AM Heathcliff!"


[edited for typo]

Yes, the US has many problems- but I rejoice in the ability of its individual citizens to call for change and try to do the right, moral thing (regardless of political or religious creed).

I love the fact that abolition, civil rights movements, and feminism can occur and create such drastic change because average citizens decided to fight to stop immoral laws and practices.

I am amazed at how many Americans will go out of their way to help a person in need- whether it be donating money or time, buying groceries for someone that doesn't have enough money, or helping stranded travelers. Once they are aware of a problem, they will not stop until something is done about it.

As long as I am proud of its citizens, I will be proud of my country.

I'm Indian.

What I love about India is the diversity of people (religion, language, dialect, race - everything differs). Yet, we're a united nation. We may have our problems and differences, but when under threat, we come together and fight unitedly.

Every time we sing the national anthem, I get this inexpressible choked-up feeling in my throat.

I love our culture, our traditions, our social system, our families, our food, our music, our films. Something that I've always felt about our social system is that there is a lot of security... families have parents, children, grandparents and maybe even more people. There's a lot of love and care and security in homes. Even neighbours kinda become family, and everyone's there to help when something goes wrong.

I love the never-say-die spirit, the way the entire nation surges forward to help in calamities. I love the helpfulness and easy acquiantanceship.

And a few humdred more things.

Mickeymouse, I enjoyed reading your post. Your national pride is very evident.

Very nice post, Mickey Mouse.

I'm fairly proud of being British, but many of my family are Maltese, and I'm a lot more proud of that. There aren't many of us about, and to be honest, it's one of the few countries in the world that doesn't buckle under the constant pressure of Catholicism. Probably because it's one of the few countries where everyone is Catholic.

Grekketi ta' Malta

It is a sad state of our affairs that

the line dividing self-respect and our ego (pride) is too blurred to know where one stops and where one ends...

Similarly the case with Nations - where does patriotism end and jingoism begin?

Look into your respective nations actions objectively and I can vouch that one will be definitely surprised.

We all say that we are proud to be of a particular nation. It gives a sense of purpose.
But we forget to realise the self-respect of other people often. What we believe is right is subjective.

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I am also an Indian and in no way less patriotic.

But does that give us the right to determine what other people want? Remember there was no India before the colonial period.


My apologies to certain sections but a bully never realises when he is wrong or right

Without offending any other nationality, look at India's case (ideal example to illustrate my point).

We consider Kashmir as an integral part of our country. The right to this was conferred to us by the ruler, not the people.
Pakistan also considers this as their land but the basis of this is the religion, not the people.
China also considers part of this land as theirs (the Eastern Side) - only God and the Politburo know why!

As a country, we make strong rhetoric against Pakistan but none against China. Ever wondered why?

In the same context, the point at which the line starts has only one way to go...

It's difficult (and different) here in Germany to develop a real sense of patriotism. There's always the danger of being called right-wing, or even Nazi, as soon as you dare to say you love your country.
Still I'm proud of my country - because Germany has had such a difficult past and is still coping with it, but doesn't keep silent about it. I am proud that Germany found a way out of the past atrocities, established democracy, and was reunified. There's a few people to be proud of as well - all I say is Goethe, Schiller and Wagner.
However, I don't think that hearing the national anthem evokes such feelings in Germans as it does in Americans, for instance. (It's different with sportspeople, however.) As a matter of fact, it's not at all common to even KNOW the lyrics of the anthem by heart....

A few months ago there was a thread (in another Forum) that discussed some of the specific problems that 'national pride' poses in Germany. Here's the link:

http://www.funtrivia.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=408528&an=0&page=4#408528

I'm sorry you have that kind of situation in Germany, PearlQ. I would hope things would be much better at this late date...I once interviewed a 17 year old exchange student from Germany [ around 1986 ] and was surprised even then to know how much national embarrassment is left from so long ago. Do you feel it's a more a guilt problem with the German people themselves or continued distrust from the rest of the world?

We also have the same situation in England concerning pride for your country. In Wales, Scotland and Ireland you are positively encouraged to be proud of your culture and country, but in England however it's a different story. If you stand up and say you're proud to be English (or even dare celebrate St. George's Day) you're deemed to be in possession of a dubious political viewpoint, ie. you hold extreme right wing views. Any English person reading this will understand what I'm writing here.

England has a lot to proud of and I'm enormously proud to be English, but no I'm not a Nazi and as far as I know don't have any affiliations with the Ku Klux Klan.

I take pride in being a citizen of the USA for many of the reasons previous posters have so eloquently stated. I can only add that we are a nation of immigrants and, although, some politicians may seek votes in balkanizing us, we usually interact very well on a day-to-day basis. Some people use the phrase "melting pot" but a beautiful "mosaic" is closer to the truth, as rich ethnic identities are thankfully preserved. In fact, despite talking heads ignoring it and narrow-minded parents fighting it, inter-racial and inter-faith marriages increase every year by leaps and bounds. Secondly, a civics teacher once told us in high school (about 1,000 yrs ago<g>) that the Constitution and Bill of Rights make us the only nation where the people strictly and precisely outline the limited rights THEY grant to the government. Most everywhere else it's the reverse. Yes this administration (and every other one I can recall) seeks to "finesse" this to a greater or lesser extent. However, that divine document is there to always right things, sometimes sooner, sometimes later

Quote:

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Secondly, a civics teacher once told us in high school (about 1,000 yrs ago<g>) that the Constitution and Bill of Rights make us the only nation where the people strictly and precisely outline the limited rights THEY grant to the government. Most everywhere else it's the reverse.

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I think you'll find that the situation is broadly similar in many other countries. Exactly how these rights were obtained varies from country to country, but there are very few, if any, where absolute monarchs "graciously deigned" to grant rights. (Nor is it the case that the most of the other democratic countries copied America).

One of the problems is that most forms of patriotism rely on myths. Often they are harmless, but they're not accurate.

I am not only proud to be British/English but am fiercely proud to be a resident of Jersey, I love the island.

As for St Georges Day and the English, I seriously doubt if many actually know when it is! It is April 23rd.

Edited to add a link confirming the above.

Click here

Bloomsby, I'm afraid you misunderstood my post..or at least the part you quoted. I did not refer to the manner in which rights are won. Indeed,as you imply, no authoritarian government dispenses freedom less than grudgingly. I have the utmost respect for those brave souls that put King John's "feet to the fire" at Runnymede and all their spiritual heirs ever since, the world over. I simply referred to the fact (not myth) that the 9th article of the Bill of Rights states that all powers not narrowly granted to the government are to be kept in the citizenry. Many constitutions list the rights of the citizens but do not contain the safeguard of overtly limiting the gov't to narrowly enumerated powers.I never implied that most democracies copied the US constitution, though some have. Whether they have, or not, I admire democracies everywhere that tend to their citizens' rights, not least your own country. A belated happy birthday to St George and a slightly early one to John Locke!

Many thanks for the clarification. I must confess that I did misunderstand that particular point.

Pearl, though it isn't national pride for me, since I am a citizen of and have always lived in America, I'm also proud to be German, That's my heritage. My Oma moved to the US as a war bride in 1944. I've been to Germany and have had many german students stay with my family, and they've said similar things. Knowing what happened to my Oma during the war, and to her family, and knowing the kind of ongoing struggle many Germans have about the Nazi era, and how we Americans don't probably help matters, I find myself correcting people who talk about Nazis, but use the word "Germans". I think the distinction is important and wish more people would realize it so that perhaps some actual healing can happen.

Thank you, Lothruin, that's exactly what people should do - not equal the word "German" to "Nazi." It's still happening - unbelievable, isn't it?
I hope you're not the only one who corrects people who do that.

Unfortunately, Pearl, I think many people in America make the substitution almost unconciously. It's all in how we're educated. In both world wars we were fighting "the germans" and the anti-german sentiment was so strong in the US, even though we were also fighting to SAVE Germans, it didn't matter, because Americans were fighting to save Jews, no matter that they were Germans too. In fact, anti-German sentiment was so strong here that when my Oma came here, the proud new German bride (with jewish ancestry) of a good American boy, she pretended to be Basque to avoid bigotry.

But that idea hasn't been changed much since then. While MOST european Americans have German heritage, and MANY have modern German ties, and all will acknowledge that Germany isn't Nazi any more, there is still that "Fighting the Germans" idea about WWII. I feel that to fail to make that distiction is to fail to acknowledge all the many Germans during the Nazi era who were threatened, tortured or outright killed by the Nazis, either because of their heritage or because of their political affiliations or outspokenness. And it also fails to recognize that Naziism is NOT inherintly German, nor vice versa, nor was it even during the Third Reich. For me, who's grandmother was a German DURING the Third Reich, and one who couldn't have been farther from the Nazis and still been free of the concentration camps, it is such an important distinction!

And I think that Americans get overwhelmed with the amazing amount of prejudice and violence that the Nazis propogated, reviling them for their flaws, while seeming to forget our own prejudices and violence of the day. The kind of bigotry Germans and Japanese, even those fleeing the governments Americans fought, even those who were Americans themselves, faced in America during that time cannot be overlooked. Perhaps it cannot be compared to the Nazis, but it is not less offensive itself for that, and we certainly shouldn't be casting the first stones.