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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: GST who wrote (118613)	11/5/2003 2:56:55 PM
From: Win Smith	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

I sometime like to do word checks, but the dictionary entries I saw on a quick trip through onelook on patriotism were pretty weak. On the other hand, wikipedia had a sort of nice and relevant treatment, en.wikipedia.org Patriotism Patriotism is a strong feeling of support for one's country (either native or in which one resides). It is often associated with ethnocentrism, i.e. the belief in the inherent superiority of the nation the patriot supports, as well as its people. It's sometimes also problematic to distinguish between Patriotism and Nationalism, as many people tend to use Nationalist as a negatively charged synonym for Patriot. For some, patriotism can be interpreted as a political extension of the human territorial instinct; others denigrate patriotism on political grounds. Sometimes, these latter also argue against it on the grounds of either its supposed inherent ethnocentrism, territorialism, or both. Patriots who are favorably disposed towards the current regime (and, particular under a democratic parliamentarian regime, supporters of the current government) may hold the opinion that patriotism implicates support of one's government and its policies. For others, however, strivings to improve the conditions of the Fatherland may be a strong force activating their patriotism.

To: GST who wrote (118613)	11/5/2003 3:22:45 PM
From: gamesmistress	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Whoops, sorry, I should have typed "patriotism" instead of "nationalism". Your question strikes me as being the Have you stopped beating your wife? type and I don't really see a purpose in speculating that "if" Cheney and Rove did those things why would they do them? The Khmer Rouge did fight to expel invaders - Jacob would say it's because they were patriotic and I say it's because they were power-hungry despots. The Iraqi suicide bombers are killing their own countrymen as well as the occupiers - out of patriotism? No, they probably want to set up another Saddamistic regime. I don't know who revealed the CIA identity of Wilson's wife, and I don't feel misled about the true nature of the threat posed by Iraq, either. So the answer is, right now, I don't care.