Patriotism Is A Narrow-Minded Concept
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We pick up our core values and perspectives on life from our surroundings and the people around us. One of the major ideas that gets passed on from generation to generation and gets deep rooted in our minds is: "Patriotism - One must love and sacrifice for his country no matter what and if one refuses to do so, he is a traitor and someone so disgusting that he should be looked down upon". And just like all the other societal values, this one too is stuffed into our brains. Here is a more detailed explanation on why one must question the notions of patriotism.
Firstly, here is a layman's definition of patriotism according to Wikipedia:
Patriotism is a cultural attachment to ones homeland, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy. In a generalised sense applicable to all countries and peoples, patriotism is a devotion to ones country.
So even before we start talking about the whole thing, let me first tell you that you were not born with patriotism inside you nor did you assimilate it from the food that you eat that it is suddenly a part of you now. Patriotism was put into you by your parents, the society around you and lastly, the media. And you in the fear of being looked down by everyone, accepted the idea, like we all generally did at that young age. As you started to grow up, the patriot inside you started growing too, although he never came out and expressed himself unnecessarily. But as soon as someone pointed out a flaw about your homeland or talked something related to it, the patriot inside springed to action to defend his motherland and to protect it from the vice world. You can notice this a lot on the online forums, comment sections and various other places on the net where the global audience interacts.
I fail to understand why a geographic line drawn on the map to separate "my territory" from "your territory" would make you feel more love for the piece of land confined inside those lines than the other countries and its people. Assume if you were born and raised in a different country since birth. Would you be more patriotic about that country than the current one you are rooting for? Or is it that you being born there makes that country more awesome, because the current sub-text of your patriotism is, "Hey this is the country I was born in and I was told to love it. So I don't care about its flaws or how it ranks against the rest of the world for this is my country and I love it" ?
And for those patriots who feel that moving to a better country isn't right, why is the feeling of patriotism noticed only when it is on the national level? The so called patriots are perfectly alright with moving into new and better neighbourhoods, cities or states for a better life. But only when someone moves from their country to another country that it infringes the patriot's traitor radar.
Why not instead of embracing nationalism, just step back a few steps and look at the Earth as one global country. Instead of fighting, why not learn something from those who critique or tell the truth about our homeland. Lets be slightly more open-minded and even if the idea of loving all countries and its people like your own is a bit too much for you to digest now, trust me, you will slowly get used to it. For starters, stop being partial and prejudiced against other countries and its people. Ignore the occasional haters who spread hate about your country. Try not to fall down to their level and fight them.
In conclusion, here is the solution to permanently curing the patriot mentality. Start with looking at the world as one country and its people as one kind or one race. Also our modern world is equipped with many modern rules, regulations and laws to prevent a situation like world war or war between countries. So instead of trying to protect your country from other countries, try eradicating the problems that exist intrinsically in your home, neighbourhood, city and society and government. Lastly, on a personal level, try replacing the "Patriot" mindset to a "Zero Government and Media BS tolerance" mindset.
And for those patriots who feel that moving to a better country isn't right, why is the feeling of patriotism noticed only when it is on the national level? The so called patriots are perfectly alright with moving into new and better neighbourhoods, cities or states for a better life. But only when someone moves from their country to another country that it infringes the patriot's traitor radar.
Why not instead of embracing nationalism, just step back a few steps and look at the Earth as one global country. Instead of fighting, why not learn something from those who critique or tell the truth about our homeland. Lets be slightly more open-minded and even if the idea of loving all countries and its people like your own is a bit too much for you to digest now, trust me, you will slowly get used to it. For starters, stop being partial and prejudiced against other countries and its people. Ignore the occasional haters who spread hate about your country. Try not to fall down to their level and fight them.
In conclusion, here is the solution to permanently curing the patriot mentality. Start with looking at the world as one country and its people as one kind or one race. Also our modern world is equipped with many modern rules, regulations and laws to prevent a situation like world war or war between countries. So instead of trying to protect your country from other countries, try eradicating the problems that exist intrinsically in your home, neighbourhood, city and society and government. Lastly, on a personal level, try replacing the "Patriot" mindset to a "Zero Government and Media BS tolerance" mindset.