I remember when I first started feeling like the pledge was creepy so I decided to exercise my rights by not participating. Turns out a lot of people hate our freedoms and don’t like it when people use them.
This is stupid, every country has done many things to be proud of and many things to be ashamed of, and America is no exception. That’s just how history works. If you acknowledge only the negative and ignore the positive, then you’re not acknowledging history, but a narrative.
And I’m saying that you acknowledge a narrative rather than actual history. If you get most of your information about a topic by doomscrolling on Lemmy then it’s no wonder you think the way you do.
Here’s a short list of positive things if you really need it:
The constitution
Emancipation Proclamation
Abolition of slavery through the 13th Amendment
19th Amendment granting women the right to vote
Civil Rights Act
Voting Rights Act
Landed the first humans on the Moon
Invented the airplane
Created the internet
Invented the cellphone and smartphone
Developed the first nuclear reactor
Introduced the assembly line
Played a decisive role in winning both World Wars
Launched the Marshall Plan to help rebuild Europe
Founded the United Nations and a bunch of other global institutions
Established NASA
Developed vaccines for diseases like polio and COVID-19
Created the National Parks system
Produced globally influential music genres like jazz, hip hop, blues, country, funk, rock n roll, etc
Maintained peaceful transfers of power for over two centuries
The Americans with Disabilities Act
Contributed to the defeat of fascism and communism in the 20th century
Birthplace of global sports like basketball, volleyball, football, and so on
Has world class universities that lead the globe in research and science like MIT, Harvard, and Stanford
Has created great people like Teddy Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, MLK, Ben Franklin, George Washington, and so on
This country does have a dark side to it and there are many negatives as well. However, someone ignoring the positives of a country and only focusing on the negative is no different than someone who only focuses on the positives while ignoring the negatives.
Patriotism: Pride in your country for what it does.
Nationalism: Pride in your country in spite of what it does.
Americans fell hard into nationalism after 9/11. They just wouldn’t admit it. Half of them still have their heads in the sand.
As an American, I personally believe that the Pledge of Allegiance is indoctrination.
I remember when I first started feeling like the pledge was creepy so I decided to exercise my rights by not participating. Turns out a lot of people hate our freedoms and don’t like it when people use them.
Let me fix that for you:
Patriotism: Pride in a nation-state.
Nationalism: Pride in a nation-state.
That’s not exactly a bad thing
America has done so few things to be proud of and so many things to be ashamed of that it’s impossible for me to feel patriotism.
This is stupid, every country has done many things to be proud of and many things to be ashamed of, and America is no exception. That’s just how history works. If you acknowledge only the negative and ignore the positive, then you’re not acknowledging history, but a narrative.
And I’m saying that the US has done more bad things than good things.
I acknowledge the positive and find them wanting.
And I’m saying that you acknowledge a narrative rather than actual history. If you get most of your information about a topic by doomscrolling on Lemmy then it’s no wonder you think the way you do.
Here’s a short list of positive things if you really need it:
This country does have a dark side to it and there are many negatives as well. However, someone ignoring the positives of a country and only focusing on the negative is no different than someone who only focuses on the positives while ignoring the negatives.
No I got my information by passing AP US history and reading A Peopke’s History but thanks.
Also a lot of this things you point out have major caveats.
We’re no better and far worse than lots of places.
Also nations are imaginary and borders are made up.
I recognize the good things. But the bad things are way, way worse. And nations are modern gods and I hate gods.
Lmao are you a high schooler? No wonder your views are so nonsensical
How many national parks does it take to make up for the Trail of Tears?
How many moon landings compensate for hundreds of years of chattel slavery and racism?