# source of national pride **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 13, 2014, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592 "2014-03-13T04:10:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2014, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/21 "2014-03-13T21:48:12Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > DMark and Broken Briton are right. I’m _happy_ to have been born an American, but I don’t claim _pride_ for anything I didn’t personally do. You could say, though, that part of being American is working to preserve the good that others have done. Just voting, for instance, should make you (somewhat) proud of yourself, for exercising the right that others worked so hard to establish. Participating on a free-speech discussion board should make you proud to live in a place where this is so well protected. You’re helping keep speech free, simply by exercising it. ---
**Author:** ![BrokenBriton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@BrokenBriton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrokenBriton)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2014, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/22 "2014-03-13T23:22:30Z")
Yep, you \*could \*say that. But most people would walk out the door backwards if you did. ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2014, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/23 "2014-03-13T23:40:44Z")
Manny Pacquiao Lea Salonga Efren “bata” Reyes Boracay beach and most importantly, gorgeous women. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2014, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/24 "2014-03-13T23:44:59Z")
[QUOTE=bibliophage] And the head to chop of Abélard’s balls in the name of chastity. [/QUOTE] Give this man an Internets, he’s won one. [QUOTE=BrokenBriton] I can be ‘proud’ of something I did - something I achieved - but it gets weird quickly if you’re talking about a stranger or bunch of strangers. Extra weird if it’s not in my lifetime. Am I proud of Issac Newton or the Battle of Britain? er no. Am I proud of the NHS? kind of. [/QUOTE] Oh, fo’ sho’. Let me be clear that all the “French national prides” I listed are things that I believe would likely come up if you asked the average Frenchman “what makes France AWESOME, exactly ?” - I myself don’t derive personal pride from the historical existence of Napoleon or the present existence of _cassoulet toulousain_. It’s just part of the scenery of my life. I would much rather live here than in, say, Alabama ; but I’m not \*proud \*of living here, having been born here, yadda yadda. Oddly enough however, even though I would self-describe as the least patriotic person and the first to criticize or mock my country… I still get half worked up when foreigners poo-poo it undeservedly or out of ignorance/false information (e.g. “Ha, ha, the Maginot line, you idiots ! They just ran around !”. Yes. Yes they did. That was the _point_). I’m kind of ashamed of this, TBH. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2014, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/25 "2014-03-13T23:48:54Z")
> [@BrokenBriton](#): > > Yep, you \*could \*say that. But most people would walk out the door backwards if you did. I’m now the King of England? Cool! ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/26 "2014-03-14T02:38:47Z")
Hills Hoists are pretty awesome. And goon bags. Pharlap! Don Bradman! Australia ---
**Author:** ![ThisUsernameIsForbidden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b4bc9f/32.png) [@ThisUsernameIsForbidden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisUsernameIsForbidden)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/27 "2014-03-14T03:59:00Z")
Groupthink. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/28 "2014-03-14T05:48:31Z")
The US is the cradle of democracy? Wha? ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/29 "2014-03-14T06:17:00Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > The US is the cradle of democracy? Wha? I call bullshit: I mentioned the Magna Carta. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/30 "2014-03-14T07:01:00Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > The US is the cradle of democracy? Wha? My first thought as well. ---
**Author:** ![Frank\_Merton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Frank\_Merton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_Merton)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/31 "2014-03-14T07:25:00Z")
Most Americans even now are indoctrinated about the greatness of their country. It is absurd and dangerous. The States are okay, but that is about it; there are lots of places freer and where living is better. The States as it has evolved is ruled by a ruling class of lawyers and wealth, where politicians are pretty much bought and sold and convince themselves they aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![Batistuta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/58956e/32.png) [@Batistuta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batistuta)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/32 "2014-03-14T08:08:57Z")
> [@Steken](#): > > Swedes, by and large, aren’t proud of their country. They’re like “yeah it’s pretty neat,” but they’re not proud. As a foreigner living in Sweden, I see the Swedish attitude towards patriotism as one of _relief_ rather than _pride_. It’s a ‘thank God we live in Sweden and not anywhere else on the planet’, a long sigh of relief. However, if you dig deep enough it’s possible to find the tiniest trace of national pride. During my first months in Sweden, when people asked me what I thought of the country, I’d say “you guys are so lucky to have such a well-functioning state and such a great safety net”. (I’m sorry, as a political scientist I focus on that kind of boring stuff) Rather than responding with a “yes, we’re lucky”, many Swedes would show their national pride right there. Their response would be a “no, we’re not lucky, we pay taxes for this” or “if we have this safety net today it’s because of the sacrifices of previous generations”. So from an outsider’s point of view, I think the ‘Swedish model’ is the only possible source of pride here. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/33 "2014-03-14T09:06:25Z")
There’s lots that us Kiwis are proud of… First to offer universal suffrage Sir Ed Sir John Sir Richard Sir Apirana Rutherford Just to name a few Then of course there’s our history at Gallipoli The Nuke Ban treatment of women - at one point the three highest political offices in the country were held by woman Fastest Indian Mclaren (YES - that mclaren) Dolly (the sheep, not the singer) Kiri Peter (Jackson that is) Naturally - the All Blacks are a source of National pride Our yachtsmen Jet Boats (what you [didn’t know](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Hamilton_(engineer)) :dubious:) BUNGY!! Zorbing ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/34 "2014-03-14T09:22:48Z")
> [@Gleena](#): > > Hills Hoists are pretty awesome. And goon bags. Pharlap! Don Bradman! > > Australia Seconding the goon, and adding ‘laid back to the point of catatonia’. 😃 Oh, and Aussies are really good at taking the piss out of themselves, and I for one am very proud that we do! Wot? ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/35 "2014-03-14T13:36:20Z")
I think there is a fine line between pride in one’s community and jingoism. Pride in one’s community requires effort, it means that you will do your part to make the community better; while jingoism really just requires you to chant USA! at a sporting event a couple of times a year. I don’t really take pride in America’s accomplishments like the moon landing or D-day because I feel like for intellectual consistency’s sake, I’d also have to be ashamed of things like slavery, the invasion of Iraq and the internment of Japanese-American citizens. I’m not responsible for any of that stuff, the good or the bad. ---
**Author:** ![Frank\_Merton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Frank\_Merton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_Merton)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/36 "2014-03-14T14:07:37Z")
I would say that patriotism – the willingness to die for one’s country – is admirable, as is pride in the good things of one’s country. Jingoism is the idea that one’s country is better than other countries and a denigration of other countries. All countries are beautiful and have wonderful people. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/37 "2014-03-14T15:01:36Z")
Panama is proud of the Panama Canal, although they are somewhat embarrassed by the fact that they not only didn’t build it, relatively few actual Panamanians even worked on it. (It was mostly built by imported labor from the West Indies and elsewhere.) However, they do have a justifiable pride in the fact that they have been running it well since they took it over in 1999, and are engaged in an ambitious expansion. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/38 "2014-03-14T15:25:26Z")
Scotland says [“Wha’s like us?”](http://www.laird.org.uk/Scots/The_Scots.htm) ---
**Author:** ![BrokenBriton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@BrokenBriton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrokenBriton)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/39 "2014-03-14T15:28:29Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > Scotland says [“Wha’s like us?”](http://www.laird.org.uk/Scots/The_Scots.htm) Ime, the only people in this world more self-obsessed than teenage girls are the Scots. So there. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2014, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592/40 "2014-03-14T15:29:59Z")
So, what you’re saying is this board needs more teenage Scots girls? Cool. 🆒 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-of-national-pride/683592.md?page=3)