In the broad sense I’m behind the OP.
You(Americans) have every right to be proud and happy today.
Tomorrow the work begins but today you deserve a party. I have never been jealous of another countrys leader before now. I wish we had a person with such passion and intelligence in my government.
Well done American and enjoy today. The world is watching with you. I’ve just had to set up a computer that can stream the Inaugaration broadcast so we can watch it in work.
Best wishes from Ireland.
You did good, you deserve a party
+1
Close? It wasn’t close by any stretch of the imagination.
I don’t understand the hostility towards the OP. I don’t think he was trying to be a pompous jerk at all. I find patriotism south of the border a little over the top at times too but watching the speech and the crowds and everything this evening I was a little wistful knowing that we will never ever hear Stephen Harper, Jack Layton or Iggy deliver a speech that moves a crowd to tears, inspires a nation and offers hope for the the future.
Hey, Thanks OP. Our patriotism has been pretty battered over the last almost decade. I look very much forward to having a country and government I can be proud of. As always, my patriotism was rooted in our highest ideals, not in rhetoric. I’ve been most proud of my country when we are united and felt sadness after 9/11 that “In God We Trust” became the mantra instead of “United We Stand.”
I think and hope most of us understood what The Flying Dutchman meant and the good will he clearly intended. President Obama is the second great speaker in my lifetime and the second I voted for and both made the majority of Americans feel better after they spoke. But Obama not only is a great speaker, he is by his very parentage a sign of how far this country has come in 70 years and the 40 years since Martin Luther King was assassinated. I think in many ways America is feeling even lower now that we did before Reagan took office and Reagan did a lot for the morale of the country after so many years of disappointment and decline. I hope Obama can and will do the same and I think he will.
I saw a very happy American Icon last night singing the song he wrote for America and gifted to all Americans. It was Pete Seeger who will turn 90 this year. He was happier than I have ever seen him and I have seen him fairly often. In his face I saw how much pride he has for his country that once had him blacklisted.
Thanks, OP. I understand what you are saying, and my hope and pride has been lowered in the last eight years. Today was a good day.
I don’t understand where this attitude comes from that other countries are not allowed to criticize us even a wee bit. On the contrary, we should listen to what everyone says and judge the comments individually.
I understand the electoral college math and all, but the fact that it was only a 7.2% popular vote margin, not even close to being in the top half of margins all time, and that after the steaming pile of dung the last administration created still 60 million Americans were eager to opt for more really makes it hard for me to feel too proud about us as a collective.
That’s just an excuse. Europe’s dislike of us goes way, way back.
He did not merely “assess”. He went much farther than that. He presumed to define what we should consider as “real” patriotism.
I didn’t say you did.
“Ridiculous” is an opinion. “Adventures” is a loaded term.
The title was not. I would not presume to pronounce on “real Canadian patriotism”.
Really. I don’t understand the negative responses he has been getting.
Thanks, Flying Dutchman. I’ve been watching this inauguration all day now. I’ve always thought I was patriotic in the sense of the ideals of our founding government, but not until today have I really felt that in my heart. Watching the millions of people who assembled in Washington to cheer on this huge change in power, but,precisely what Democracy is about; have to say, today I have felt emotions I have never felt in my life before, because this has never been seen before.
Seeing all the people in the crowd, hearing even now all the loud cheers along the parade trail; this is the real America that has progressed despite the folks who harp on fear and negativity. I felt a fleeting glimpse of what happened when this country parted with colonial powers, when Democracy was a radical, vital idea.
That idea is still about human potential, and I’m so glad today to see the true inclusion of all of us. Not only President Obama, but seeing all the women in power now who presided over the ceremony. And, gotta say, I was watching CBS on my antennae TV, and the head anchor is a woman. We’re getting there, and, now, barriers are broken to get us all to the best even sooner.
Not being ridiculously large doesn’t make it small either. And 7.2% is by far the largest margin we’ve had since 1988, when Bush Sr. won with 55%. The election wasn’t close. It wasn’t Reaganesque/Rooseveltian blowout, but it wasn’t close.
And that is the real American patriotism I’m talking about. I don’t think any serious presidential candidate ever made such an issue about it. Even though the economy was polled as the #1 issue in the election, I believe the real issue and American hope is for a national expression and committed administration for the higher ideals.
rowrrbazzle, when I used the term “real patriotism”, I’m coming from the history of those Americans who defined patriotism by their support of American government foreign policy right or wrong. Particularly excluding those who protest “and give comfort to the enemy”.
Thank you** Flying Dutchman**. I’m another who appreciates your kind words and I really wonder why some find fault in your OP.
*Much closer than it should have been. *
Happy? Have I parsed words precisely enough to get my point across?
My problem wasn’t with your phrasing, I simply disagreed with what you said. Why do you think Obama should have won by more? As we’ve seen very well the past two or four times, not every election has a 10+% margin of victory.
I have a few things to say, though I do thank the OP for his sentiments.
Being in Japan it gives me great pride to hear my students, and even random people, praising Obama. Bush made me ashamed of being American for quite some time… well, not ashamed of BEING American, really, so much as being ashamed of what my country was doing and how it was viewed.
Patriotism can be a scary thing, though. There was a time when talking about the war in Iraq as being pointless and causeless was equivalent to being anti-American for some people (and don’t get me started on the BS that these people spout. Vietnam should have taught us that being against the WAR is <i>not</i> the same as being against the WARRIOR. I have friends in the military, I support them, but I don’t think they should be sent off to die due to BS politics and our former president’s personal agenda). However, when that patriotic pendulem swings the other way, supporting a message of hope over one of fear and ignorance, than it’s definitely a good thing, and I think that’s what the OP intended. It’s good to be able to take pride in the positives of your country again without being weighed down by the negatives. Whether Obama lives up to his bargain or not is almost irrelevant (and, as is inherent in a politician, it’s pretty doubtful he’ll be the savior people want him to be) but the fact that we as a country voted for a message of hope over a message of fear is quite refreshing.
That said, I was a little disappointed in Obama’s margain of victory in the popular vote. It should have been a clean sweep, but too many people believe the Faux News-type BS. I mean even the official website for the Californian Republican Party had a graphic that said “Obama / Osama. The only difference is BS” and that sort of crap is absolutely unacceptable (even my friends back home (in California) who are republican were pissed about that).
I do have hope, though, and that’s a VERY refreshing feeling after the last 8 years of hatred and ignorance ruling our foreign policy
I agree - the “actually proud of my country because both the citizens and the leader are doing great things and working towards ideals that don’t have to do with hating particular groups of people” flavor of patriotism does taste much better than the “I must wave a flag and not say anything bad about the CiC no matter how much shit he puts this country through, and not question anything my leaders do because gosh there’s a war on” flavor.
I voted for McCain and would again, but what this country needs right now is a dose of optimism and hope. An obsession with the President and confidence in his ability to fix the economy (whether it is warranted or not) may just be what is needed to get a little consumer confidence back.