Entitlement and the Negation of Patriotism (and how it destroys a country)

A Minnesota city council decided to stop reciting the Pledge of Allegiance at the start of its meetings because it was not welcoming to everyone in their diverse community.  How, I wonder, is not saying the Pledge more welcoming to anyone except those who despise America?

Soccer star Rapinoe states that America was/is not great for everyone.  In a recent speech to high school students, Rep. Omar denigrated America for not meeting her expectations.

What all these statements and activities reveal is a complete lack of understanding about our country and a replacement of such understanding with a selfish need for immediate gratification.  This entitlement, this expectation and demand that everything be perfect is not realistic nor is it the way that a great democracy works.

In this country perfection does not exist (nor does it or will it exist anywhere; it is something to aspire toward, but not likely achievable).  There are inequalities; people desire things which they do not have; hard work is usually rewarded, but sometimes it is not.  Life is not always fair.

What these people who despise and disrespect America do not understand is that this country, its government, its way of life provide avenues for improvement.  Our Constitution allows us to voice our concerns and our representative form of government allows us to make our voices heard and to create, amend, and abolish laws to further our aspirations toward the more perfect world that everyone seeks.

This is something to admire, not trash.  One can certainly have a personal grievance with or dislike of a particular policy, but that does not mean that the entire country and its system of government merit scorn, contempt, and disrespect.   In very few countries is there an avenue for peaceful change and improvement such as we have here.  That is not something to lightly toss away.

Individuals come and go in our government not by coup or civil war but by election by the people.  While each of those individuals will be more or less liked by each individual voter, they will have been elected by the people of this country and they represent the office that they hold.   Those offices, those elected positions, are key to our democratic way of life.  Even if one did not vote for or does not particularly like the current office holder, if they care at all about this country they will understand that the office itself deserves respect for its necessary place in our democratic system.

But, in this era of entitlement, too many do not understand this.  A selfish feeling of entitlement does not allow room for appreciation or respect.  After all, how can anyone appreciate anything if they believe they are yet entitled to more?  How can they respect a system or a country that refuses to provide them with the immediate and total gratification that they seek?  Like children, they want it and they want it now, and all else be damned.

Do those who spend their days speaking about how awful America is even begin to realize that this may be the only country in the world where they would be allowed to be so disdainful?  Do they even begin to appreciate that it is only because this country is what it is that we have progressed to a place where the grievances they assert are even relevant?  Do they understand that they would be far more successful in achieving the improvements that they seek by working within our democratic structure rather than by tearing it down and trying to destroy the very country that allows them to behave as they do and to seek what they seek?

I think not.  When one has been conditioned to believe that they are entitled to all that they want and that it should be provided immediately, that the world revolves around them, it is hard to understand that real change takes time and work.  One must work not to destroy what one has, but to improve it, and must have the patience needed for real changes to occur.  America allows for that, and this is one of the many reasons why America is great, and yes, great for everyone. 

But, one cannot appreciate America if one does not understand what it is:  its government, its history, its place in the world, its distinctions from other forms of government.  And, when one is only concerned about one’s own selfish and personal interests (however couched in terms of grander political issues), one is not going to care about respecting anything, including the great country that allows them to behave like children, wanting to destroy things because they aren’t getting what they want.  It is the child that needs immediate gratification and will hate and tear apart all that does not give it to him.  The mature mind and emotion will appreciate what one has while at the same time speaking out and working to make it even better. 

So, we are losing an appreciation for our country.  We see that in a lack of national pride, of refusal to respect the symbols of our great country:  the flag, the National Anthem, the White House, the Constitution, the legal system, the offices of government.   We are losing the patriotism that is a necessary part of any country’s existence.

To be clear, patriotism in America does not mean never criticizing or pointing out flaws or working to better the country.  Indeed, America expects and needs its citizens to do that.  But one can do that while still respecting the freedoms that this country already provides, respecting its history and its ability, through its people and its Constitutional rule of law, to evolve, moving ever closer to its asserted ideals.

Patriotism does mean seeing beyond oneself:  seeing oneself as a part of a great country where the citizens are able to work together to improve it.  It means being able to distinguish between criticizing a policy to which one objects and criticizing the entire country and all that it stands for as somehow worthless.  But, of course, the ability to do that takes more than a selfish, childish mind.

Feeling entitled, needing immediate gratification means that one cannot make the fine distinctions between a particular demand and the country in which that demand is being made.  It means that one cannot appreciate or respect anything positive about a country that is not gratifying one particular demand.  If they don’t get what they want, they will simply despise the entire country, not unlike a child who will scream hatred for the mother who will not provide candy that is being demanded, never mind all the other positives that the mother may provide.

So, these America haters will despise all symbols of this great country and try to silence patriotism and ultimately the country itself.  They simply cannot understand that only by respecting all that this country stands for do they even have a chance to make the changes and obtain the gratifications that they seek.