A Look at Patriotism: Rome and the USA

In neither Republican nor Imperial Rome were there equal rights for all citizens. To paraphrase what the pig said in Orwell's Animal Farm, some are (were) more equal than others. It is for that reason that the basic idea of patriotism really has to be judged not merely in terms of love of country, but in the country's respect for its citizens. Patriotism, as Livy saw it, was agreeing to the moral rightness of Rome's policies. Today, in America, we also tend to be judged as "patriots" when we agree and act as if our country were always morally superior.

Currently, as this essay is being written, the imminent threat of war is obvious. But, since September 11, 2001, the very idea of patriotism seems to hinge (according to our federal government0 on unswerving loyalty to that government.
Barely six weeks after September 11, 2001, The Congress and the President may have done more damage to our civil liberties and freedom than the terrorists who crashed the planes into the Pentagon and World Trade towers. "On October 26, 2001, President Bush signed the USA Patriot Act (USPAPA) into law. With this law we have given sweeping new powers to both domestic law enforcement and international intelligence agencies and have eliminated the checks and balances that previously gave courts the opportunity to ensure that these powers were not abused" (EFF 2001 1). In other words, patriotism- in the wake of threats by terrorists, meant not merely following the rules, but not making any waves.
There is one very interesting parallel in reading Livy and perusing the Patriot Act. In Livy: "After the guilty had paid the penalty, a notable example of a different nature was provided to act as a deterrent of crime, the informer was assigned a sum of money from the treasury…" (Livy 92). As for The Patriot Act in our generation, "this bill authorizes funds for the Attorney-General and Secretary of State to pay as rewards for "turning in" suspected terrorists who would be found guilty- rewards up to $250,000!" (EFPP 2001 2).

And yet, there is a truly valid principle in love of country: then willingness to sacrifice one's life if necessary to protect the nation. In Livy, one supporter of peace for Rome stood in the face of the enemy: "I am a citizen of Rome…I have as much courage to meet death as I had to live it….I am not alone in having this resolve, behind there is a long list of those who aspire to the same action" (Livy 93). In our own country, even as I type this, there are some 250,000 men and women- American citizens all, with the same resolve: to protect and serve their nation in the face of all enemies, willing to lay down their liv3es, if need be.
However, a Christian publication stated: "When people feel under siege, they tend to feed off each other's anxieties. And they become more compliant toward authority….This can lead to sacrificing individual rights and the legal safeguards of due process for the promise of security" (Anon 2002 3).

Livy, of course, is considered one of the great patriotic orators of the Roman era, and the foremost historian of his time (23 BC to 17 AD). What may be most important is that he was a strong believer in morality, and that it was a rationale even for much of the Roman conquest. "He would set forth, through history, the virtues that made Rome great- the unity and holiness of family life…the sanctity of the solemnly pledged word…He would make that stoic Rome so noble that its conquest of the Mediterranean would appear as a moral imperative…" (Durant 1944 251).

And, even before Sept. 11, have we in this country not used the same idea of a moral imperative to defeat the Nazis and Japanese during World War II, the North Koreans, and then facing down Russia in the Cold War, and now, Iraq and the Middle East. Who can truly define patriotism? "There has been a bit of a return to the idea that patriotism is in the ands of the people who support the government…and those of us who have real reservations about the government military action have gotten back into a more familiar discomfort with patriotism" (Fraser 2001 13). What is important to realize here is that Rome in the time of Livy was already coming apart as a republic, and certainly was not a truly democratic form of government where all citizens were equal, and all had a right to their unrestricted opinions. Even as The Patriot Act may curtail some American "free speech", today, patriotism is a love for freedom, rather than merely a love of our country. "Gen. David M. Shoup…stated it well: 'The courage of one's convictions and the willingness to speak the truth as one sees it for the good of the country is what patriotism really means- far more than flags, bands, and the national anthem'" (Hufford 2002 18).

Livy talked about "citizen-soldiers" which, of course, is what American armed forces are: ordinary citizens either called to duty or enlisting to protect their native land. Livy's view of Roman history has its Senate being chosen from patricians. In a way, the founding of America was done by patricians- mostly professionals or merchants, or gentlemen farmers- not the "ordinary" citizen. And yet, in ancient Rome, "Gradually, as democracy fought its way, the word populus came to include the plebs" (Durant 1944 31). In much the same way, democracy eventually included not only women, but African Americans and other minorities initially excluded from the right of voting or citizenship. Livy, it seems, saw only the battle between morality and immorality and took his stand on the side of what he saw was "right". One wonders if we today can discover a more proper delineator of our patriotic morality than, say, Rush Limbaugh. In terms of following the ideas of Livy's moral imperative, can we still say- without hesitation- "My country, right or wrong?"

CITATIONS:

Durant, W.: Caesar and Christ Vol III, in The Story of Civilization New York: Simon & Schuster (1944)

Fraser, J.: "Thinking Through Patriotism" Boston MA: Christian Science Monitor, Nov. 20, 2001

Hufford, L. "United States today needs patriotism not nationalism"Catholic Reporter, v.38 I 44, October 18, 2002

Livy: History of Rome (excerpts)

No author listed: "EFF Analysis of the Provisions of The USA PATRIOT Act
www.eff.org/privacy/surveillance/terrorism_militia/20011031_eff_usa_patriot_analysis.html

No author listed: "True Patriotism" The Christian Century, v. 119, i. 13 June 19, 2002