Well i did actually say "I THINK" what uni is tryin\' to say...
... i see your point,...but i felt it was relevant for me to use iraq as an example for this discussion...the whole question your gov\'t thing kinda fell under the iraq war for me....so just what are these people trying to let others know?....what i\'m getting out of this whole conversation is that you shouldn\'t believe everything your gov\'t tells you....and that they use patriotism/nationalism as a tool for brainwashing...<---and i do believe that on some small level...
i think the u.s, is the best country to live in,...and that is not because of anything the gov\'t has told me,....it\'s because of what i feel in my gut, it\'s because of how i see other countries around the world treat their citizens, it\'s how this country still continues to contribute millions whenever there\'s a catasrtophy across the world..etc,etc .....it\'s how other folks have told me,..even tho, they have gone to other great countries...they still feel the u.s. is the best country in the world...those places are nice to visit, but that\'s it....and regardless of all the racism and injustices that still exist,...i still think that overall this country stands for the greater good of all,...*but i have been at huge odds as of late because of bush & co.*
Not just your government. Patriotism and nationalism has become such a big part in our education and way of living that the government doesnt have to have a direct effort to pass that.
Your gut is something that exists in everyone and has been targeted by any nation in the world. Your impression that your country is the best thing in the world is subjective. If you did not grow in the US and you werent taught to think that way your impression about the US could have been the exact opposite but just as positive about the other country. Do I feel that your country is the best in the world? Does a Greek? Turkish? British? French? Chinese? Japanese? Russian? TALIBAN? Your knowledge that your country has contributed millions and helped people in catastrophe\'s etc is another convenient half truth.
You yourself admitted that what you feel is also a result of what other folks have told you. Every false perception, incomplete information, half truth from your environment and that the other folks may have had are passed on to you.
What about YOU? The only thing that you can be sure about is the great sense of pride, a great feel in your gut for what you know. Are you willing to sacrifice that feel for an inconvenient truth that may contradict everything you believed about your country? How many like you, irrespective of the country they live in will be willing to sacrifice it and accept realities that contradict their initial beliefs?
