Hamlet:
Please don’t take offense at my “weak-kneed and maudlin” comment. I didn’t mean to imply that you were “weak-kneed” or “maudlin,” I just meant that I often personally experience American pronouncements regarding “freedom” as something like that. It’s a kind of emotional valence that infects the entire public discourse on the issue.
Buddy, you don’t know the half of it.
I do, actually, agree with your statement. But I probably wouldn’t have stated it quite in the same way; I guess, in part, because it seems so self-evident. Is it not?
Not at all. I just used what you posted as a handy example. Obviously you have a deeper grasp of the issue than those 300 words; but it’s telling to me that when you want to distill what you feel to be most important about freedom into a short post, you fall back on cliches about how you’re “proud of Americans who fight for freedom,” and so forth. I don’t mean this as a personal criticism, by the way, it’s just an observation. There is something, I don’t know, “fetish-like” about these very “American” sorts of pronouncements, at least from an outsider’s perspective. (I realize that might sound critical as well; I’m trying, probably unsuccessfully, to communicate something here.)
Well, point taken. But most people do equate democracy with political freedom. A democracy is not absolutely free, but it’s “freer” than most other forms of government, or so they say. Saddam Hussein was a dictator, and the people of Iraq “groaned” under him, yearning to be free. And so on.
You pointed out that the Constitution guaranteed our freedoms, creating a “country founded on the idea of freedom for its people.” Actually (as note below, as well), the Constitution simply lays out our governmental architecture, and as far as that goes, seems designed to limit, rather than expand, on local freedoms/democracies.
Indeed, that fact occurred to me not more than two minutes before reading the above.
I apologize. It was not my intention to mock you at all.
First off, I’m impressed by your googling skills. And what an interesting study. Some of the answers speak volumes.
Secondly, sure, if pressed, a Swede might say…nyahhh, I don’t know. He/she might check the box “somewhat proud” in answer to the question, “Are you proud of the way democracy works in Sweden?” In fact, democracy is a very important value in Sweden. But I still argue they wouldn’t go round waving flags and saying, “I’m proud of our Grundlag.” Pride in the Constitution is sentiment exclusive, or very nearly exclusive, to Americans.
I guess I just don’t understand why this very good thing, for which a person might be reasonably grateful, also inspires the emotion of pride. I fully respect you feeling that way, but I honestly don’t understand it, even having grown up over there.
Maybe those rednecks just hit me in the head one time too often?