The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #52026 Message #794949
Posted By: Bee-dubya-ell
01-Oct-02 - 03:00 PM
Thread Name: BS: Patriotism -- what is it?
Subject: RE: BS: Patriotism -- what is it?
Nicole said a lot what I was going to say in the last paragraph of her post (the one where she had lost her cookie and was GUEST). Go back and read it again.
The folks who participated in that Constitutional Convention came up with one of the greatest documents ever crafted. I am patriotic as long as our elected representatives adhere to the guidelines of that document. When I see them overstepping the boundaries that were intentionally placed in their way by the framers of the Constitution, I want them to get back in the corral. There are genuine emergency situations, like the immediate aftermath of 9/11, where the boundaries of the Constitution may be temporarily stretched, but they should return to normal size as soon as possible. Creating a false, ongoing "emergency situation" to justify the usurpation of power is not just wrong, it's unpatriotic and downright treasonous. (Go back and reread 1984 and The Handmaid's Tale) And those who support leaders guilty of usurpation of power are not exhibiting patriotism - they're exhibiting jingoism. It is our patriotic duty to raise hell when President Dubya starts acting like King Dubya.
Bruce
(Who is not a member of any political party, but would be a Libertarian if he had to join one)