Liberals Don’t Know What Patriotism Is?
December 2nd, 2008, 7:43 PM EST
Don’t you love it when right-wingers lecture us about patriotism? Aren’t these the people, and the people who supported the people who, once they controlled all facets of government, screwed everything up? Someone going by the name Warner Todd Huston used the old misquote about Michelle Obama who never said she was “never proud of her country”, and who was never given credit by conservatives for clarifying her remark.
Huston uses Ron Silver as an example of a liberal. Could he mean the actor who now addresses Republican conventions and supports Bush?
We know that Huston is a patriot because his My Space page looks like a flag. Are we sure that isn’t desecration?
Maybe the CDC, DHHS, and a few biochemists from Harvard, Standford, and George Washington Univ. can come up with a blood test for “Patriotism” (FDA approved of course). Or, maybe there’s a genetic marker we could locate (now that we’ve mapped the human genome). Or, maybe there should be a “pariot-barcode” tattoed on our butts when we register to vote? We’ve already entered the realm of “Brave New World” …haven’t we?
Or, how about if we just believe that everybody loves America the same & leave it at that!
December 2nd, 2008 at 8:30 pm
I viewed this guy on my space. His heroes as well. I served my country in THE US NAVY. A NAM vet at that. My heroes,MLK,JOHN LENNON,THE STONES,US GRANT,JOHN BROWN OF KANSAS,JFK,CHUCK BERRY,JAMES BROWN,MOJO NIXON,THE KINKS,THE DEAD AND GREATFULL 1,S AT THAT. NEIL YOUNG,JFK,OBAMA,FDR,ABE LINC,IKE AND THE QUEEN OF SOUL. GOD BLESS AMERICA AND EVERYONE ELSE.
December 2nd, 2008 at 9:08 pm
I have some more heroes like HTE VOILENT FEMMES,CLASH AND SEX PISTOLS, TIME AND PRINCE.
December 2nd, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Only in USA
I’ll be honest, your country is weird and your liberals really let your conservatives work them over good.
Why did you leave that Fox show? That’s curious.
December 3rd, 2008 at 12:50 am
The radical right has had a distorted view of patriatism since McCarthy. Old Tail Gunner Joe is the one who started the “better a fear-flled ‘flag tattoo on the arm’ flaming cliche than an honest internally spirited patriot” movement. The radical right grabbed that with all the gusto of Rush Limbaugh’s appetite for 30 lb roasts and haven’t let go.
The radical right uses patriotism as a tactic and weapon while rational liberals use it as a quiet form of reassurance that their mission is valid.
December 3rd, 2008 at 1:00 am
conservatives have a sick, twisted patriotism. it’s not admirable, it’s bizarre. according to them, anyone who doesn’t follow the bush adminstration’s policies blindly is unamerican and unpatriotic. it’s nice that you like america, but don’t be obssessed about and these “patriotic” conservatives are like creepy stalkers who worship hollywood celebrities. if you don’t think liberals are patriotic then i have one name for you: pat tillman, a noam chomsky admirer.
December 3rd, 2008 at 1:12 am
I suggest we call them what they are…they are not conservatives…they are the radical right….they gave us that crap about being a conservative to enhance our opinion of their mental functions. It is supposed to enhance their image….like their use of patriotism as a weapon and tactic to further their own agenda.
They are the Radical Right!!!
December 3rd, 2008 at 1:53 am
Lets see, liberals go over seas and talk trash about the US, they don’t want us to be a superpower, they burn the flag. And then in the end liberals wonder why they are not called patroits.
If thats being a patroit then Osama Bin Laden must be one too.
December 3rd, 2008 at 2:01 am
Thanks, Uplifted Man, you substantiated my point.
December 3rd, 2008 at 2:05 am
Yes, certainly. He is a patriot, much like McVeigh, the UNABomber, and Newt Gingrich are patriots.
December 3rd, 2008 at 2:41 am
I don’t have heros, and I’m not really sure what patriotism is.
December 3rd, 2008 at 5:37 am
I suppose it comes down to intent and sincerity. But we’ll be our own judges of the righteousness of our motives, and our critics shall judge those, as well as the potential and proven effects of our brand of patriotism. Is either wrong?
December 3rd, 2008 at 5:56 am
Anyone who burns the flag, disses their country overseas, panders to terrorists, trashes our troops, etc. is not a patriot. Regardless of party affiliation.
December 3rd, 2008 at 9:14 am
Now Agentx, why would you put Newt Gingrich in with the likes of McVeigh and the UNABomber? Isn’t that a bit disengenuous? Let’s be adults here, ok.
December 3rd, 2008 at 9:15 am
patriot–”a person who loves and loyally or zealously supports his own country.” From the New World Dictionary, second college edition.
I can consider the radical left such as Ayers, SDS, Weather Underground, etc.. as not patriots.
I do believe that most liberals are patriots. Their ideology is different from mine. Liberals have a different view from me, a conservative, on how to solve differing problems.
December 3rd, 2008 at 9:22 am
I would never as a liberal, question anyone’s patriotism. I guess that is the difference between Liberals and the Right wing!!
December 3rd, 2008 at 10:26 am
Who cares what these dorks like Warner Todd Huston or Uplifted Man think?
I really couldn’t care less if someone thinks I’m patriotic or not (or in the case of Uplifted Man – if he thinks the definition of liberal is flag burning, America trash talker).
December 3rd, 2008 at 11:20 am
Willy…
“I do believe that most liberals are patriots. Their ideology is different from mine. Liberals have a different view from me, a conservative, on how to solve differing problems”
Will you cut that out!….it is difficult to stay snarky with a guy that makes legitimate remarks like that. Egads, I may even be close to “acceptance” here……*gasp*
LOL
Thanks for the reality check that we can find common ground in our differences….we both agree that there are problems…we just need to find mutually acceptable solutions.
December 3rd, 2008 at 11:34 am
Oh, Willy, I was in the SDS….and then the military….so, am I devil or darling? LOL
Sorry….couldn’t pass that one up.
I agree that patriotism is difficult to truly describe. It is like humility…if you think you have it, you don’t.
December 3rd, 2008 at 11:36 am
Hey Neocons– What do you think about blowing the cover of a CIA operative during a time of war, or suspending habeas corpus? Is that patriotic? Just checkin’, so I can be a great patriot, “conservative style.” Should I also down basic democratic tenets in favor of “free enterprise?” Is our economic system a form of patriotism, too? Guess it’s not “patriotic” to ask how much tax money we’re spending on private contractors in the war, is it. Should I idolize Liddy and Nixon as great patriots? Cunningham?
Golly, I just don’t think I’ll ever measure up to a conservative’s yardstick of “patriotism.” Whatever shall I do.
December 3rd, 2008 at 1:25 pm
“Anyone who burns the flag, disses their country overseas, panders to terrorists, trashes our troops, etc. is not a patriot. Regardless of party affiliation.
Posted by T. Mason”
I served in Viet Nam. How UNPATRIOTIC of me!! Should I be trashing myself?
December 3rd, 2008 at 1:58 pm
TJK,
I haven’t a clue how serving in Vietname has anything to do with my comment
December 3rd, 2008 at 4:23 pm
I think the supreme court looked into the gitmo detainees. The fact is some think they should be granted habeas corpus and others do not. If someone is a POW or enemy combatant there are a lot of variables when it comes to rights.
I wonder if it is patriotic to ask where we are getting the loans, yes loans for these bailouts that are crap. China maybe?
I wonder if it is patriotic to take tax money from someone who worked hard for it and give a welfare check to someone who decides they don’t want to work.
I wonder if it is patriotic to claim our troops are simply carpet bombing villages and murdering innocent civilians when you haven’t stepped foot in a red zone.
I wonder if it is patriotic to bomb police stations and urge kids to murder their parents because you disagree with a war and want rogue nations to take over your own?
You can shake the yard stick both ways and no matter how you look at it neither side will think the other measures up as long as you are defining patriotism, or a lack thereof solely based on which party you belong too.
December 3rd, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Ah, the infamous “answer a question with a question” tactic. A little predictable, but effective when the defense is weak.
December 3rd, 2008 at 4:49 pm
I served my country in the US NAVY and it irks me when neocons act the way they do. I fly our flag on my front porach everyday. I love this country as well. I went to HUSTON,s web page and viewed his heros and i posted mine yesterday on this blog. I confess,i have said some hatefull things about right wing thinking. Sometimes you right wing folks leave me no choice.
December 3rd, 2008 at 6:13 pm
steve,
how very nice of you to think that this crap only comes from what you label “neocons”. Do you think anyone on the left is anti-american? Can you name one person on the left who is not patriotic? I can name some from the right.
The moment we look at patriotism as a left or a right thing, the very definition is tarnished in my opinion.
And by the way, thanks for your service.
December 3rd, 2008 at 6:21 pm
The radical right uses the terms “patriotic”, “unpatriotic”, and “disloyal” as weapons/tactics in their talking points.
Examples: “Only patriotic Americans support John McCain”
“Some people suggest it is unpatriotic to vote against funding the troops, no matter what the reason.”
“Disloyal comments like, ‘we should set a timeline for withdrawl’ emboldens our enemies and all reasonable people know that to ebolden our enemies is unpatriotic”
December 3rd, 2008 at 6:31 pm
THE UNI BOMBER. AYERS, AND THE GROUP HE WAS WITH ,THOSE ENCO TERRORIST,CODE PINK,THAT NUTTY WOMAN THAT LOST HER SON ALWAYS protesting. THE BLACK PANTHERS. THOSE NUTS THAT BURN DOWN A WHOLE BLOCK IN PHILLY ABOUT 30YRS AGO. THE EXTREME LEFT even my views are left scare me. more so than EXTREME right like NEO NAZIS and THE KKK. They are so exposed,but the extreme left like the 60,s can be very nasty. Since the REAGAN days, this country has become a split nation. Have you listen to the NIXON tapes? I voted for him twice. REAGAN idealism in my eyes,was anti-gay,anti color and city. As if middle and smalltown AMERICA was AMERICA and saying we need to go back to another way of life split the country. I felt loss during that time because the right wing church took over THE GOP. As if they were the only folks that cheerish red white and blue on the star and stripes. Anything else seem unAMERICAN.
December 3rd, 2008 at 6:52 pm
Steve…breathe, kid, breathe…
December 3rd, 2008 at 7:04 pm
T.Mason,I submit to you that this bush/cheney administration is the most Un-Patriotic bunch in the history of the USA. AND,They DON’T support the troops. Answer me this. Does giving no-bid,Cost-PLUS contracts to un-American corporations that make Billions of our tax dollars,then do shoddy work that KILLS our soldiers,And not pay any taxes to this country sound Patriotic to You? And you support this nonsense. Yeah, yer a real Patriot yourself there pal.
December 3rd, 2008 at 7:05 pm
I did,i had a glass of water.
December 3rd, 2008 at 7:12 pm
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December 3rd, 2008 at 9:30 pm
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December 3rd, 2008 at 9:39 pm
No, he used some detailed logic to make his point. You hung onto the Michelle Obama quote as if it were all he said. Stop skimming, start thinking.
December 4th, 2008 at 12:04 am
THIS WORLD OF LIARS AND FOOLS -
“fool me once, shame on you.
fool me twice, shame on me.”
December 4th, 2008 at 7:21 am
Jeffro,
who exactly awards the contracts? You know my husband and I have a friend who just retired from special forces who is now working as a civilian contractor. we have another friend who did two tours in Iraq who is planning on going back as a contractor. I have a girlfriend whose father had served 20 plus years in the Army, did a tour and went back twice as a contractor.
Those contractors aren’t KILLING our soldiers. They are alongside them, and a lot of our contractors, MANY of them civilians have lost their lives alongside our troops.
Your guy obama didn’t have a chance to vote for the war initially because he wasn’t even in office back then. He voted against troop funding because there was no withdrawl date. How many wars have we fought where there is an exact withdrawl date? If we had done what Biden wanted, Iraq would have been busted up and that would have been a disaster. The surge worked, though you and many from your side still will not admit that.
Didn’t your buddy biden vote for the war initially? How about hillary clinton?
What is patriotic? I can tell you this much. It doesn’t involve a particular political party nor blaming one person or one side for everything wrong.
As far as them not supporting the troops…I have never heard them say that our men and women in uniform are carpet bombing innocents, rather than doing a good job. Know who said that?
December 4th, 2008 at 8:15 am
Robert,
I’m back. My computer went a little quirky on me but I am back on line again.
I kinda live in the sticks. Is that the reason I don’t know what “snarky” is? lol
I have my opinions but I have always believed that if you take all the best conservative ideas and mix them with all the best liberal ideas those in Congress might actually come up with some very good ways to deal with our problems. I can understand running as a dem. or rep., but I never quite got why once they got to Washington their partisanship was not put on a shelf, especially on the really big issues, such as the war, etc. Don’t we elect them to represent ALL Americans? Not just the ones who voted for them. That is why, even though I didn’t vote for Barack Obama, I am going to give him my support. I want him to succeed for America’s sake and all those who live here.
Oh, you were in the SDS? I didn’t realize that. No, I don’t think your a devil. I can’t say you’re a darling. Wouldn’t sound right. But you’re ok in my book.
December 4th, 2008 at 8:23 am
Hey T. Mason. Ole Jeffro there seems to be a little on edge.
Hey, we’re all just having a nice friendly discussion here.
SMILE JEFFRO. Life’s to short.
December 4th, 2008 at 8:26 am
Willy, defrag your pc,run your virus program. BUSH had me gunhoo after 9/11. I wanted to kill all of those asswipes in the moutains of AFGAN. AND PAK. BUSH is my president,but he fumble the ball on the war by going into IRAQ. He fumble the ball most of the time in office. That asswipe CHAVEZ calling BUSH the devil at the UN pissed me off. Alot of these leaders world wide piss me off. It,s the way conservatism is presented to me irks me. I have conservate views as well. The DNC laid an egg by climbing on board with wedge issues that hurt the party for years. The party was way to left. Like the GOP being way to right at this very moment.
December 4th, 2008 at 8:49 am
Steve,
Good to hear from you. When you get down to it and get away from all the name calling we, as a people can get alot done. I agree, the democrat party to me seem to have been hijacked by the far left. I don’t think JFK would be accepted into the party today. His views, many of them, would be considered somewhat conservative today.
The republican party has a different problem. I think they are confused between the far right and those we call RINO’s. Republican In Name Only.
I feel that they have abandoned me by pushing to far to the left. I am somewhere in between.
The whole world seems to be off kilter to me.
December 4th, 2008 at 8:58 am
Steve,
Only parts of the party are way to the right. We had a candidate with loose border views and believed roe v wade should stay.
I disagree with both of those. So I am even more to the right than mccain, though I am farther to the middle on other issues.
I will have to see just how much of a centrist Obama is….I have a hard time believing the most liberal senator somehow found his way to the middle in a year.
What about conservatism and it’s presentation irks you?
December 4th, 2008 at 8:59 am