Spaggyj

Ya Know What Really Grinds My Gears?

Wednesday, June 25, 2008 11:25:58 PM

I get angry at the constant change of the meanings of words. I'm probably going to do a series of them, one by one. Possibly. And by getting angry about the meanings of words, I mean the cause for their shift in definition. This time, it's a word which is apparent all the time.

It's not wrong to love your country. To be proud of where you come from. Not at all. But the word, "Patriot" has evolved from a nice, honourable word into a derogatory term. I'll give you a few of my own, personal examples:

A few years back, we were unfortunate enough to have a rather idiotic drunkard as a housemate. He drank at least 4 litres of chemical-only cider a day. And he thought that Britain was so wonderful. I quote, "No way. If we went to war with America, just us and them, we'd win. I'm not kidding. We'd definately win, because we're better."

Say what??! Look at the population difference between the two. Now look at the military population. And now look at weapons manufacture and sale. Look at finances. Pretty much every resource. Who's got the very large upper hand? Right. We tried to explain this to the freak, but he was adamant, and actually thought we were stupid.

The town we used to live in (incidentally, where said drunkard lived) is rated in the top ten crap towns of England. It is the arson capital, it's crime rate rises, it's exam pass rate drops... It is a cancerous polyp on the anus of the world. I'm not joking. The inhabitants talk in chav, they are incredibly stupid (taking five minutes to calculate change on an electric till has happened numerous times, also they struggle to read) and yet, they think their town is the be-all and end-all of the universe. They think it's bloody Rome!

All the instances of people supporting the war in Iraq. Hate to break it to ya, but nobody's a hero. Sorry. I'll give you a minute to mash the keyboard with your head in angry response.

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Finished? Good. Okay. Now think about the tyrannical leaders in other countries. Can't we help them? Of course not. For one, there's nothing valuable to siphon. Secondly, these countries might actually have the resources to fight back, and we don't want an ACTUAL war, do we? No! We just want to force our way into a country that we feel is an easy take, under the guise of heroism, to basically, pillage, and kill anything nearby.

Who are we to invade next? Zimbabwe? Mugabi's as bad as Hussein... But there's nothing to be gained financially, right?
Nobody would dare invade America, even though George Bush is a fucking tyrant. So don't fucking stand there and act like a hero because you were lied to/having a field day with brutality/too blind to see.

Patriotism, REAL patriotism, is feeling proud without being blinded. Rather the same way love is indescribable, without it being blind also, oblivious to faults right in front of your eyes.

I'm not proud of my country. But I don't hate it entirely either. (The anti-patriotism is just as stupid) . I like the weather here. We get a bit of everything. Our healthcare could be better, but at least we're not paying out of our asses for an x-ray. I don't like Gordon Brown, but things could be far worse.

Kimmie's Final Thought:
I think people need to open their eyes away from the media and public figures, even family members enforcing their own beliefs, and gather their own opinions on everything. The world could be so much better if we weren't so afraid to think.

StrangerWhat's In Your Fridge?

Comments

Friar TuckFriarTuck # Thursday, June 26, 2008 12:08:02 AM

It's called semantics. When Fundamentalist began to be used, it was a PhD arguing against the modernists of the times. It became a household word for anyone who was religiously stubborn or over bearing. Many words are antithetical and confusing.

Friar TuckFriarTuck # Thursday, June 26, 2008 12:13:54 AM

As for extremists you mention, (I don't know you but) I happen to know people who are tyrants on a personal scale but rage at tyrannical leadership. I guess it's up to all of us to assess how we affect people and what to do about those who are mean.

Bad WolfCois # Thursday, June 26, 2008 12:15:38 AM

I can honestly say I'm no patriot but as it goes I don't dislike my country entirely..
To blindly just follow without questioning is one thing these people just do..
It doesn't matter what is right and they stand up for it.. That might be an entirely different story but I see where you're coming from..

Dacotah # Thursday, June 26, 2008 12:41:23 AM

Darkogdare # Thursday, June 26, 2008 4:24:55 AM

I wanted to make a post about patriotism a while ago but since I am from Serbia, I can predict what kind of comments would appear there. Not from people I consider friends but the others that surely exist all over the net. Too much stupid pride, that someone here called patriotism is among few other things that brought Serbia to where it is now. I am sad to say, but other countries of former Yugoslavia acted smarter than we do and are all now in better position than we are (I mean, most of their population live better and easier than we do). For me, patriotism is a way to be proud of your own country and people (no matter if you have a hard life there or not) and not to be treat to others, but to respect them.
"I think people need to open their eyes away from the media and public figures"
No kidding

A half of the people here think that Serbs became before dinosaurs, thanks mostly to the media and politics during `90s. But if we all take ourselves away from TV and open our eyes, politicins will remain unemployed. This is something they will not allow. There will always be stupid people.