Election day is here. It is a clear, cold day in Somerville, perfect November weather, perfect day to go and vote, make my voice heard again for the first time since 2004. So much has been said and done, not said and not done, since that last election day. Is there still time to repair the damage, to heal the wounds? Can we ride on the beautiful momentum of this campaign to actually effect real change in this country?
I've been thinking about patriotism in the last few days, what it means, specifically, what it means to me. It is one of those labels, those empty words, like "values," which can be twisted to use in any context. I started thinking about it after talking to a McCain voter in New Hampshire on Sunday, who said he questioned "Obama's patriotism," pointing to the fact that Obama hadn't served in the military as the ultimate proof of his unpatriotic nature.
It was a predictable comment coming from the McCain side, and I could have given the whole "he's got a great foreign policy team; Colin Powell endorsed him", etc., to make Obama look "tough," but I wanted to respond to the meaning behind the words. Like, Why is serving in the military the only way to be patriotic in this country? Why isn't community service, helping the poor, seen as equally patriotic, equally important? Shouldn't the real measure of pride in one's country be tested on an everyday scale, as in, what our country actually looks like to the average person visiting it? What it feels like, not only to drive on its roads (can you say "pothole"?), but also to listen to its people, to see what their lives are like, and most importantly, how we are treating our fellow human beings, here and elsewhere?
I haven't been back from Europe for that long, only six months. And I certainly haven't seen all corners of this country, or even of New England, where I live. But I have seen the flags waving everywhere (including right outside my bedroom window). I have seen the pride - sometimes earned, sometimes misplaced - in this country's supposed "values." And - I'll be perfectly honest - I have felt pride myself, at certain moments, when I see just how friendly, open, and downright nice Americans can be to strangers, to everyone. It warms my heart, after some of the coldness and rudeness I experienced (and watched others experience) in Paris. But I've also felt the opposite of pride - that is, shame (and anger) - when I've read about or seen firsthand what our government has done with America's wealth and power, how we've damaged our reputation around the world and left the average American (the real Joe the Plumber) out in the cold.
I don't know if patriotism is a "good" or "bad" thing, and that is a whole debate for another venue. But either way, I think if we're going to use that word, and build our ideals around it, then we need a new definition of patriotism in this country. Once again, as for so many things, I am looking to Obama to lead us in the right direction. And I think he can.
2 comments:
waiting for the polls to open here...
We need a new pack leader and it must be Obama!
dogg-ma.blogspot.com
There really does seem to be a new kind of patriotism afoot in America, which is heartening. Here's what friend V sent from Paris, the day after the election:
"But a new politics of the common good can't be only about government and markets. "It must also be about a new patriotism — about what it means to be a citizen," said Sandel. "This is the deepest chord Obama's campaign evoked. The biggest applause line in his stump speech was the one that said every American will have a chance to go to college provided he or she performs a period of national service — in the military, in the Peace Corps or in the community. Obama's campaign tapped a dormant civic idealism, a hunger among Americans to serve a cause greater than themselves, a yearning to be citizens again." (NYT - Friedman's op ed piece)
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