It's the Fourth of July: Let's Hear it for REAL Patriotism

Since the Obama election, the nation has seen an uptick in right-wing terrorism from simple threats to and malicious mischief at abortion clinics and civil liberties and antipoverty storefronts to murders of an abortion provider and four Pittsburgh police officers and an armed assault including the murder of an African American guard at the national Holocaust Memorial Museum by a white supremacist. The Justice Department is warning of more violence as more right-wing-nuts react to the democratic election of the first black president.

Oh sure, the conservative establishment of cable and radio bloviators, pandering congressmen, political has-beens and sanctimonious evangelicals wave off any responsibility for inciting the whack jobs but look what they've been up to for the last 40 years.

Right-wing strategists like Kevin Phillips, Grover Norquist and Karl Rove have brazenly appropriated the icons of democracy for their cynical political purposes. In the 70s, conservatives declared themselves the patriots as opposed to those challenging what turned out to be the most senseless war in American history. In the 80s, Republicans began equating capitalism with democracy, demonizing as un-American anyone who questioned unbridled greed...and we see how well that's turned out. In the 90s, evangelicals determined only their brand of morality counted with God.

So to with the flag. Instead of it being a universal symbol of America's promise, its display as bumper stickers and coat lapel pins is all too often code equating patriotism with a blind obeisance to the partisan politics, imperialistic foreign policy and military adventurism of the right. (Liberals must share some of the blame for this state of affairs, for years having shrunk from professing their own patriotism in fear of appearing credulous or jingoistic.)

I recently had a response to my posting, Why Are Conservatives So, Ah, Err, Conservative? in which the writer asserted that lefties "hate everything about America." This is just so typical of the right...all the right not just the dangerous whacko right. If you dare question any of their apple pie delusions of America -- "greatest country in the history of the world," "fountainhead of liberty and freedom," "apex of Western civilization" with actual facts, statistics and comparisons, you are a "hater of America!"

The reason cons spew this myopic crap about lefties "hating" America is because, as opposed to themselves, lefties have a broad worldview in which they judge America by the highest possibilities of human attainment and not solely by the right-wing's xenophobic chauvinism. When American policies don't live up to those higher standards, lefties call them on it just as loving parents correct bad behavior in their kids, and as true patriots and not simply blowhards ought to do if they actually loved their country instead of loving some mythical image.

Obviously, both the right and left have whack jobs hanging around their peripheries. But here's the difference between how the left and right deal with them. No mainstream progressive or liberal congressman, talk jock or activist has ever suggested that track developers, new car dealers or strip mall owners are recklessly endangering America's security, unpatriotic and must be stopped by any means possible thereby tacitly sanctioning the eco-terrorists burning down property and blowing up showrooms.

Contrarily, high profile conservatives like been-there-done-that Cheney, Gingrich, Tancredo; congressional blowhards like Inhofe, Kly, Boehner; motor mouths like Limbaugh, Hannity, Beck; N.R.A. bully Wayne LaPierre; Christian god thugs like Operation Rescue's Randall Terry and Focus on the Family's James Dobson stir the soup in which their crackers float. Claiming Obama is a socialist whose intention, if left unchecked -- wink-wink -- is out to destroy America; that Sotomayor is a racist who allowed -- wink, wink -- to serve will pervert the Court; that abortion providers must be --wink, wink -- stopped; that gays are out to destroy marriage for heterosexual couples and need to be kept in their place -- wink, wink; that secularists are destroying America's "Christian foundations " must be fought with all -- wink, wink -- available methods.

And then they have the gall to claim their invective has no effect on abortion doctors being shot, clinics attacked, gay men dragged to their death and atheists beaten up. Can Cheney actually, honestly believe, knowing there is a whack of drooling right-wing whackos out there...with guns no less...that he is not endangering Barack Obama's life when he utters this crap about the president exposing the nation to further attacks. He might not be the one pulling the trigger -- then as Harry Whittington knows he'd probably hit the wrong target anyway -- but his words are just as incendiary to a bunch of racist, xenophobic dim-wits as tossing a lit match on gasoline.

Conservatives often forget the Preamble of the Constitution enumerates six principles upon which this nation was founded. In fact, "provid(ing) for the common defence" (sic) doesn't make the top three spots. Those go to "form(ing) a more perfect Union, establish(ing) Justice" and "insur(ing) (sic) domestic Tranquility." The Founding Dads wrapped up with "promot(ing) the general Welfare, and secur(ing) the Blessing of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity."

We needn't worry if "defence" gets enough "provid(ing) for" what with defense contracts splayed across 435 congressional districts to ensure a friendly hearing among their congressional lapdogs and media Uber-pats hawking fear and terrorism. It's the other five that take a beating anytime the "national security" card is played. These aren't just some dandy ideas to be considered after we're done defending our borders and defeating our enemies. They are woven into the very fabric of America's basic law. What's called for is a commensurate devotion to all the principles upon which this country was founded.

The point is there's more to "patriotism" than displays of public fervor. By all means go out and wave the flag on the 4^th and every other day for that matter and wear a lapel flag pin if you choose, but please consider this the next time you hear someone slandered simply for insisting America live up to its promise: The opposite of love is not hate; the opposite of love is apathy. Speaking out against injustices shouldn't bring an invitation to "love it or leave it." Speaking out -- and peacefully demonstrating -- may just be among the most loving and patriotic things any of us can do.