Posts in "Nation"

By Bonnie Kristian at 2:13PM

Mar 1, 2010

Serving the Nation ≠ Serving the State

While discussing my summer plans recently, the subject of a large rally of Vietnam veterans which is scheduled to occur in DC over the Memorial Day weekend rather oddly came up. I noted that I thought it was a silly event to have, because although many of the individual veterans are undoubtedly people worthy of honor, having fought in this aggressive foreign intervention was hardly worth celebration. One of the participants in the conversation strongly objected, arguing that whatever my opinion of the war, I should still understand a desire to commemorate these veterans' brave service to their country.

Brave though some of our soldiers may have been, what they engaged in was not service to our country; it was service to the state...and I see no reason to commemorate that. The state is not the same as the country, and the two's interests rarely converge.

What exactly does this mean?

On Patriotism, the Nation, and the State

Yesterday was Veterans Day, which Matt thoughtfully addressed, so it seems like an appropriate time to address the subject of patriotism. Opposition to the state and its wars is typically criticized as being "unpatriotic," which is clearly the worst thing anyone could ever be in the whole world </sarcasm>. Who doesn't recall, to cite an easy example, the backlash to the Dixie Chicks' declaration of their opposition to the War in Iraq? The good business sense of stating political opinions of any sort at a concert is certainly in question, but the vicious and swift reaction to this statement -- which included death threats and eventually resulted in an apology from the lead singer -- was disproportionate to the situation.

What's interesting, though, is the text of the apology. While she (unfortunately) backed down on her criticism of then-President Bush, the singer tried in a slightly confused manner to maintain both her opposition to the war and her own patriotism.

Can one love one’s country, and not respect the state?

YES:

There are, I suspect, many people who confuse America --this beautiful and bounteous land with which we are blessed--with the United States , that corporation calling itself the government, which owns and operates it through its front men, those windbags in Washington . That’s a shame, because one’s natural love for the country rubs off on the United States, so to speak, tending to give it (notice how the “United States” is always singular!) a respectability which it does not deserve.

More here.

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