Radical nationalism is not patriotism

To The Eagle:

The people who stormed the US Capitol on 6 January don’t understand that radical nationalism is not patriotism. Not wanting to be considered as rioters, or insurrectionists, they claim to be “patriots.” It is a strange modern definition of patriotism that includes flag-waving hypocrites who proudly proclaim their loyalty to a country they seem determined to kill. A true patriot would accept stricter gun laws favored by 70% of Americans. Instead, patriotic nihilists helped make the National Rifle Association the official sponsor of school shootings through their patriotic support of opportunistic firearm manufacturers. Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, head of the US Archdiocese for the Military Services, claimed that forcing women to carry unwanted pregnancies is “authentic patriotism.” Whether it’s bringing back the horrors of back alley abortions or dismissing the spilled blood of second graders, today’s new breed of patriots care little about the lives, liberties or happiness of anyone but themselves.

Patriotic right wing liars unrepentantly spread conspiracy theories, reject the scientific research of climatologists, immunologists and criminologists and ignore the death and destruction caused by climate change, Covid-19 and the criminal justice system.

Conservative Republican patriotism has been redefined as a relentless devotion to pushing the false narrative of widespread voter fraud, fully knowing the destructive consequences this is having upon the nation they claim to love.

Alabama governor George Wallace defended segregation as a matter of patriotism. When South Carolina senator Strom Thurmond filibustered the Civil Rights Act of 1957, he wondered why the people of the North would pick on “patriotic” people who simply wanted to preserve white supremacy. It seems patriotism has been, and will likely always be, the first and last refuge of our nation’s worst scoundrels.

JB Bouchard

Puget Island